Boston Symphony Orchestra Presents E Pluribus Unum: From Many, One, A Festival Celebrating the American Experience (Jan. 8–Feb. 1)

This winter, the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) presents E Pluribus Unum: From Many, One, an ambitious monthlong festival showcasing the breadth of American music in celebration of the country's 250th anniversary (Jan. 8–Feb. 1). In addition to four weeks of BSO concerts centering music by American composers, the festival presents a variety of complementary events at venues throughout Greater Boston, including the Boston Athenaeum, the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston, Temple Ohabei Shalom, WBUR CitySpace, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, and MIT’s Thomas Tull Concert Hall. Performers and speakers at these events include musicologist Carolyn Abbate (Jan. 8), composer and flutist Allison Loggins-Hull (Jan. 13), authors Krista Tippett and Nicole Krauss (Jan. 14), the Boston Symphony Chamber Players with pianist Seong-Jin Cho (Jan. 18), violinist Johnny Gandelsman (Jan. 21, 25, & 26), ICP creative director David Campany (Jan. 22), multimedia artist Emily Wells (Jan. 23), author Tim Greiving (Jan. 25), BSO Composer Chair Carlos Simon (Jan. 28 & 29), and violinist Augustin Hadelich with pianist Orion Weiss (Feb. 1).  

The E Pluribus Unum festival is part of a multi-year BSO celebration that embraces the plurality and singularity of American music and probes how the crosscurrents of the art form reflect and parallel societal change in our nation. The exploration continues throughout this season and next with BSO and Boston Pops concerts at Symphony Hall and Tanglewood.  

Quote from Chad Smith, BSO President and CEO: 

 “We are thrilled to announce the BSO's E Pluribus Unum festival, our celebration of American history, music and ideals. E Pluribus Unum, From Many, One is a multi-season theme woven through programs on the Symphony Hall stage, across the Greater Boston community, and in the Berkshires. We are telling this story through the many voices that make up the tapestry of American music and that reflect its history -- from 20th-century giants like Aaron Copland, Samuel Barber, and Leonard Bernstein, to contemporary trailblazers like Tania León, and our very own Boston Pops Conductor Laureate John Williams and Composer Chair Carlos Simon. This theme is part of the BSO's new path forward, in which we'll be exploring the critical questions and topics that shape our collective experience, past, present and future, from American identity to faith to the environment. We hope you’ll engage deeply and join us for many of these events.”