The Princess Bride in Concert
2025-03-30 19:00 - 21:30 (America/Vancouver) | Royal Theatre, 805 Broughton St
Fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles… Experience one of the most beloved films of all time at the Royal Theatre as the Victoria Symphony performs Mark Knopfler’s unforgettable score live to picture! Missing this cinematic concert would be “Inconceivable!”
© The Princess Bride Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Not included in subscription purchase discount.

Concert underwritten by John & Gabrielle Goudy
Giuseppe Pietraroia underwritten by Terry Scandrett & Angela Bassage

Beethoven Symphony No. 6 (Science and Symphony Concert)
2025-04-06 14:30 - 16:30 | Farquhar at UVic, University Farquhar Auditorium, Ring Road, Victoria, BC, V8P 5C2, Canada
THIS CONCERT IS SOLD OUT.
We share some views of our beautiful blue planet, blending live music with Science & Symphony’s high-definition films alongside Dr. José Francisco Salgado’s explorations of oceans, tides, and water. The scene is completed with some equally dramatic scores of the Cornish coast and the pastoral countryside.

Sundays at the Farquhar Series underwritten by Julie & Harry Swain
Concert underwritten by Jan & Johanna GrootWassink
Kalena Bovell is underwritten by Julie & Harry Swain
José Francisco Salgado underwritten by Jim & Betty Hesser
This concert is dedicated in memory of Tom de Faye

Angela Hewitt Plays Mozart
2025-04-13 14:30 - 16:30 | Royal Theatre, 805 Broughton St
THIS CONCERT IS SOLD OUT.
The return of Angela Hewitt is a not-to-be-missed event. Mozart’s Concert-Rondo was a “new and improved” ending for a much earlier concerto, designed to please the audiences in Vienna. Between 1784 and 1786, Mozart completed a remarkable twelve concertos, including the sublime C major (latterly nicknamed the Elvira Madigan) and the earthshattering C minor—one of only two that the legendary composer wrote in a minor key. Finzi’s Eclogue is a dialogue between piano and strings, a nostalgic and quintessentially British work worth discovering.

Sundays at the Royal Series underwritten by Jill Gibson and Sandra Lackenbauer
Concert underwritten by Sheridan Scott & David Zussman
Angela Hewitt underwritten by Natexa Verbrugge, Marc & Patricia Lortie, and Millingtons: Trustees of the Lou Williamson Scholarship Fund

The Spirit Horse Returns
2025-04-26 15:00 - 16:00 | Farquhar at UVic, University Farquhar Auditorium, Ring Road, Victoria, BC, V8P 5C2, Canada
The Spirit Horse Returns is a captivating concert for all ages that blends traditional North American Indigenous teachings, stunning visual art, and a rich orchestral score to tell powerful stories and legends of the Ojibwe Horses. A collaboration between Indigenous and non-Indigenous co-creators, it takes audiences on a journey through time, exploring the history of the Ojibwe horses as helpers and spirit guides for First Nations and Métis people, and how they were affected by the arrival of settlers, the Gold Rush, and Pony Express. The show has an inspired and uplifting message, as groups come together to rescue the last of the Ojibwe horses, giving them new life and hope.
Parental guidance notice: the concert involves mention of the death of horses and residential schools and may bring up emotions.
Complimentary Tickets for Indigenous peoples: Complimentary tickets are available for all people self-identifying as Indigenous. To redeem the offer, individuals must call or visit the UVic Ticket Centre at 250.721.8480. The Ticket Centre is open Monday to Friday, 9:30am – 4:00pm, and one hour prior to the concert.
Not included in subscription purchase discount.
Join us at 2:00 pm in the lobby for our Instrument Petting Zoo! The Instrument Petting Zoo gives children of all ages the opportunity to try a musical instrument. It’s a relaxing and fun way to spark a child’s interest in music and gives them a firsthand try at many different instruments.

Kids at the Farquhar Series underwritten by JAYMAC

Yo-Yo Ma in Concert
2025-05-04 19:30 - 21:30 | Royal Theatre, 805 Broughton St
THIS CONCERT IS SOLD OUT.
The extraordinary cellist, globe-trotting teacher, and humanitarian Yo-Yo Ma returns to the Royal Theatre to perform with your Victoria Symphony. As the peak of our 2024/25 Season, Maestro Kluxen will welcome the award-winning cellist to perform Elgar’s moving Cello Concerto, a monumental work of universal appeal. The opening work, by Jennifer Butler, was premiered by VS in 2011 and evokes a transition from darkness to a space of unity, peace and healing. Sibelius himself thought of his Symphony No. 2 as “a struggle between death and salvation” and “a confession of the soul.”
Concert underwritten by Jill Gibson, Jim & Betty Hesser, Marc & Patricia Lortie, and Christine & Shane O’Leary
Christian Kluxen underwritten by Sandra Lackenbauer

