2026 May Festival - An Eclectic Opening Night

🌟 Join us for the unforgettable opening of the May Festival! 🎶

Experience the uplifting resonance of Bruckner’s Psalm 150, perfectly setting the stage for an evening rich in cultural heritage. This remarkable journey through spiritual realms is further enhanced by the evocative words of Langston Hughes and the Harlem Renaissance poets. The highlight will be the "Eclectic Mass," featuring a dynamic array of selections from sacred music, including a vibrant new Sanctus by Grammy-nominated Carlos Simon.

This concert reflects the May Festival's illustrious past while enthusiastically embracing its future with a powerful celebration of melodies spanning centuries and genres.

🗓️ Artists:
Cristian Măcelaru, conductor
Julia Bullock, soprano
Jason Alexander Holmes, preacher
Carlos Simon, hammond organ
May Festival Chorus
Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra

🎼 Program Highlights:

• Anton Bruckner: Psalm 150
• Alexander von Zemlinsky: Selections from "Symphonische Gesänge"
• Margaret Bonds: Selected Songs from "Songs of the Season"
  • To a Brown Girl Dead
  • Negro Speak of Rivers
  • Poème d’Automne
  • Winter Moon
  • April Rain

ECLECTIC MASS

• Selections from:
  • Carlos Simon: "Good News Mass" and Sanctus
  • Giovanni Pierluigi de Palestrina: "Missa Assumpta est Maria"
  • Johann Sebastian Bach: Cantata No. 191
  • Margaret Bonds: Credo
  • George Frideric Handel arr. Mounsey: “Soulful Hallelujah”

📍 Address:
1243 Elm St, Cincinnati, OH 45202-7531, United States

🔗 Buy Your Tickets Now!