FROM THE BOARD ROOM

It is exciting that the HHSO is entering its 45th season and has an excellent upcoming series of concerts and performances. The symphony has had very good stewardship over the years to be where it is now with the quality of a symphony orchestra you would expect to see in a major city. We are all fortunate to have this cultural treasure in our community. Looking ahead we have been able to engage the University of South Carolina at Beaufort Center for Strategic Planning to assist us in the planning and implementation of a comprehensive 2-year strategic plan with specified goals for audience growth and philanthropic giving growth. I am honored to be the new board chair, following in the footsteps of Mary Princing, who has led the board wonderfully for the past few years. We have a great community of supporters and volunteers, and specifically, the League is an incredible asset for the entire HHSO in all of its functions. It’s also amazing when you consider the other facets, such as the International Piano competition, Chamber music institute, all the youth programs, and our emphasis on music education and outreach for the broader community. SoundWaves has been a wonderful asset as well, with frequent smaller-venue concerts exploring all types of music. It can often be the first point of contact for a new concert attendee with the potential to become a regular concert subscriber. So we have many “jewels” in the crown and are fortunate to have this wonderful asset that we can all enjoy. Great music being performed live by extremely accomplished musicians is a special treat that enriches all of our lives.

—Edward D Simmons, Chairman of the HHSO Board

FROM THE PODIUM

In the next several installments of Overtures, I’ll be highlighting a couple of programs from the upcoming season and five reasons why you don’t want to miss them:

Opening Night: Sunday, October 25

1. TWO big hits, ONE power-packed concert: Beethoven, Piano Concerto No.5 “the Emperor” and Tchaikovsky, Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture
2. It’s ONE NIGHT ONLY, with a Gala party afterwards with more music and dancing, so you can get all gussied up for a super fun night!
3. Speaking of duds—Olga Kern is not just one of the world’s most extraordinary pianists, she also dresses as brilliantly as her playing…what WILL she wear?
4. Romeo and Juliet—one of Tchaikovsky’s most popular works, with a “love theme” that has been used in dozens of films, tv shows, and advertisements. Watch the cymbal player during the “sword fight”—you’ll see why it is the most dangerous excerpt in the repertoire!
5. THE social event of the fall, where the entire HHSO family shares their love of MUSIC and merriment.

Holiday Pops with Melinda Doolittle: November 28, 29, and 30

1. Melinda Doolittle is a SUPERSTAR–you might remember her from the 6^th season of American Idol, where she made it all the way to the #3 spot. She is AWESOME, and an absolute delight—we’ve worked together a half-dozen times—she brings down the house EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. If you ask her real nice, she might share a few stories about Simon Cowell…
2. Many of the arrangements we use each season are from my recordings with the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra. It’ll be “Christmas in July” soon, so feel free to crank the AC and stream “Home for the Holidays” or “JOY!” for some early holiday cheer. Chances are, you’ll be hearing a few of those tracks LIVE with the HHSO in late November.
3. Mana Takahashi, our 2026 HHSO Youth Concerto Competition winner, is playing the Carmen Fantasy for violin and orchestra by Pablo de Sarasate—it is a WILD ride!
4. Holiday concerts are my FAVORITE—I have a collection of nearly a thousand Christmas and Holiday LPs, CDs, and cassettes(!), and put together the repertoire for these concerts like a “Party Tape.” It’s always eclectic and FUN.
5. These concerts sell out—so get your tickets soon!

In the next Overtures Newsletter, I’ll tell you more about the return of HHI’s favorite, Bella Hristova, performing a jazzy violin concerto by Wynton Marsalis, and the MIGHTY “Organ Symphony” by Saint-Saens.

Cheers!

—John Morris Russell, Music Director

From the SoundWaves Studio

Any Given Season in SoundWaves

Wow! What an incredible year we enjoyed here at SoundWaves. With more than fifty public events since last July, dozens of community organization meetings, hosts of orchestra and chamber music rehearsals, and a sprinkling of speaker series events, our beloved building has bustled with music and excitement year-round. Any given season and all seasons.

It all comes together thanks to the remarkable contributions of our administrative, production, and front-of-house teams—staff members and volunteers alike.

Nine highlights:

Fourth season of the community partnership Gullah Me, Gullah You! celebrating local legends and now expanding across the bridge to the further reaches of the Gullah-Geechee corridor.

Introduction of Latin Charm Night, a musical celebration of the buoyantly flavorful cultures representing Central and South America.

Our Inaugural SoundWaves Chamber Music Series displaying HHSO musicians in three programs including Salut d’amour and a gorgeous all-Mozart program.