Dancing Queen – The Music of ABBA
2025-05-10 19:30 - 21:30, 2025-05-11 14:30 - 16:30 | Royal Theatre, 805 Broughton St
Mamma Mia! A night of ABBA’s music may be the ultimate “guilty pleasure” for us all. Fifty years after they first formed and with millions of albums sold, the music of ABBA is still welcomed everywhere. VS rocks along with four amazing vocalists and the Jeans ’n Classics band to perform the iconic songs of ABBA in all their pop, rock, dance, and ballad glory, including Take a Chance on Me, Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!, Waterloo, and more!

Pops at the Royal Series underwritten by Sandra Lackenbauer
Concert underwritten by Sara Neely
Giuseppe Pietraroia underwritten by Terry Scandrett & Angela Bassage
This concert is dedicated in memory of Ann Piercy

Gryphon Trio – ECHO: Memories of the World
2025-05-29 19:30 - 21:30 | McPherson Playhouse, 3 Centennial Square, Victoria, BC, V8W 1P5, Canada
Imagined within this multimedia project is an exploration of the many efforts around the world to bring voice to submerged histories. ECHO: Memories of the World highlights these important efforts through a unique fusion of music, video, spoken word, soundscape, and other artistic media. With a core team of Indigenous and non-Indigenous creators, this project not only tackles, but engages in the process of establishing and maintaining mutually respectful relationships between artistic genres, timeframes, spaces, histories, and peoples.
A tapestry of music by Andrew Balfour, Eliot Britton, Ian Cusson, Ry Moran, Kelly-Marie Murphy, Marion Newman, Bach, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Shostakovich and contemporary Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov, interwoven with poignant storytelling, digital audio, evocative imagery, and film, ECHO: Memories of the World unveils resilient visions of the future, drawing inspiration from three diverse corners of the world: the lands now known as Canada, Norway, and Ukraine.
Developed with the support of the Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts.
A Celebrating Gaia Series Event sponsored by the Gail O’Riordan Climate and the Arts Legacy Fund/Victoria Foundation.
Presented in partnership with the Victoria Native Friendship Centre.

Concert underwritten by Barbara Winters

VS and Pacific Opera Victoria at The Butchart Gardens
2025-07-24 20:00 - 22:00 | The Butchart Gardens, 800 Benvenuto Ave, Brentwood Bay, British Columbia, V8M 1J8, Canada
A signature musical event of the summer! Led by Maestro Giuseppe Pietraroia, Principal Conductor of Pacific Opera Victoria, the Victoria Symphony performs at The Butchart Gardens alongside soprano Lauren Margison, tenor Adam Luther, young piano soloist Patrick Cao, and members of the Pacific Opera Victoria Chorus.
This concert is included in the price of admission to The Butchart Gardens. Admission can be purchased in advance or upon arrival at the venue.

VS at Christ Church Cathedral
2025-07-25 19:30 - 21:30 | Christ Church Cathedral, 930 Burdett Ave
Join us for an evening of classical charm and lyrical beauty at Victoria’s majestic Christ Church Cathedral!
Led by Maestro Giuseppe Pietraroia, the evening opens with Mozart’s Overture to The Magic Flute, a brilliant prelude to one of his final and most beloved operas. VS Principal Trumpet Ryan Cole takes the spotlight in Neruda’s Trumpet Concerto in E-flat major, a favorite in the trumpet repertoire for its expressive warmth. The program concludes with the pastoral spirit of Dvořák’s Symphony No. 5 in F-major.
Tickets on sale June 17!

VS at Qualicum Beach
2025-07-27 19:00 - 21:00 | Qualicum Beach Civic Centre, 747 Jones St, Qualicum Beach, BC, V9K 1S7, Canada
VS returns to Qualicum Beach for an evening of classical charm and lyrical beauty!
Led by Maestro Giuseppe Pietraroia, the evening opens with Mozart’s Overture to The Magic Flute, a brilliant prelude to one of his final and most beloved operas. VS Principal Trumpet Ryan Cole takes the spotlight in Neruda’s Trumpet Concerto in E-flat major, a favorite in the trumpet repertoire for its expressive warmth. The program concludes with the pastoral spirit of Dvořák’s Symphony No. 5 in F-major.
Tickets on sale at the Mulberry Bush Book Store (130 W. 2nd Ave).

