Riverside Philharmonic

The amphitheater of the Riverside National Cemetery will be the site of the popular Concert For Heroes performed by the Riverside Philharmonic. Our heroes will be recognized and honored with the traditional medley known as the Armed Forces Salute. Members of the military, current and retired, are encouraged to attend with friends and family. Concert begins at 7:30. Arrive early! This concert is free and open to the public through the efforts of the Riverside National Cemetery Support Committee.

Enjoy a memorable start to the Independence Day holiday with patriotic music performed by the Riverside Philharmonic in the amphitheater of the Riverside National Cemetery. Free and open to the public, sponsored by donations to the Riverside National Cemetery Support Committee. Concert begins at 7:30. More details on our website.

The harp adds such beauty to the waltzes of Johann Strauss II in our program on June 8, and evokes "paradise" in Berlioz's Nuits d’été (Summer Nights). We're delighted to have renowned harpist Alison Bjorkedal joining the orchestra for this concert.

Alison is principal harpist of the Bakersfield Symphony and has been featured as soloist with Pasadena Symphony, Downey Symphony, and the California Chamber Orchestra. She has recorded with Sia, Madonna, and Idina Menzel, and for film soundtracks including Finding Dory, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, and Mandalorian, among many others.

"Diggi daggi shurry murry horum harem..." and so the love spells goes to reunite Bastien and Bastienne in Mozart's early comic opera, named after the two lovers, a shepherd and a shepherdess.

Fun fact: Mozart was only 12 years old when he wrote this!

Jamal Moore, performing the part of the magician Colas, will sing these whacky Latin-like words as part of the opera selections in our season finale on June 8.
Love, Romance, and Other Misadventures

In Mozart's famous opera, servant Leporello details the many lovers of Don Giovanni to Elvira, a spurned lover, in Madamina, il catalogo è questo. Called the Catalogue Aria, it does, indeed, catalogue the numerous conquests of the sexually promiscuous nobleman.
"In Italy, six hundred and forty; In Germany, two hundred and thirty-one; A hundred in France; in Turkey, ninety-one" and on...and on. 😳

Jamal Moore will voice the long-suffering Leporello in this opera selection for our season finale, entitled Love, Romance, and Other Misadventures on June 8.

RIP Richard Sherman, the man behind the music of Mary Poppins (we adore the Overture!) and so much more.
The music for films from Walt Disney Studios is the soundtrack of our childhood. We grew up with classical music!

Disney songwriting legend Richard Sherman dies at 95 The prolific composer-lyricist, with his late brother Robert, penned some of Disney’s most popular songs, including “Chim Chim Cher-ee,” “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious,…

Join us on Memorial Day in remembering and honoring the men and women of our armed forces who died in service of our nation. May we never forget that freedom isn't free.

Photo by Michael J. Elderman
Riverside National Cemetery, Concert for Heroes

For the finale of our season finale, our orchestra will perform "An der schönen blauen Donau", Op. 314, an 1866 waltz by the Austrian composer Johann Strauss II. You probably know it best as "The Blue Danube," which is its common English title.

In the aftermath of a war with Prussia, Strauss II was tasked with writing a piece to lift the Viennese people's spirit. 🎼 Today, it's practically considered Austria's unofficial national anthem.

Music has often been composed during wartime: to lighten hearts, to honor the fallen, to inspire soldiers, to fan the flames of patriotism, to comfort, to mourn.

Hitler’s attack on Russia in 1941 inspired one of Shostakovich’s greatest works, his ‘Leningrad’ Symphony No. 7. In 1942, Aaron Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man was a response to the US entry into the Second World War. 🇺🇸

For many, first contact with classical music often comes in the movie theaters.

Baby Boomers might recognize this iconic scene from Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), when the shuttle docks with the space station. Kubrick chose the Blue Danube Waltz (1866) by Johann Strauss II as the score for this "Cosmic Dance."

You don't have to go to outer space for our orchestra's rendition of this popular waltz; just buy a ticket to the season finale of the Riverside Philharmonic on June 8th.

Jamal Moore makes a return appearance following his February 2024 debut with the Riverside Philharmonic when he performed the rap lyrics for ”Glory,” the Oscar winning song from the movie Selma.

A classically trained opera singer (Eastman School of Music), Moore will perform selections from operas by Mozart, including Don Giovanni and Bastien und Bastienne, at our June 8th concert entitled Love, Romance, and Other Misadventures.

Mothers and daughters through the years…
In the 1960s, we had the Symphony Guild, a group of women dedicated to supporting the orchestra, and later added the Symphony Juniors, the daughters and granddaughters of Guild members, who ushered at concerts and helped at events. Thirty years later, in the early 90s, Maureen Kane was president of the Symphony Board, and her daughters Eileen and Maura provided support to their mom and the orchestra. Today, board member Elizabeth Monville and her daughter Mary attend concerts together, and hand out flowers to female patrons at the evening's end. Supporting the orchestra in Riverside continues through the generations.