BravoPiano! events: jazz pianist and Junior Jazz Camp Faculty Member Aime Nolte, HHIPC favorite Elliot Wuu, and the 88-Key Members’ cherished Movie Night documentary event.

Guest Speaker Series: Gucci’s Domenico de Sole, Non-Toxic Neighborhood’s Kim Conte, and the world’s youngest certified farmer, 11-year-old Kendall Rae Johnson from Atlanta.

Who could forget our League’s par-excellence Paris-themed Fashion Show, decorated at the pinnacle of French sophistication with fresh pastels and catered with impeccable presentation, exceptional flavors, and a level of refinement that exceeded all expectations.

We continued an annual partnership with Lean Ensemble Theater to have young people enjoy an educational Shakespeare program and enjoyed the LET’s simply brilliant reprisal of Every Brilliant Thing.

Closing the year, our very own Hilton Head Chamber Music Institute rose to the occasion once again, this year celebrating with a masterclass-filled visit by Pulitzer Prize finalist and acclaimed composer, Chen Yi, providing our young musicians the thrilling opportunity to perform her music for her.

Overall, 2025-2026 brought immense satisfaction to all who visited and has now set an even higher standard for the exciting coming year. Enjoy the Summer. We will see you again in September, upon yet another new season of seasons.

In the meantime, remember to make plans to visit often and be sure to tell your friends, “I’ll see you at SoundWaves.”

— Mario Incorvaia, HHSO Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

The summer is a reflective time of year for the HHIPC, as we celebrate a job well done for the successful season just finished, while also putting the final pieces in place for the new season starting in the fall.

Before we look ahead at the 2026-27 season, I want to brag a bit about our 2026 competition, which came early on in the HHIPC’s 30^th anniversary year!  With our three-year cycle of events, this competition focused on our Young Artists, so from March 16-21, 2026, we welcomed 20 pianists—ages 13 to 17—from 6 countries!  The level of playing we all enjoyed was incredibly high across the board, which made the task of our five-member international jury all the more challenging in selecting the winners!  But they ultimately rose to that challenge, first selecting five finalists, each of whom performed one movement of a concerto with our beloved HHSO and Maestro JMR on March 21.  After that inspiring evening, the jury made its final vote and selected 14-year-old South Korean pianist Jueon Lee as our newest first prize winner.  We are excited to welcome Jueon back to Hilton Head on February 14-15, 2027 to perform again with the HHSO!  (All of the 2026 winners’ details can be seen at www.hhipc.org.)

Focusing now on next season, I am delighted that 2027 is a BravoPiano! Festival year!  This festival was instituted in 2018 (as part of our three-year cycle mentioned above), to celebrate the HHIPC’s rich history by bringing back outstanding alumni — both competitors and judges — as well as eminent jazz pianists to perform in a variety of settings.  I’m pleased to announce our 2027 festival title, “Made in the USA” (March 10-15), which is inspired by this summer’s America 250 celebration and showcases the music of American composers!  For our classical artists, we are excited to bring the renowned piano duo Anderson and Roe (both of whom are HHIPC alums) and also former HHIPC judge and HHSO soloist Jon Kimura Parker, who will perform a fun chamber music program with the innovative wind quintet WindSync.  For our jazz artists, we welcome back pianist Christian Sands and his Trio (who performed at our first festival in 2018), and I am particularly thrilled to present a very special jazz duo concert featuring the eminent pianist Fred Hersch with vocalist Janis Siegel (a founding member of the legendary Manhattan Transfer vocal quartet). 

Similar to 2024, our grand finale is a three-concerto extravaganza with the HHSO and Maestro John Morris Russell, but featuring all American works with three HHIPC favorite artists:  LeRoy Anderson’s rarely heard Piano Concerto (featuring Fei-Fei); Edward MacDowell’s neo-Romantic Piano Concerto No. 2 (featuring Ray Ushikubo); and George Gershwin’s vibrant Concerto in F (featuring Aaron Diehl).  Watch for tickets to go on sale later this year!

At the moment, the details for our other 2026-27 HHIPC events are still a work in progress, so I must keep you in suspense for now.  However, I CAN tell you that we will have our usual fall concerts in late-October and early-December for our BravoPiano! Recital Series at SoundWaves, and we will announce the details as soon as artists and dates are confirmed.

Thanks very much, and I wish you a most enjoyable and relaxing summer!

—Steven Shaiman, Director, Hilton Head International Piano Competition and Education and Community Engagement