Overview
In her final program as 2025/26 CSO Artist-in-Residence, Joyce DiDonato — one of today’s most compelling operatic storytellers — brings extraordinary emotional depth to Neruda Songs, Peter Lieberson’s lush and intimate song cycle set to the poetry of Pablo Neruda. Sensuous, searching and profoundly human, this music captures love in all its forms — from quiet devotion to overwhelming passion.
A landmark work of the 21st century, Neruda Songs has become one of the most celebrated vocal works of recent decades. Written for Lieberson’s late wife, the acclaimed mezzo-soprano Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, these deeply personal songs unfold like letters of devotion.
Led by conductor Edward Gardner, the program concludes with Walton’s First Symphony, a sweeping and dramatic work filled with tension, lyricism and theatrical flair.