Acton Orchestra exploring rhythm in eclectic 2026-27 ‘Impulse’ season
“Impulse” will feature five concerts at the Performing Arts Center at 51 Walden, ranging from classical to contemporary.
The Acton Orchestra’s upcoming season invites audiences to experience classical music through the rhythm and movement that drive each piece.
“Impulse” will feature five concerts at the Performing Arts Center at 51 Walden, ranging from Tchaikovsky and Mozart to contemporary works by living composers.
Violinist Carol Sohn said it’s hard to say which performance she most eagerly anticipates.
“I think it has a great variety of things,” Sohn said. “I look forward to pretty much everything.”
The season opens October 17 and 18 with “Dancing in Disguise,” featuring Anna Clyne’s “Masquerade,” Gabriel Fauré’s “Pelléas et Mélisande Suite,” and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 3, “Polish.” The Tchaikovsky symphony gets its nickname from the polonaise rhythm in its finale.
Performances on December 4 and 5 will feature Acton Orchestra principal flutist Susan Jackson as the soloist for Carl Nielsen’s “Concerto for Flute.” The program will also include Leonard Bernstein’s “West Side Story Overture” and César Franck’s “Symphony in D Minor.”
Sohn said she is particularly looking forward to Nielsen’s concerto, which she described as an unusual, playful work in which the other instruments engage in “little arguments” with the flute.
“It’s probably something that people haven’t heard very much,” Sohn said.
Debussy and Dvořák
The orchestra will continue its annual Young Artist Concerto Competition tradition January 30 and 31 with “Awakenings,” featuring the competition’s winners alongside Claude Debussy’s “Prélude à l’Après-midi d’un Faune” and Dvořák’s Symphony No. 7.
The latter is one of Sohn’s favorites.
“It’s just considered one of Dvořák’s finest symphonies,” she said. “It’s just something that really touches me.”
The season continues March 20 and 21 with “Propulsion,” featuring guest conductor Cynthia Woods and pianist Max Levinson performing Rachmaninoff’s “Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.” The program also includes Arturo Márquez’s “Conga del Fuego Nuevo” and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7.
The season concludes May 22 and 23 with “The Open Road,” featuring Boston Symphony Orchestra principals Lorna McGhee on flute and Jessica Zhou on harp performing Mozart’s “Concerto for Flute and Harp.” Works by William Grant Still, Aaron Copland, and Kevin Puts will round out the program.
The orchestra includes nine Acton residents among its members, organizers say.
Sohn said audiences will experience the concerts in an intimate setting, with musicians coming down from the stage during intermission and opportunities to speak with performers and the music director at the conclusion.
For Sohn, the performances represent years of dedication from musicians who largely volunteer their time.
“It’s a very ambitious orchestra with people putting in hours of time, for many years in some cases,” she said.
Tickets are $25 for adults and seniors; free for those under 18. Season subscriptions are $100 until after the first concert.
