The Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra is celebrating their 100th Anniversary as the oldest professional symphony in the state of Indiana! Join Executive Director and Principal Clarinetist, Dr. Samantha Johnson-Helms, for an overview of the repertoire, special guest artists, innovative community engagement events, and other exciting happenings during the THSO’s 2026-2027 season...you won’t want to miss this sneak peek!

Join members of the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra, as they preview the THSO’s May 2, 2026, Beethoven & Bluegrass. Experience an extraordinary fusion of classical and blues music! Delight in the Bluegrass style of Seyfried’s Double Concerto for Two Violins featuring brothers Nikki and Timothy Chooi and the soulful rhythms of Clarice Assad’s Baião N’ Blues, culminating in the timeless beauty of Beethoven's Symphony No. 7. This unique concert promises a captivating and unforgettable musical exploration!

Star Wars, Harry Potter, Jurassic Park, oh my! Members of the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra will share a preview of their March 28, 2026 concert, John Williams Celebration, featuring the music of one of Hollywood’s most prolific movie score composers. From the thrilling themes of Star Wars and Indiana Jones to the enchanting melodies of Harry Potter, this concert promises an unforgettable journey through cinematic history. Audiences are in for an evening of musical brilliance and nostalgia!

The THSO is celebrating our 100th season as the oldest professional symphony in Indiana! Join us for a special review of the THSO’s first 100 years and a peak at what the orchestra has planned for its next century as the Wabash Valley’s premiere professional symphony.

Join members of the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra, as they preview their November 1 performance, Rach’s Third! Renowned for her technical prowess and emotive playing, world-class pianist Fei-Fei brings “Rach 3” to life with passion and precision. Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 9 highlights the virtuosity of our THSO musicians in this witty and satirical work that was despised and censured by Soviet critics after its premiere. Valerie Coleman’s Seven O’Clock Shout provides an uplifting opener inspired by the tireless efforts of frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Get to know the THSO’s new Music Director, Dr. Roger Kalia, during this must-see presentation for fans of the symphony! In this presentation, Dr. Kalia will share his musical background and inspirations for pursuing a career in orchestral music plus his artistic vision for the THSO and thoughts on the future of orchestras in the United States. Dr. Kalia will also share an introduction to the THSO’s opening concert Tabla & Titan on September 13, 2025. Learn more about Roger at www.rogerkalia.com.

Join members of the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra, as they preview the THSO’s opening concert of the 2025-2026 season, Tabla & Titan, on September 13, 2025. The concert features Indian tabla master Sandeep Das in a captivating concerto, followed by the grandeur of Mahler's Symphony No. 1 “Titan.” The concert will seamlessly blend Indian classical rhythms with Western symphonic brilliance, offering a unique and enriching musical journey. Plus, a special commission from Composer-in-Residence Dan Powers and the introduction of our new Music Director, Roger Kalia! Don't miss this extraordinary fusion of cultures and sounds!

The Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra is thrilled to present a preview of our 2025-2026 season with members of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI)! Join Executive Director and Principal Clarinet, Dr. Samantha Johnson-Helms, for an afternoon of the repertoire, guest artists, and exciting new programming for the THSO’s 100th season as the oldest professional symphony in the state of Indiana.

Join Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra members as they preview the repertoire on David Bowden’s finale concert with the THSO prior to his retirement. Full of passion, lyricism, and technical bravura, Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 was his first work to achieve widespread acclaim this side of the Atlantic. This inspirational program also features Rachmaninov’s Second Symphony, a masterwork recognized for its gorgeous melodies and triumphant conclusion. You may hear the pop of a cork as the concert opens with Lumbye’s Campagne Galop! This session promises to be interesting to all music lovers, but it is a “must-attend” class for those who will attend the concert on May 3, 2025.

FREE and open to the public!

Join members of the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra as they preview music from the THSO’s upcoming concert titled “Double Concertos: Twice the Fun!” Our fabulous musicians are featured in stunning double concertos including Bach’s beautiful Concerto for Oboe and Violin, the brilliant Concerto for Flute and Harp by Mozart, and Paul Whear’s moving Elegy for MLK, Jr., for Oboe and English Horn. Barber’s familiar Adagio for Strings rounds out this 75-minute program. This session promises to be interesting to all music lovers, but it is a “must-attend” class for those who will attend the concert on March 16, 2025.