The National Youth Orchestra of Canada (Christ Church Cathedral)
2025-08-01 19:30 - 21:30 | Christ Church Cathedral, 930 Burdett Ave
Celebrate 65 incredible years of music with NYO Canada!
Led by acclaimed Music Director Naomi Woo, this one-night only anniversary performance transforms Victoria’s Christ Church Cathedral into a space of sound, and transformation—experience a powerful program that doesn’t shy away from darkness—but insists on beauty, meaning, and hope. The evening opens with Across the Vaulted Night, a work commissioned by the SOCAN Foundation NYO Canada and composed by NYO Canada cello alum Nicholas Denton Protsack. Next, 2025 Michael Measures First Prize winner Justin Saulnier takes center stage in Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 2—a work of shifting moods, flickering between solitude and spectacle, and concluding in a blaze of rhythm and colour. After intermission, Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10 offers a searing portrait of survival under totalitarianism, where even silence carries weight.
Featuring 91 of Canada’s most talented young musicians — including local Victoria talent!
One cathedral. One unforgettable summer night. The next generation of Canadian orchestral music starts here.
Tickets on sale June 17!

Celeigh Cardinal & Shawnee Kish with The National Youth Orchestra of Canada
2025-08-02 15:30 - 16:30 | Victoria Inner Harbour, Inner Harbour, Victoria, British Columbia, V8W 3M6, Canada
Two powerhouse voices. One unforgettable afternoon by the water.
JUNO-nominated singer-songwriters Celeigh Cardinal and Shawnee Kish join forces with The National Youth Orchestra of Canada for a genre-defying celebration of strength, identity, and transformation—set against the stunning backdrop of Victoria’s Inner Harbour.
From the anthemic energy of “Wild Women” and “I Surrender” to the evocative storytelling of “Wandering River” and “There Are Some Things We Will Never Do,” this concert showcases two of Canada’s most vital contemporary Indigenous artists alongside 91 of the country’s most gifted young orchestral musicians, led by NYO Canada Music Director Naomi Woo.
The set also features iconic favourites like “Live and Let Die”, “At Last”, and (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman, arranged for full symphony orchestra!
Symphony SPLASH! is a free public event. Interested in reserved seating? Limited Grandstand tickets are available to purchase from $5 – $68.

Latin Nights with Sal Ferreras Ft. Adonis Puentes with the Victoria Symphony (SOLD OUT GRANDSTAND)
2025-08-02 19:30 - 20:30 | Victoria Inner Harbour, Inner Harbour, Victoria, British Columbia, V8W 3M6, Canada
They say Latin America’s greatest contribution to the world is joy.
Sal Ferreras’ Latin Jazz Sextet with vocalist Adonis Puentes join forces with the Victoria Symphony for an unforgettable evening! VS Principal Pops Conductor Sean O’Loughlin leads the orchestra in an irresistible evening of joy, rhythm, and the eclectic musical styles, traditions and dances of South America and the Caribbean. Highlights include music by Alberto Ginastera (Argentina), Blas Galindo (México), Michel Camilo (Dominican Republic), Rafael Hernández (Puerto Rico), and Adonis Puentes (Cuba).
Join us for some “serious” joyful folk music from Guatemala, Paraguay, and Venezuela.

Symphony SPLASH! is a free public event. Please note Grandstand tickets are SOLD OUT.

The National Youth Orchestra of Canada (SPLASH!)
2025-08-03 15:30 - 16:30 | Victoria Inner Harbour, Inner Harbour, Victoria, British Columbia, V8W 3M6, Canada
An afternoon of intensity and beauty from the country’s most promising orchestral musicians.
In this sweeping 40-minute performance, The National Youth Orchestra of Canada, under the baton of Naomi Woo, explores light and reckoning in seven striking works, ranging from the spirited charm of Mozart’s Overture to The Magic Flute to the searing Allegro of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10.
JUNO-nominated Cree composer Andrew Balfour brings a bold contemporary voice with Omaa Biindig, while Canadian composer Matthew Emery’s Lead Us Home offers a tender plea for belonging.
The program moves from the romantic depths of Mahler’s Adagietto to the turbulent energy of Smyth’s Overture to The Wreckers, building a portrait of an orchestra unafraid to ask big questions—and answer them with sound.
Symphony SPLASH! is a free public event. Interested in reserved seating? Limited Grandstand tickets are available to purchase from $5 – $68.

