The Santa Rosa Symphony will return to the Brannan Center for a second season of chamber programming in 2026–2027, presenting three distinct programs spread across five performances in Kozel Hall.
Program structure and repertoire
The chamber series pairs major masterworks with complementary pieces and includes a family concert designed for broad audiences. The season schedule announced for Kozel Hall — the Brannan Center’s main performance space, which seats about 110 — is:
| Program | Work(s) | Date(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Fall masterwork | Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons & Piazzolla’s The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires | Nov. 6–7, 2026 |
| Family concert | Saint-Saëns’ The Carnival of the Animals | Jan. 31, 2027 |
| Spring theatrical | Stravinsky’s The Soldier’s Tale | May 15–16, 2027 |
Santa Rosa Symphony Music Director Francesco Lecce-Chong will conduct and also play harpsichord on the Vivaldi/Piazzolla program. Guest soloist Bella Hristova, a Bulgarian-American violinist, joins the season for the combined Four Seasons program.
Artistic intent and audience experience
Artistic leaders say the programming follows a familiar pattern: a substantial masterwork in the fall, a family-oriented offering in winter, and an interactive performance with theatrical elements in spring. Pairing Vivaldi’s baroque Four Seasons with Astor Piazzolla’s tango-infused Four Seasons of Buenos Aires is intended to create a musical conversation across time and style.
“This is because Piazzolla’s Four Seasons of Buenos Aires is a tribute to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. Piazzolla’s work is a passionate, wild mirror of Vivaldi’s, told through tango.”
The smaller scale of Kozel Hall — with seating for roughly 110 — was cited as particularly well suited to chamber and lightly amplified works, where intimacy and acoustic clarity are priorities.
Venue growth and community response
The Brannan Center, a converted Calistoga church that opened in October 2025, has quickly established itself as a regional performing-arts venue. Brannan Center Executive Director Kyle Clausen said the site has seen rapid audience growth since opening.
“Since we opened in October 2025, we’ve welcomed over 8,000 guests through our doors. The Brannan Center is now more widely recognized as a performing arts space in Napa Valley,”
Clausen added that last season’s audience response demonstrated strong demand: the symphony added an extra family concert to the chamber series after ticket demand, and three of the resulting five performances sold out.
- Programs mix a traditional masterwork with modern reimaginings and a family concert.
- Kozel Hall’s limited seating makes for an intimate listening environment.
- Brannan Center reports strong early attendance since its October 2025 opening.
The choice to repeat the programming structure reflects both artistic preference and audience feedback. Symphony leadership and the Brannan Center said they plan to continue evaluating program formats to match audience interest while taking advantage of the hall’s acoustic qualities.
Tickets and additional details about individual performances and guest artists were not included in the announcement; prospective attendees should monitor the Santa Rosa Symphony and Brannan Center websites for schedules, ticket on-sale dates and any accessibility information for Kozel Hall.
For Santa Rosa residents and regional arts patrons, the chamber season offers a mix of familiar repertoire and inventive programming in an intimate setting, continuing the developing relationship between the symphony and the Brannan Center.