FREE and open to the public!

Dr. Jennifer Kirby from the Terre Haute Symphony leads an exploration of how Ancient Western Music has been reconstructed through various forms of art. The course delves into the music of Mesopotamia, Syria, Egypt, Greece, and Rome, tracing its evolution into the music of today. Artwork from museums around the world reveals the instruments used and their societal roles. By pairing iconography with written works from figures like Homer and Plato, a vivid picture of music in European antiquity emerges. The course also examines the oldest written musical examples, rare surviving instruments, and reconstructions using modern copies and voice.

This event has been cancelled, but we hope to reschedule next season!

Dr. David Bowden has directed the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra since 1997 and will be retiring at the end of the 2024-25 season after completing 28 years at the helm of the orchestra. In this special presentation for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at Indiana State University, Maestro Bowden will debrief the THSO’s November 2 concert, Heroism & Hope, as he provides a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at what it is like to be the Artistic Director and Conductor of a professional orchestra. While conducting the orchestra is the most notable part of the duties of the conductor, music-lovers are often shocked to learn that 95% of a conductor’s time is spent on non-musical, administrative activities. For fans of the orchestra, this is a must-attend Wednesday Presentation as Maestro Bowden pulls back the curtain on the life of a symphony conductor.

This presentation is open to the public!

Join Layne Anspach, Fourth Horn with the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra, as he previews the THSO’s November 2nd concert and provides insight into the music. The theme of the concert is “Heroism & Hope” and will feature some of the orchestral repertoire’s most powerful music such as the Shostakovich Festive Overture, Brahms’ glorious Symphony No. 3, and the thrilling Shostakovich Symphony No. 5. This session promises to be interesting to all music lovers, but it is a “must-attend” class for those who will attend the concert.

FREE and open to the public!

Join Dr. Samantha Johnson-Helms, Executive Director of the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra, as she previews the THSO’s September 21st concert and provides insight into the music. The theme of the concert is “Playing Favorites,” and features fan favorites from the orchestral repertoire including Tchaikovsky’s Romeo & Juliet, Verdi’s Overture to La Forza del Destino, Debussy’s Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun, and Rimsky Korsakov’s Capriccio Espagnol. This session will interest all music lovers, but it is a “must-attend” class for those planning to attend the concert.

FREE and open to the public!

The Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra is thrilled to present a preview of our 2024-2025 season with members of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI)! As the THSO approaches their 100th season, the Symphony will also share exciting updates about their plans to kick off the next century of music making. Join Executive Director and Principal Clarinet, Dr. Samantha Johnson-Helms, for an afternoon of the repertoire, guest artists, and exciting new programming for the THSO’s 99th season as the oldest professional symphony in the state of Indiana.

This presentation is open to the public!

Join Principal Percussion, Keegen Sheehy, of the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra as he discusses and demonstrates multiple instruments from the percussion section of the symphony for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI). Keegan will share a brief history of several common percussion instruments in the orchestra and present a demonstration of the instruments’ mechanics and performance. The presentation will conclude with a short solo performance and Q&A with the audience.  

In preparation for the THSO’s 1812 Overture LIVE! event on November 4th, join THSO Fourth Horn, Layne Anspach, for a presentation with the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) featuring an overview of historical and contextual information about concert repertoire. Concert repertoire includes Richard Strauss’ Don Juan and Death & Transfiguration, Eric Ewazen’s Down a River of Time for oboe and orchestra, and Tchaikovsky’s famous 1812 Overture in its entirety.

In preparation for the THSO’s Brahms & Tchaikovsky event on April 29, join THSO Board Member and Rose-Hulman Faculty, Dr. David Chapman, for a presentation with the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) featuring an overview of historical and contextual information about concert repertoire. Concert repertoire includes Coleridge-Taylor’s Danse Nègre, Brahms’ Violin Concerto performed by THSO Concertmaster Elina Rubio, and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4.

Join the musicians of the Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra as they discuss the instruments of the orchestra. Each presentation will feature a professional musician from the symphony who will provide a brief history of his or her instrument, present a demonstration of the instrument’s mechanics and popular orchestra excerpts, and give a performance of a short solo piece! 

