2026-27 Season

MAHLER: Symphony No. 3 in D Minor

Stephen Alltop, Music Director and Conductor
Susan Platts, mezzo-soprano
University of Illinois Women’s Glee Club, Andrea Solya, Director
Central Illinois Youth Chorus, Andrea Solya, Director

Maestro Stephen Alltop and the Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra will open the 67th season with a performance of the Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler, a work of epic proportions and powerful emotions. CUSO is joined by the University of Illinois Women’s Glee Club and the Central Illinois Youth Chorus. Blending orchestra majesty with the joyous sounds of bells and children’s voices, Mahler’s Symphony No. 3 is an incredible composition to experience in concert. The final movement is one of the most moving in the symphonic repertoire.

TICKETS ON SALE NOW!
$45 standard/$40 senior/$10 youth, student of any age

J. S. BACH: Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 in F Major, BWV 1046
BUXTEHUDE: Präludium in G Minor
WILHELM FRIEDEMANN BACH: Adagio et Fuga, Fk. 65
GEORG PHILIPP TELEMANN: Flute Concerto in G Major, TWV 51:G2
HAYDN: Symphony No. 7 in C Major, “Le Midi”

Stephen Alltop, Conductor and organ

Join Maestro Stephen Alltop and CUSO for this dazzling concert of Baroque masterpieces, showcasing numerous solo instruments, including flutes, oboes, horns, violin, viola, cello, and contrabass. The Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 of Johann Sebastian Bach resounds with the rustic sounds of horns and oboes. Flutes are featured in delightful works by Wilhelm Freidemann Bach and Georg Philipp Telemann, showing different branches of the Bach family tree. Stephen Alltop will perform Dieterich Buxtehude’s dramatic masterwork for organ, the Präludium in G Minor. Our afternoon concert concludes with Franz Joseph Haydn’s exquisite Symphony No. 7, featuring exciting instrumental displays that will delight and entertain you.

TICKETS: General Admission
Adult: $32
Youth/Student of any age, including U of I: $10

Tickets are on sale now through the CUSO Office. Download the Ticket Order Form here. To place your credit card order by phone, call the CUSO Office at 217-351-9139.

WENDELL: A Chanukah Overture
arr. NAUGHTIN: A Christmas Feast
arr. REDFORD: Joseph Dearest, Joseph Mine
MOZART: Exsultate, jubilate, K. 165 (selections)
WALDTEUFEL: The Skaters’ Waltz (Les Patineurs), Op. 183
PACHELBEL: Christmas Canon (Trans-Siberian Orchestra)
NAUGHTIN: A Visit From St. Nicholas (text by Clement C. Moore)
ADAM: O, Holy Night
ANDERSON: Sleigh Ride
arr. NAUGHTIN: Christmas Angels Sing-Along

Stephen Alltop, Music Director and Conductor
Katelyn Lee, soprano
Central Illinois Youth Chorus, Andrea Solya, Director

CUSO’s popular holiday concert features seasonal favorites to please the whole family. The celebration begins with A Chanukah Overture by Robert Wendell and A Christmas Feast, a medley of five ancient carols arranged by Matthew Naughtin. Émile Waldteuful’s lively classic, The Skaters’ Waltz, will brighten holiday spirits. Dazzling soprano Katelyn Lee will perform Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s radiant motet, Exsultate, jubilate, and Adolphe Adam’s beloved carol, O, Holy Night. The magic continues as the talented singers of the Central Illinois Youth Chorus join CUSO to perform Christmas Canon, the Trans-Siberian Orchestra’s beautiful interpretation of Johann Pachelbel’s Canon in D Major. Naughtin’s A Visit From St. Nicholas presents a charming orchestral setting for Clement C. Moore’s delightful poem. Leroy Anderson’s Sleigh Ride, a visit from Santa, and a sing-along of holiday carols will make the season bright.

TICKETS ON SALE NOW!
$45 standard/$40 senior/$10 youth, student of any age

HOLMÈS: Air de Ballet
BIZET: L’Arlésienne Suite No. 2
ORFF: Carmina Burana

Stephen Alltop, Music Director and Conductor
Cynthia Hu, soprano
Andrew Morstein, tenor
Ricardo Herrera, baritone
Apollo Chorus of Chicago
University of Illinois Oratorio Society, Andrew Major, Director

Join CUSO as we enliven the late winter with colorful and vibrant music. Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana is dramatic and fateful, amorous and delightful. Few works leave an audience more spellbound. Music lovers from far and wide won’t want to miss the University of Illinois Oratorio Society and the Apollo Chorus of Chicago combining to form a powerful choir of 150 singers. Rounding out this program will be charming music by the French composer Augusta Holmès and a delightful suite drawn from Georges Bizet’s L’Arlésienne.

TICKETS ON SALE NOW!
$45 standard/$40 senior/$10 youth, student of any age

TCHAIKOVSKY: Violin Concerto in D Major
SHOSTAKOVICH: Symphony No. 5 in D Minor, Op. 47

Stephen Alltop, Music Director and Conductor
Jinjoo Cho, violin

The Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra’s 67th season finale presents two blockbuster works.  Violinist Jinjoo Cho has thrilled audiences around the world with her brilliant technique and stunning musicality. Her gifts will be on full display in Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto. Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5 reflects the dramatic history of its composition and the composer’s complete mastery of the symphonic form.

TICKETS ON SALE NOW!
$45 standard/$40 senior/$10 youth, student of any age