The October 1959 concert featured selections from operas by Verdi, Puccini and Wagner. Jane McGowan, a popular soprano who performed with the New York Philharmonic Symphony and LA Philharmonic, was the featured soloist performing Dich Theure Halle from Tannhauser by Richard Wagner and Vissi D’Arte from Tosca by Giacomo Puccini.

Our upcoming June 8th concert will also spotlight opera selections plus Elissa Johnston, soprano, on Les nuits d’été (Summer Nights) by Hector Berlioz.

Fun Facts: Ms. McGowan was the wife of James K. Guthrie who established the Inland Empire Philharmonic Orchestra (San Bernardino Symphony now) in 1929 and went on to become the Riverside Symphony’s music director from 1963-1973.

Ms. Johnston is the wife of Grant Gershon, the conductor for the LA Master Chorale.

Mrs. Robert Boardman (Gwenn) was the publicity chairman in 1959, and, bless her, she clipped all the press articles to create a scrapbook, which we still have today!

This editorial, published in The Daily Enterprise in January 1959, closes with the statement: "...it seems safe to predict that the community orchestra will become a permanent and valued part of Riverside life." Here we are, 65 years later. Pretty permanent, and still valued, we hope!

We had the support of both the general manager and the editor: you can see their names under Founding Members on this program page from our debut concert.

FUN FACT - This newspaper started publishing in 1885, and in 1931 merged with The Press, which had started in 1878. In 1983 they began publishing the daily morning paper as The Press-Enterprise, which it is still called today.

Betty Facey, wife of Thomas Facey, provided much needed support as our fledgling community orchestra began. She was an engineer at Motorola but still found time to volunteer. She cut & sewed dresses in traditional orchestra black with the female musicians for them to wear at the first concert. She served punch to the musicians during intermission at rehearsals, and mailed 500 postcards to promote the May pops concert. Betty was also musical, playing the piano and pipe organ. The Facey sons, Martin and Jon learned to play instruments at Palm Elementary School in Riverside.
Picture: Jon, left, on trombone; Martin in the middle was learning viola; Mrs. Facey at right.
from a May 24, 1959 Press Enterprise article by Margaret Steen [no photo credit found]

Music director Thomas Facey came to Riverside in 1958 from Denver where he had conducted the Boulder Philharmonic and several other orchestras. Here, he teamed up with Bruce Tomlinson, a cello player who taught music. Together, they formed the Riverside Symphony, with Facey as the conductor and Tomlinson as the principal cellist.

Musicians came from Riverside and the surrounding cities, with Alfred Walters, chairman of the Department of String Music at Loma Linda University as the violin soloist for our debut concert on April 7, 1959.

Subscribe now for more information on our 65th anniversary celebration and upcoming concert. (Link in the comments.)

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A full house for our February 24th concert, a musical celebration of Black History Month. Always a fun night with friends gathering in the lobby of the Coil. Do you see someone you know? Be sure to join us for our June 8 concert!


Photo credit to Michael J. Elderman

Our composer-in-residence and commissioned artist for our upcoming Feb 24th concert, Chris Woods (), was recently featured in the SoCal Voices () podcast hosted by founder Angela Ross. Give it a listen at socalvoices.com and hear what he has to say about Black history, what it means to be a musician, and his excitement surrounding his upcoming premiere.

Join us for the world premiere of Concerto Cinematique by Chris Woods () as part of our February 24th concert. A pandemic project, and labor of love, Chris posted snippets on social media where Maestro Tomasz Golka saw it and became intrigued. Now, commissioned by Kathy Wright and Dwight Tate, Riverside Philharmonic board members and supporters of the arts, this concerto will be brought to full life by our orchestra as part of our musical celebration of Black History Month. For more on Chris and his creation, visit our website.

Bring family and friends with you to enjoy our annual holiday concert this Saturday at the new Elliott N. Duchon Concert Hall at Rubidoux High School in Jurupa Valley. SPECIAL: $100 for 5 tickets!

Tickets to a classical music concert are inspiring, maybe even life-changing. London, 8 (pictured below) proudly claimed Haydn as one of her newest favorite composers! We featured two of his phenomenal symphonies at our last concert, Music for the People. By donating to the Riverside Philharmonic this Giving Tuesday, you directly support our Adventures in Music program which provides tickets to kids and their families. Please give the gift of inspiration today!
Link for donations on our website.

Join us for this holiday fundraiser Canyon Crest Country Club on Monday, December 4th. $100 per person. We're raising funds to support sponsored tickets to students and their families. Tickets available through Eventbrite - see comments below.

Tonight's the night: Music for the People is here! Join us for an evening of music by Bartók, Haydn, and Anna Clyne at the Coil School for the Arts at 4:00pm. Single tickets available at the box office, opens at 2:30pm. Parking in the adjacent garage is included in the price of your ticket. (Be aware that the garage will close at 8:30pm)
Can't wait to see you!

This is the 31st amazing “Mission Inn Festival of Lights”!!!! Thousands of people are here enjoying this wonderful signature event!!!!

Tonight is the City of Riverside, CA - Riverside Festival of Lights Switch-On Ceremony! What better way to complete a weekend of festivities than with fireworks tonight, and then a concert "Music for the People" tomorrow tailor-made for you? We are excited for the start of the holiday season.