2026-27 Symphony Brochure

ICONIC THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA 107th SEASON gregory wolynec, music director

WELCOME Welcome to a season of ICONIC masterpieces. In this, our third season together, the Southern Miss Symphony Orchestra and I have pulled out all the stops as we celebrate many of the most acclaimed and influential works of the past two centuries. We bookend our year with some of the most famous melodies ever written for orchestra. Along the way, we will feature numerous guest artists from both near and far in works that express the full range of human emotion. You won’t want to miss a single event.

OPENING NIGHT!

September 24, 2026 – 7:30 p.m.

Bennett Auditorium

The 107th season of your Southern Miss Symphony Orchestra opens with two works made famous in popular culture.

Rossini’s William Tell Overture and Ravel’s Bolero were featured in classics for the large and small screens. Jeffrey Wood’s touching portrayal of Joseph Merrick was named the première of the year by Nashville Scene in 2016.

PROGRAM

Gioachino Rossini – William Tell Overture Jeffrey Wood – Different Bodies Richard Wagner – Prelude to Act I from Lohengrin Maurice Ravel – Bolero

TICKETS

800.844.8425

601.266.5418

southernmiss.com/tickets

Fright Night!

October 29, 2026 – 7:30 p.m.

Bennett Auditorium With Halloween and El Día de los Muertos just around the corner, the Symphony Orchestra presents an evening of frightening classics.

From Saint-Saëns devilish evocation to Penderecki’s haunting sounds, from Schubert’s terrifying horse ride to Berlioz’s ghoulish masterpiece, join us for an evening of terrifying treasures. Costumes are optional.

PROGRAM

Camille Saint-Saëns – Danse Macabre Krysztof Penderecki – Intermezzo for 24 Strings Franz Schubert/orch. Franz Liszt – Erlkönig Hector Berlioz – Symphonie Fantastique

Natasha, Pierre &

the Great Comet of 1812

Friday and Saturday, November 6 and 7, 2026 – 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, November 7, 2026 – 1 p.m.

Sunday, November 8, 2026 – 3 p.m.

The Thomas V. Fraschillo Stage at the Mannoni Performing Arts Center Auditorium Blending soaring pop, electro, folk and Broadway sounds into a “stunning and blazingly original” score, this genre-defying musical pulls audiences directly into a story of love, temptation, regret and redemption. Be surrounded by music, movement and emotion in a way few shows ever have.

Praised as “the most innovative… since Hamilton” and earning 12 Tony Award nominations, it redefined what modern musical theatre could be while collecting major honors, including Obie and OffBroadway Alliance Awards for Best New Musical. For a season celebrating the truly iconic, The Great Comet stands as a bold, oncein-a-generation experience, that doesn’t just tell a story but invites audiences to step inside it and feel it unfold around them.

TICKETS

800.844.8425

601.266.5418

southernmiss.com/tickets

Holiday Choral Spectacular December 1 and 3, 2026 – 7:30 p.m.

Main St. Baptist Church

Don’t miss this annual community celebration of the season with choir and orchestra. Our program features all the ensembles within Southern Miss Choral Activities, including the Southern Chorale, Southern Miss Concert Choir, and Southern Miss pop a cappella ensemble, Spirit of Southern, with the full Hattiesburg Choral Union.

The holiday program will also include a world premiere of In the Bleak Midwinter, written for the choirs by composer-in-residence, Richard Burchard. Based on the audience response last year, selections by another Strauss returns! Our holiday tradition will have you singing along and dancing toward a new year!

PROGRAM

Josef Strauss – Music of the Spheres, Feurfest!, Die Libelle Richard Burchard – In the Bleak Midwinter Seasonal holiday classics

Future Stars

February 18, 2027 – 7:30 p.m.

Bennett Auditorium Winners of the William T. Gower competition showcase the immense talent to be found in the Southern Miss School of Music.

Drawn from 15 different countries, our Symphony musicians bring the world’s talent to Hattiesburg. From them, three talented student musicians will be chosen to perform solo concertos with the Orchestra. This is always one of the Symphony’s best attended concerts as our patrons come out to support these talented students.

PROGRAM

Winners of the William T. Gower Concerto Competition

TICKETS

800.844.8425

601.266.5418

southernmiss.com/tickets

La Pasión!

March 19, 2027 – 7:30 p.m.

The Thomas V. Fraschillo Stage at the Mannoni Performing Arts Center Auditorium In 2000, Osvaldo Golijov’s Latin-American setting of the passion paid tribute to the great JS Bach and took the world by storm. This fusion of classical music with salsa, Flamenco and countless other traditions has toured the major metropolitan capitals of the world.

Alongside original cast members, your Symphony and the Southern Chorale present a modern masterpiece in a once-in-a-lifetime event.

PROGRAM

Osvaldo Golijov – La Pasión según San Marcos

Ode to Joy! May 6, 2027 – 7:30 p.m.

Main Street Baptist Church

The end to our season will be truly ICONIC! One of the most acclaimed works in history, Beethoven’s monumental final symphonic masterpiece brings together the full force of the Hattiesburg Choral Union with our acclaimed Symphony in an uplifting celebration of humanity.

PROGRAM

Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony No. 9 in D, “Choral”

TICKETS

800.844.8425

601.266.5418

southernmiss.com/tickets

SEVEN ICONIC SYMPHONY EVENTS ONE LOW PRICE ORDER SEASON TICKETS NOW PHONE 800.844.8425 601.266.5418

IN PERSON Pat Ferlise Center 2949 W. Fourth St. Hattiesburg, MS

SEASON TICKETS

On sale through September 25 $170 – Platinum - premium seating Best seats in the house! $20 savings over individual tickets! $150 – Gold - main floor $15 savings over individual tickets! $140 – Silver - main floor and upper balcony $10 savings over individual tickets!

Choose ONE date for THE GREAT COMET NOVEMBER 6, 2026 - 7:30 p.m.

November 7, 2026 - 1 p.m. or 7:30 p.m.

November 8, 2026 - 3 p.m. and Choose ONE date for the Holiday Choral Spectacular December 1, 2026 December 3, 2026

INDIVIDUAL TICKETS

On sale September 2 $30 – Platinum - premium seating $25 – Gold - main floor $20 – Silver - main floor and upper balcony $20 – General admission

ONLINE

southernmiss.com/tickets

BENNETT AUDITORIUM STAGE

A

A

PLATINUM RESERVED

U AA EE

GOLD RESERVED SILVER RESERVED PLATINUM RESERVED BALCONY

U AA EE

SILVER GENERAL ADMISSION BALCONY

MANNONI PERFORMING ARTS CENTER STAGE A

GOLD RESERVED

A

PLATINUM RESERVED

GOLD RESERVED P

SILVER RESERVED

AA

AA

GG

P

SILVER RESERVED BALCONY

The ICONIC season brochure includes principal photography by Paul Lijewski with graphic design by Mike Lopinto.

GG

TICKETS 800.844.8425

SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA 118 College Drive #5081 Hattiesburg, MS 39406

601.266.5418

southernmiss.com/tickets

usm.edu/symphony

Nonprofit Organization US Postage Paid Hattiesburg, MS 39402 Permit No. 148

EOE/VETS/DISABILITY