Internationally acclaimed artist to perform concertos on harp and piano, conduct her own composition, and help launch a season exploring music’s search for peace.
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Symphonicity, the symphony orchestra of Virginia Beach, opens its 2026–27 season Sunday, October 4, 2026, at 3 p.m. at the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts. “Chapter I — Ceremony & Conviction” begins the orchestra’s season-long artistic journey, The Long Road: Music in Search of Peace.
The concert brings together triumph, romance, courage, and the unmistakable power of a full symphony orchestra. Dmitri Shostakovich’s dazzling Festive Overture launches the afternoon with exhilarating brilliance before internationally acclaimed harpist, pianist, composer, and conductor Dr. Chaerin Kim takes center stage.
Kim will first perform Reinhold Glière’s lush Harp Concerto, then move to the piano for Richard Addinsell’s sweeping and cinematic Warsaw Concerto, a work long associated with resilience in a world at war.
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s stirring Marche slave brings the orchestral journey to a dramatic peak, moving from funeral dirge to hopeful splendor. The concert concludes with Kim stepping onto the conductor’s podium to lead her own composition, Rendezvous—a finale centered on peace, love, and artistic unity.
“This concert brings together the four dimensions of my musical life—piano, harp, composition, and conducting—in one artistic journey,” said Dr. Chaerin Kim. “I feel truly honored to collaborate with Maestro Daniel Boothe and Symphonicity, and I hope this performance communicates not only the uniqueness of the program, but also the beauty, joy, gratitude, and love that music can bring to an audience.”
Music Director and Conductor Daniel W. Boothe added:
“This concert captures everything we want The Long Road to explore: music shaped by conflict, yet always reaching toward courage, beauty, and peace,” said Music Director and Conductor Daniel W. Boothe. “Chaerin Kim is an extraordinary musician whose artistry cannot be confined to a single instrument or role. Watching her move from harp to piano and ultimately to the conductor’s podium will give our audience something genuinely rare—the kind of bold, meaningful musical experience Symphonicity seeks to bring to our community.”
The concert is also notable for its unusual artistic scope. According to available records provided by the artist, the October 4 performance is believed to be the first known U.S. orchestral concert in which one featured artist performs concertos on two different instruments and conducts their own composition during the same program.
Event Information
What: Chapter I — Ceremony & Conviction
When: Sunday, October 4, 2026, at 3 p.m.
Pre-concert: Lobby presentation at 2:30 p.m.
Where: Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, Virginia Beach
Tickets: $10–$60; livestream access $15
Tickets and information: symphonicity.org
Program
- Dmitri Shostakovich — Festive Overture
- Reinhold Glière — Harp Concerto
- Richard Addinsell — Warsaw Concerto for Piano and Orchestra
- Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky — Marche slave, Op. 31
- Chaerin Kim — Rendezvous
Chaerin Kim, piano and harp, guest conductor
Daniel W. Boothe, conductor
New Affordable Ticket Options
Symphonicity is introducing new affordable seating options for the 2026–27 season, including:
- Community Access seats — $10
- Value seats — $20
- Additional tickets available up to $60
- Livestream access — $15
These options make it easier for families, seniors, students, military personnel, and all lovers of great music to experience the power of a full symphony orchestra in the state-of-the-art Sandler Center.
Tickets begin at $10 and are available through symphonicity.org for the best available prices. Tickets may also be purchased through the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts box office, where additional fees apply.
About Dr. Chaerin Kim
Dr. Chaerin Kim is an internationally acclaimed harpist, pianist, composer, conductor, educator, and multi-instrumentalist. A GRAMMY Awards Voting Member and Mentor and an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music in London, she has won 14 national and international competitions as a composer, harpist, and pianist.
Kim has performed throughout North America, South America, Europe, and Asia as a soloist, chamber musician, and conductor. She has presented more than 35 masterclasses and distinguished lectures at universities, conservatories, and international festivals and has served as international festival faculty and Orchestra Conductor-in-Residence in Europe.
Kim serves on the faculty of the University of Massachusetts Boston, where she teaches piano, harp, and music theory. She also teaches piano and harp through the Office for the Arts at Harvard University. She holds degrees from Ewha Womans University, Yale University, Boston University, and the Royal Academy of Music in London.
About Symphonicity
Founded in 1981, Symphonicity is the symphony orchestra of Virginia Beach and a resident company of the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts. The organization engages more than 200 community performers who collectively contribute more than 12,000 hours annually to create high-quality, innovative, and accessible symphonic experiences.
Symphonicity brings together professional musicians, music educators, and passionate community musicians representing fields that include medicine, education, business, religious service, the military, homemaking, and engineering. They perform for the love of music and community.
To learn more, visit symphonicity.org.
About the Author
A southern democrat.
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