Experience world-class performances at KZNPO’s 2025 ‘Summer Season’ concerts
The KwaZulu-Natal Philharmonic Orchestra (KZNPO) is set to enthral music enthusiasts as it unveils its 2025 Summer Season.
The show is set to feature two unforgettable concerts at The Playhouse Opera Theatre on Thursday, February 20, and February 27.
With each performance starting at 7pm, the orchestra is eager to rekindle its cherished connection with the community of music lovers.
Bongani Tembe, the chief executive and artistic director of the KZN Philharmonic, expressed his excitement.
He said: “It is our great pleasure and privilege to welcome back our unique community of music lovers for our two-concert ‘Summer Symphony Season’ of 2025.”
He highlighted the orchestra's ongoing commitment to community engagement and nurturing new-generation artists and learners.
Tembe added: “Now as ever, we are set to uphold the grand traditions of our long-running World Symphony Series, as we bring the music lovers accomplished guest stars from around the world.
“The season dovetails with our continued commitment to community engagement and skills transfer among new-generation artists and learners.”
The season kicks off on Thursday, February 20, with a concert celebrating the brilliance of Russian composer, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and German composer and pianist, Ludwig van Beethoven.
Meanwhile, esteemed conductor Daniel Boico will lead the audience through the evocative “Egmont” Overture.
This will be followed by a showcase of Tchaikovsky’s only “Violin Concerto”, performed by Mayumi Kanagawa, a Berlin-based Japanese American violinist.
The award-winning Kanagawa has earned widespread praise for her rich and dark sound.
As a gold medallist of the 2024 George Enescu competition as well as prize winner at the 2019 Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow and silver medallist at the 2018 Long-Thibaud Crespin competition in Paris, she is establishing herself as a versatile and refined soloist and chamber musician.
Over her career, Kanagawa has performed with many orchestras worldwide. This includes the Mariinsky Orchestra in Russia, the Belgian National Symphony based in Brussels and the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra in the Czech Republic among numerous others, in repertoire ranging from (Johann Sebastian) Bach to (Benjamin) Britten and (Alban) Berg.
In addition, she is also currently an ambassador for El Sistema, Japan’s new “Ribbon” project, bringing instruments and music education to children in the foster care system.
Her debut CD, “Recital”, with pianist Giuseppe Guarrera, was released in Japan in February 2023 to wide critical acclaim and in 2024, she received the Fresh Artist Award from the Nippon Steel Corporation.
The concert will culminate in Beethoven’s “Symphony No.4”, which is renowned for its enchanting charm.
The anticipation continues to build for the second concert on Thursday, February 27.
Under the baton of conductor Mark Kadin, the evening’s program will dazzle with works from Austrian composer Joseph Haydn, Polish composer, Frédéric Chopin and German composer and pianist, Felix Mendelssohn.
The concert will open wit Haydn's spirited, “Toy Symphony”.
The performance promises an engaging atmosphere with playful sound effects and the surprise participation of local celebrity guest artists, whose identities remain a mystery.
As the concert evolves, Spanish virtuoso Leo de Maria will grace the stage, performing Chopin’s “Piano Concerto No. 1” in E minor, a piece renowned for its virtuosic demands and emotional depth.
The evening will conclude with Mendelssohn’s “Symphony No. 4” in A Major, affectionately known as “Italian”.
To assist theatregoers, the KZN Philharmonic Orchestra is providing a subsidised bus service which will allow people to park in their respective suburbs and to then hop onto a bus into town to experience the concert.
There are various routes on offer, ranging from R60 to R100.
Where: The Playhouse Opera Theatre.
When: February 20 to 27. Both shows start at 7pm.
Cost: Tickets are R113 and can be purchased at Quicket or through the KZN Philharmonic office on 031 369 9438. You can also email: info@kznphil.org.za.