The Cincinnati May Festival’s 2027 season in May will be a festival of premieres and unique repertoire under the leadership of the distinguished conductor Marin Alsop. The festival has just announced Alsop’s programs. She will conduct the U.S. premiere “The Book of Hours” by Anna Clyne, and the 2024 Festival Director Julia Wolfe’s “Fire in my mouth” (its second U.S. performance by a major American institution).

Alsop will also co-conduct the May Festival Premiere of Roxana Panufnik’s “Across the Line of Dream”s with guest conductor Valentina Peleggi.

Showcasing the region’s choral community, the 2027 May Festival will also feature performances by the Cincinnati Boychoir, May Festival Youth Chorus and special concerts by the Cincinnati Vocal Arts Ensemble.

Adding to the festive spring event will be the second annual Dîner En Fleur, open to the public.

Alsop worked alongside May Festival’s Director of Choruses Matthew Swanson to curate this season’s festival experience.

As the fourth Festival Director, Alsop brings her internationally recognized conducting career and advocacy for female artists to the role. She is the first woman to serve as the head of major orchestras in the United States, South America, Austria and Great Britain. Currently, she serves as Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the Polish National Radio Symphony, Principal Guest Conductor of the Philharmonia Orchestra, Principal Guest Conductor of The Philadelphia Orchestra and Music Director Laureate of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. She concluded her celebrated 14-year tenure with the Baltimore Symphony in the 2020-21 Season.

In a statement, Alsop said she looked forward to “creating an unforgettable experience” in partnership with the May Festival Chorus, soloists and the community.

“The May Festival is a remarkable musical tradition, and I am happy to participate in shaping its next chapter,” said Alsop. “There’s something truly special about the way this community comes together around choral and orchestral music, and I’m excited to bring artists and repertoire together in ways that will hopefully inspire, surprise, and move audiences.”

The 2027 May Festival is May 21-29 in Music Hall.

Details of the 2027 May Festival

On Friday, May 21 at 7:30 p.m. in Music Hall, the 2027 May Festival opens with “Fire in my mouth” composed by the 2024 Festival Director Julia Wolfe. Featuring more than 100 members representing the treble voices of the May Festival Chorus and May Festival Youth Chorus, the immersive piece is based on women’s rights and the garment industry in New York City, commemorating New York’s deadliest industrial disaster, the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire.

“Fire in my mouth” honors the 146 workers who died in the blaze, most of whom were young immigrant women. Conducting the piece twice before, Alsop led the U.K. premiere of “Fire in my mouth” in 2024 and now brings the performance to Cincinnati for the first time.

On Saturday, May 22 at 7:30 p.m. at Music Hall, Cincinnati Vocal Arts Ensemble will perform Handel’s “Esther” with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra conducted by Joe Miller. Handle’s first oratorio retells the biblical story of Esther’s courage through song, taking the audience on a journey of joy and despair and ending with a triumphant choral finale

On Sunday, May 23 at 2 p.m. an all-choral program showcases the journey from childhood to adulthood through song. This concert highlights the low voices of five choirs including the May Festival Chorus (Matthew Swanson, director) May Festival Youth Chorus (Jason Alexander Holmes, director), Cincinnati Boychoir (Andrew Miller, director), a local university choir, and, for the first time in May Festival history, a Middle School Tenor Bass Festival Choir comprised of 7-9 graders from local middle schools (Colton Blake, guest conductor).  More than 200 tenors and basses will come together to perform music spanning 9 centuries, including compositions ranging from 12th century chant to contemporary repertoire. The performance concludes with an epic finale representing voices across generations.

On Tuesday, May 25, VAE will perform alongside members of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra for “The Story of Billie Jean King in Concert” at 7 p.m. in the Music Hall Ballroom. Conducted by Molly Turner, the performance will feature the chamber version of Laura Karpman’s Balls, telling the legendary story of the 1973 U.S. Open tennis match that symbolized the fight for women’s rights in sports. The performance features mezzo-soprano Nikola Printz as Billie Jean King and tenor Nicky Spence as Bobby Riggs.

On Friday, May 28 at 7:30 p.m. the May Festival Chorus performs a program that highlights the revolutionary stories of women in history. The concert opens with Psalm 24 and “D’un matin du printemps” by Lili Boulanger, the first woman composer to win the Prix de Rome for composition in 1913. Then, the May Festival Chorus and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra will perform Roxanna Panufnik’s “Across the Line of Dreams.” Featuring two choruses and two orchestras on stage led by Alsop and guest conductor Valentina Peleggi, the piece tells the stories of two extraordinary women who gave everything to save their people: Harriet Tubman and Rani Lakshmibai, Queen of Jhansi. Alsop and Peleggi reunite for this performance after conducting the world premiere of the piece in 2019. The concert concludes with a performance of Rimsky-Korsakov’s orchestral-showstopper Sheherazade, based on the tales of The Arabian Nights.

On Saturday, May 29 at 7:30 p.m. Alsop leads the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and May Festival Chorus through a celebratory finale showcasing the May Festival’s dedication to the evolution of choral music. The concert opens with the U.S. premiere of “The Book of Hours” by Anna Clyne. The finale concert will close with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. to honor the 200th anniversary of the composer’s death.

Joining the Chorus on stage, the piece features guest soloists soprano Janai Brugger, mezzo-soprano Sun-ly Pierce, tenor Zwakele Tshabalala, bass Ryan McKinny and members of the May Festival Youth Chorus. In 2019, Alsop launched “All Together: A Global Ode to Joy” to celebrate Beethoven’s 250th birthday as a 21st-century call for unity, justice and empowerment. The international project partnered with orchestras across six continents, each reimagining Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony in their own way and adapting the text into a local language. As part of the project, former U.S. Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith wrote a new text for the “Ode to Joy,” which the May Festival Chorus will perform. In a homage to tradition, the 2027 May Festival will end with Handel’s “Hallelujah Chorus” from Messiah.

Dîner en Fleur

On Friday, May 21 at 5 p.m. in Washington Park, the 2027 May Festival will host its second annual Dîner en Fleur, a public picnic for community members to come together and share a meal before attending the Festival’s opening night concert. Inspired by the traditions of the Festival’s more than 150-year history, the inaugural event last season welcomed around 800 attendees to experience live entertainment with picnic tables for seating and activities. Dîner en Fleur is free to the public with registration. Access to a VIP area will also be available with an eligible donation. Registration will open in
2027.

See more festival events at mayfestival.com.

Tickets: New this year, All-Access Festival Passes to the 2027 May Festival are now on sale. All-Access Passes include admission to every 2027 May Festival performance. The All-Access Pass also includes discounts to year-round performances, including A Candlelit Christmas with VAE and Liedertafel: Prose & Prost with VAE.

All other May Festival Passes to the 2027 May Festival go on sale November 20 and single tickets go on sale in January. Passes may be purchased online by visiting the May Festival website, calling the Box Office at 513.381.3300 or by visiting the Music Hall Box Office at 1241 Elm Street. A full
list of year-round performances can be found online. To receive the latest information on the 2027 May Festival, sign up here