Traditional Symphony SPLASH! (SOLD OUT GRANDSTAND)
2025-08-03 19:30 - 20:30 | Victoria Inner Harbour, Inner Harbour, Victoria, British Columbia, V8W 3M6, Canada
The evening you’ve been waiting for is finally here—half a decade later! Victoria’s iconic night of symphonic music returns to a floating barge in the Inner Harbour.
Led by VS Principal Pops Conductor Sean O’Loughlin, this celebratory program features highlights from past SPLASH! events. From Tobin Stokes Inner Harbour Overture and Holst’s Jupiter from The Planets, to music from Star Wars, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and other favorites, the concert builds to the beloved spectacular grand finale with Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture and Amazing Grace—complete with fireworks!
Symphony SPLASH! is a free public event. Please note Grandstand tickets are SOLD OUT.

Kluxen & Leong – Beethoven Violin Concerto
2025-09-14 14:30 - 16:30 | Royal Theatre, 805 Broughton St
VS launches the season with an energetic overture and a monumental concerto. Since his First Prize win at the International Yehudi Menuhin Violin Competition in 2010, Kerson Leong has been described as “not just one of Canada’s greatest violinists but one of the greatest violinists, period” (Toronto Star). The musical modernist Arnold Schoenberg paid tribute to “Brahms The Progressive” by orchestrating the latter’s Piano Quartet No.1. Hear this chamber work with fresh ears: in an orchestral setting that will make the most of its energetic Rondo alla Zingarese.

Inside the Victoria Symphony
2025-09-20 12:00 - 15:00 | Royal Theatre, 805 Broughton St
We are proud to host a special event as part of Culture Days 2025! Have you ever wondered how to make a violin sing or what it’s like to play a clarinet? Now’s your chance to find out. Come get Inside the Victoria Symphony—meet the Maestro, join the full orchestra in rehearsal, try an instrument, and get up close and personal!

Culture Days is Canada’s largest public participation campaign for the arts! Celebrate arts, culture, and heritage in your community through free and interactive events. Explore all the event in BC!

REGISTER
Event Schedule:
12:00 pm: Doors open
12:30-1:30 pm: Experience a Victoria Symphony rehearsal
1:30-3:00 pm: Meet the musicians, try an instrument, and enjoy performances by students from the Victoria Conservatory of Music
All Ages Welcome! The event is free for all to attend, but donations are gratefully accepted.

Broadway and Beyond with Jimmie Herrod
2025-09-20 19:30 - 21:30, 2025-09-21 14:30 - 16:30 | Royal Theatre, 805 Broughton St
With “a voice like a beacon of hope” (Seattle Times), vocalist Jimmie Herrod earned the rare “Golden Buzzer” recognition on America’s Got Talent in 2021. With a globe-trotting career as a singer, songwriter, and entertainer, he has also toured with Pink Martini since 2017. Making his VS debut, Herrod joins Principal Pops Conductor Sean O’Loughlin and the orchestra for selections from Wicked, Rent, and Les Mis, along with highlights from Bernstein, Sondheim, and more!

Kluxen – Atwood, Heggie, & Sibelius
2025-09-28 14:30 - 16:30 | Farquhar at UVic, University Farquhar Auditorium, Ring Road, Victoria, BC, V8P 5C2, Canada
Ten years following the tragic death of his sister, opera star Joshua Hopkins showcases a powerful song cycle that honours her memory and comforts those who are in grief. Co-commissioned by the National Arts Centre Orchestra and Houston Grand Opera, composer Jake Heggie sets poetry by Margaret Atwood in a moving musical work that speaks out against domestic violence. Music of Sibelius (including VS’s own Russell Bajer on English horn for The Swan of Tuonela) balances the program with works of sublime beauty and pastoral comfort.

Mozart & Brahms
2025-10-05 14:30 - 16:30 | Royal Theatre, 805 Broughton St
Triple-threat conductor/pianist/composer Dinuk Wijeratne returns with a program full of folk inspiration and musical variation. Contrasting with Mozart and Brahms, Wijeratne’s own work is described as “a melting pot of tabla-like dance rhythms, funky jazz riffs, and tonal clusters.” In Sri Lankan culture, vannamas are often danced in ritual processions, this one depicting the majesty of the sacred elephant bathing and frolicking in the abode of the gods!

Dvořák Symphony No. 7
2025-10-12 14:30 - 16:30 | Farquhar at UVic, University Farquhar Auditorium, Ring Road, Victoria, BC, V8P 5C2, Canada
Canadian pianist Angela Cheng returns with a concerto that Mozart lovingly wrote with his student, Barbara Ployer, in mind. Dvořák’s love for his homeland was expressed in his Symphony No. 7. Its London premiere in 1885 brought him great international acclaim. Maestra Naomi Woo returns to share an overture by Emilie Mayer, a pioneering and prolific composer in Germany in the mid-1800s.