In preparation for the THSO’s Musical Treasures event on April 1, members of the THSO will share a Tour of the Orchestra presentation with the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) featuring an overview of historical and contextual information about concert repertoire. Concert repertoire includes Sadler’s Journey for Tuba and Orchestra, Fauré’s Sicilienne, Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture, Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, and more!

In preparation for the THSO’s Moonlight Serenades event on March 18, Artistic Director and Conductor Dr. David Bowden will share a Tour of the Orchestra presentation with the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) featuring an overview of historical and contextual information about concert repertoire. Concert repertoire includes Serenade for Winds, Op. 44 by Anton Dvorak and Serenade No. 2 in A Major, Op. 16 by Johannes Brahms.

In preparation for the THSO’s Hops & Haydn event on February 18, THSO Second Horn Sharon Weyser will share a Tour of the Orchestra presentation with members of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) featuring an overview of historical and contextual information about concert repertoire. The concert will include works by composers such as Mozart, Haydn, Bach, Handel, and more!

In preparation for the THSO’s concert Brahms & Rachmaninoff featuring Drew Petersen on April 30, 2022, members of the THSO will present an overview of historical and contextual information about concert repertoire.

Join Terre Haute Symphony Orchestra Principal Harp, Harriet Moore, as she discusses the Harp and its role in the symphony orchestra. Learn about the instrument’s acoustics, origin, and history, as well as hear famous orchestral excerpts for the Harp. The presentation will close with a short solo performance and a question-and-answer session.

Over the past 3 years, Layne Anspach has had the pleasure of working with a mostly undiscovered Franz Strauss horn concerto manuscript and has worked tirelessly to produce a new published score in coordination with the Strauss Estate. Join us as Layne walks us through the process of taking a manuscript to a fully published piece purchased by conductors and musicians. Reading a manuscript and interpreting what the composer originally wrote in their own handwriting is not always easy! Learn about how many lingering artistic decisions are made during score creation, particularly when the composer is not around to ask clarifying questions.

In 1936, Sergei Prokofiev wrote a magical symphonic fairy tale for children complete with a narrator and a colorful orchestra to illustrate the characters throughout the story. Join Dr. Jennifer Kirby as she walks the audience through the tale of Peter and the Wolf and introduces the instrumental themes that demonstrate each character including Peter, the Wolf, a spritely bird, a mischievous cat, a friendly duck, Peter’s stern grandfather, and the hunters that save them all.

Resident music theory PhD candidate and THSO violinist, Christa Cole, jointly presents with Indiana University colleague and fellow music theory scholar, Miguel Arango Calle, an introduction to musical forms. Understanding how a piece of music is constructed can add a vivid picture of the composer’s musical design and aesthetic meaning. Learn about two basic small musical forms (sentence, period) and three standard large forms (sonata, theme and variations, concerto) of the common practice era. The presentation will include a variety of musical examples spanning the 18th to 20th centuries, interweaving examples by well-known composers such as Mozart, Haydn, and Beethoven with those of lesser-performed composers such as Florence Price, the Chevalier du Saint-Georges, and Amy Beach. No music theory experience needed!

Join Associate Principal Cello, Philip Kettler, as he introduces the origin of string instruments by demonstrating and performing on the baroque cello and viola da gamba, predecessors to today’s modern string instruments. The presentation will include a brief overview of historical performance practices 200 years ago which will be demonstrated in repertoire, treatises, iconography, and historical trends. Also learn about early music notation (ligatures, mensuration, solmization) and understand how it has developed into its modern form.

In preparation for Brahms & Beach on November 6, members of the THSO will present an overview of historical and contextual information about concert repertoire. Amy Beach was an extraordinary woman. In a time when women rarely considered a music career, Amy was one of the greatest composers in our country. Her “Gaelic” Symphony is filled to the brim with passion, power, beauty and lyrical melodies. The THSO also welcomes cellist Natania Hoffman and violinist Benjamin Hoffman to play Brahms’ gorgeous Double Concerto, written to repair a strained friendship. It succeeded! Come hear why.

The Reed Trio has become a prominent chamber ensemble in the past several decades, consisting of oboe, clarinet, and bassoon. Join members of the THSO for a discussion of wind chamber music with a focused discussion on the trio d'anches (reed trio) with performances from select reed trios. Specific topics to be explored include and introduction of wind chamber music history, the beginnings of the reed trio ensemble, and important repertoire for the reed trio complete with performance of excerpts.