Join the Hampton Roads Philharmonic this season for in-person performances within the Hampton Roads Community! All concerts (unless otherwise noted) are free, but donations will be accepted! Tickets are not required.
Sunday Performance
October 17 | 4pm
Fort Monroe Theatre | 42 Tidball Rd, Hampton, VA 23651
After more than a season away from the stage, the HRP returns with a program featuring Grieg’s Symphonic Dances. This piece, similar in scope and intensity to a symphony, is full of tuneful melodies that range from boisterous to introspective. Each concert this season will premiere a new movement of this work. Music by Ravel, Elgar, and Pietro Mascagni fill out the program’s first half. Finally, we will hold our annual Golden Baton raffle. The winner has the chance to conduct the orchestra in December for the well-known holiday classic, Sleigh Ride!
Young Artists Competition
November 14 | 10am-5pm
The American Theatre | 125 E Mellen St, Hampton, VA 23663
The Hampton Roads Philharmonic opens a portion of its season to feature a young soloist. Our Young Artists Competition fosters musical talent in our community and gives young musicians the opportunity to perform as a soloist with an orchestra. Decided by an adjudicated competition, the winner will perform with the Hampton Roads Philharmonic as a featured soloist. This competition audition is not open to the public. However, we invite you to attend March’s Young Artist Competition Showcase to hear the winners live.
Sunday Performance | Winter Classics & Holiday Favorites
December 12 | 2:30pm
Fort Monroe Theatre | 42 Tidball Rd, Hampton, VA 23651
Hear a festive program of winter classics & holiday favorites. This program is a light, family-fun mix of the familiar sounds of the season. We also blend in wintry classical works, tunes from film, guest appearances, and more! The winner of October’s Golden Baton raffle will guest conduct Sleigh Ride. Stick around throughout the weekend and attend other events at Ft. Monroe as part of their annual Holly Days event.
Young Artists Competition Showcase Performance
March 6 | 2:30pm
The American Theatre | 125 E Mellen St, Hampton, VA 23663
Our return to the American Theater promises to dazzle, inspire, and celebrate our community’s outstanding musical talent. Ritchie Bui, the winner of November’s Young Artist Competition, will perform the Allegro from Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 13. Preceding his performance, the orchestra opens with The Impresario Overture of Mozart and the hauntingly passionate Andante from Beethoven’s 7th Symphony. After a brief intermission, the orchestra will close with works by contemporary composer Steven Bryant, Ralph Vaughn Williams, and Jean Sibelius. Admission is $20 per person.
Virginia Community Music Festival
April 24 | 3pm
Christopher Newport University | 1 Avenue of the Arts, Newport News, VA 23606
The Virginia Community Music Festival provides community music ensembles the experience of performing in the acoustically superb halls of the Ferguson Center for the Arts, celebrates and promotes lifelong music-making, offers workshops and clinics on how to serve the community better and manage an organization, and enhances the cultural life of Hampton Roads.
The festival presents public performances by community music ensembles throughout Virginia. Programming includes lectures and workshops on health for adult musicians, audience development, fundraising, and more. The concerts are free and open to the public. Performances are held in Christopher Newport University’s Ferguson Center for the Arts and Pope Chapel.
The Philharmonic will perform highlights from our season in the Diamonstein Concert Hall.
Finale Concert
May 15 | 2:30pm
Fort Monroe Theatre | 42 Tidball Rd, Hampton, VA 23651
This season finale closes our concert cycle by featuring some of the best-loved and most widely recognized music of Aaron Copland, perhaps the quintessential composer of American music, as well as an original composition by the orchestra’s harpist, Melvin Lauf Jr. Additionally we will feature the orchestra’s chamber music groups as they perform a variety of music for various instrumentations by great American composers throughout our history.
More About the Hampton Roads Philharmonic
The Hampton Roads Philharmonic (HRP) showcases the community’s rich musical talent in four exciting programs throughout the season: October, December, March, and May. A diverse orchestra, the HRP includes active and retired military, music teachers, students, senior citizens, and youth. The orchestra welcomes familiar, and new composers alike and actively commission new works each season.
In addition to our busy concert season, members of our philharmonic also perform throughout Hampton Roads. Past performances have included Sister Cities of Newport News, Summerwinds Winery in Smithfield, and Ivy Memorial Baptist Church in Hampton. Contact us if you are interested in having our groups or members perform at your next event! Stay tuned to our social media pages to see other performances within the Hampton Roads community!