What Do YOU Play?
2025-10-18 15:00 - 16:00 | Farquhar at UVic, University Farquhar Auditorium, Ring Road, Victoria, BC, V8P 5C2, Canada
Some people play soccer, others play video games. For many of us, what we love to play is our musical instruments! Known for his fun and engaging kids concerts, conductor and host Vern Griffiths will lead us on an exploration of different musical instruments, including some that you don’t often find in a symphony. What do YOU play?
Not included in subscription purchase discount. Tickets available to purchase through the UVic Ticket Centre starting Tuesday, July 22, 2025.

VS Presents: Valdés, Goodyear, & VIS
2025-10-19 14:30 - 16:30 | Farquhar at UVic, University Farquhar Auditorium, Ring Road, Victoria, BC, V8P 5C2, Canada
We welcome some returning guests as VS presents a special concert by the Nanaimo-based Vancouver Island Symphony. Cuban-born Cosette Justo Valdés has won the hearts of musicians and audiences on Vancouver Island. Now in her third season as music director of VIS, she mates the madcap musical high jinks of Rossini alongside the happy spirits and bucolic folksiness of Dvořák. She has also invited pianist Stewart Goodyear—a longtime favourite in Victoria—to enchant with Ravel’s whip-cracking Concerto in G major, a work that evokes jazz-age Paris.

E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial in Concert
2025-11-01 19:00 - 21:00 | Royal Theatre, 805 Broughton St
Director Steven Spielberg’s heart-warming masterpiece is one of the brightest stars in motion picture history. Filled with unparalleled magic and imagination, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial follows the moving story of a lost little alien who befriends a 10-year-old boy named Elliott. Experience all the mystery and fun of their unforgettable adventure in the beloved movie that captivated audiences around the world, complete with John Williams’ Academy Award®-winning score performed live by the Victoria Symphony in sync to the film projected on a huge HD screen!
E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial is a trademark and copyright of Universal Studios. Licensed by Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial in Concert
2025-11-02 14:30 - 16:30 | Royal Theatre, 805 Broughton St
Director Steven Spielberg’s heart-warming masterpiece is one of the brightest stars in motion picture history. Filled with unparalleled magic and imagination, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial follows the moving story of a lost little alien who befriends a 10-year-old boy named Elliott. Experience all the mystery and fun of their unforgettable adventure in the beloved movie that captivated audiences around the world, complete with John Williams’ Academy Award®-winning score performed live by the Victoria Symphony in sync to the film projected on a huge HD screen!
Not included in subscription purchase discount.
E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial is a trademark and copyright of Universal Studios. Licensed by Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

Kluxen & Feng – Strauss Oboe Concerto
2025-11-08 19:30 - 21:30 | Mary Winspear Centre, 2243 Beacon Ave, Sidney, British Columbia, V8L 1W9, Canada
Richard Strauss idolised Mozart – although “modernising” Idomeneo was, perhaps, a step too far! Strauss’s Oboe Concerto is a magical, late-in-life work, played here by VS Principal Michelle Feng. Christian Kluxen also shakes up a three-movement Symphony with a non-Mozartean minuet, and premieres a VS commission from Victoria’s own Anna Höstman.
Not included in subscription purchase discount.

Kluxen & Feng – Strauss Oboe Concerto
2025-11-09 14:30 - 16:30 | Farquhar at UVic, University Farquhar Auditorium, Ring Road, Victoria, BC, V8P 5C2, Canada
Richard Strauss idolised Mozart – although “modernising” Idomeneo was, perhaps, a step too far! Strauss’s Oboe Concerto is a magical, late-in-life work, played here by VS Principal Michelle Feng. Christian Kluxen also shakes up a three-movement Symphony with a non-Mozartean minuet, and premieres a VS commission from Victoria’s own Anna Höstman.

Kluxen & Tam – Bartók Violin Concerto & Beethoven's Eroica
2025-11-16 14:30 - 16:30 | Royal Theatre, 805 Broughton St
Three heroic works are featured, beginning with Subito con forza, by South Korea’s Unsuk Chin. Her orchestral miniature is “haunted by Beethovenian gestures…amid Chin’s own exquisite orchestral palette – icy shivers of strings, rasping woodwind and ghostly muted trumpets” (The Guardian). In producing his Violin Concerto No. 2, Bartók followed in the footsteps of Beethoven and Brahms with a work that was quickly championed by Yehudi Menuhin—here played by VS Concertmaster Terence Tam. Beethoven’s monumental Eroica Symphony was bigger and longer than anything that preceded it, and it remains a colossus of the musical literature today.
