San Diego Symphony Upcoming Events & Tickets
Event Details
San Diego Symphony 2025-26 Season Info
The San Diego Symphony is proud to present its 2025–26 season at the newly renovated Jacobs Music Center, formerly known as Copley Symphony Hall. This marks the orchestra’s second full season in its transformed home — an updated nearly 100‑year‑old theater reborn with outstanding acoustics, thoughtful aesthetics, and flexible staging capabilities that magnify the emotional power of performance.
This season’s Jacobs Masterworks series spans 21 programs, including eight works making their San Diego Symphony premieres, 11 concertos, 19 symphonies, and a dedicated two‑week Brahms Festival. Highlights also include audience favorites and lesser‑heard repertoire.
A major season highlight is composer Jimmy López beginning his two‑year Composer‑in‑Residence tenure. In 2025–26, the Symphony will perform two of his works — Ephemerae, a piano concerto, and Peru Negro for orchestra — and has already co‑commissioned a new work for performance in 2026–27.
Music Director Rafael Payare will lead 13 programs, shaping a season rooted in storytelling through music — a season designed “to bring joy and to inspire the human spirit,” as stated by Symphony President and CEO Martha Gilmer.
Featured Performances
- The season opens with a French-themed program featuring Debussy’s The Box of Toys and The Joyful Island, and Ravel’s one-act opera The Child and the Magical Spells, directed by Gerard McBurney, with the San Diego Symphony Chorus and soprano Liv Redpath (Oct 3 & 5).
- Next, Payare conducts Chabrier’s España, López’s Ephemerae with piano soloist Javier Perianes, and Schumann’s Symphony No. 2 (Oct 11 & 12).
- Gemma New leads a celestial program with Auerbach’s Icarus, Vaughan Williams’s The Lark Ascending, and Holst’s The Planets (Oct 17 & 18).
- November brings Mahler’s The Boy’s Magical Horn with baritone Matthias Goerne, paired with Bruckner’s “Romantic” Symphony No. 4 (Nov 7 & 8), followed by Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture, Sibelius’s Violin Concerto with Augustin Hadelich, and Schubert’s Symphony No. 9 (Nov 14 & 15).
- Additional highlights include Olly Wilson’s Shango Memory, Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4 featuring pianist Steven Osborne, and Sibelius’s Symphony No. 1 (Nov 21 & 22), followed by Randall Goosby in Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto, alongside Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition and Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 8 (Dec 6/7 and Jan 24/25).
- Payare returns in early 2026 with Mahler’s Symphony No. 7 (Jan 31 & Feb 1) and pianist Benjamin Grosvenor performing Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G alongside Britten’s Four Sea Interludes and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 (Feb 21 & 22).
- The two‑week Brahms Festival includes: A German Requiem with soloists Julie Boulianne and Michael Sumuel (Feb 27 & Mar 1); Brahms’s Symphonies Nos. 1 & 2 (Feb 28); his Violin Concerto with Leonidas Kavakos and Symphony No. 4 (Mar 6).
- The season’s grand finale (May 15–16 & 22–24) showcases López’s Peru Negro, Berg’s Violin Concerto with Jeff Thayer, Mendelssohn’s “Scottish” Symphony, Strauss’s Also sprach Zarathustra, and Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle starring mezzo-soprano Karen Cargill.
Jazz & Family Programming
- Jazz @ The Jacobs, curated by trumpeter Gilbert Castellanos, returns with three concerts, including performances of John Coltrane’s Blue Train and a Songs for Lovers Valentine’s Day special.
- There are also three Family Concerts and four Symphony Kids programs, crafting engaging, age-appropriate experiences for young audiences.
San Diego Symphony 2025-26 Tickets Info
Tickets for San Diego Symphony 2025-26 live performances are available now through EventsChaser, with NO hidden service fees. Prices generally range from $70 to $200 for most classical concerts at the Jacobs Music Center, depending on the program, day of the week, and seating location. Mid-level seats typically cost between $95 and $150, offering a strong balance of sound quality and sightlines in the hall’s acoustically refined space. Premium programs — such as special holiday performances, high-profile guest soloists, or large-scale works like Mahler and Strauss — can reach $250 or more for top-tier seating.
About San Diego Symphony
The San Diego Symphony is one of Southern California’s leading cultural institutions, known for its powerful performances, innovative programming, and deep commitment to community engagement. Founded in 1910, it has grown into a full-time professional orchestra performing year-round, with a repertoire that spans classical masterworks, contemporary pieces, jazz, film scores, and educational concerts.
The orchestra performs primarily at the Jacobs Music Center, a historic venue in downtown San Diego that reopened in 2023 after an extensive renovation. The revitalized hall now ranks among the top acoustical spaces in the country, offering an immersive listening experience for audiences and artists alike. The Symphony also presents performances at The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park, its stunning outdoor waterfront venue that opened in 2021 and has quickly become a landmark for live music in the region.
Beyond the concert stage, the San Diego Symphony is deeply involved in education and outreach. Through programs like Symphony Kids, community concerts, and partnerships with local schools, the orchestra reaches thousands of young listeners each year. Its mission goes beyond performance — it aims to connect people through music, foster creativity, and enrich the cultural life of San Diego and its surrounding communities.
