Past Seasons
2023-2024 Season
Animalia: A Family Concert
Sunday, October 8, 2:00 PM
Pre-Concert Activities from 1 to 1:45 PM
Featuring the Dakota Valley Symphony and Jake Endres, Narrator
Dakota Valley Symphony is excited to welcome back Jake Endres to narrate another family-oriented concert. The 2023-2024 season kicks off with opportunities for families with young children to introduce their little ones to the performing arts in a children-friendly atmosphere. Children’s tickets are free with an adult ticket.
Join us for an afternoon of interactive children’s activities:
1:00-1:45 – Exhibits from MN Zoo Zoomobile (Live animals will NOT be present)
2:00 Concert – Bring your favorite stuffed animal for the teddy bear parade!
Following the concert – “Meet the Instruments”
Poulenc: The Story of Babar the Little Elephant
Elgar: The Wand of Youth
- Wild Bears
- Tame Bear
- Moths and Butterflies
Rimsky-Korsakov: Czar Sultan: Flight of the Bumble Bee
Anderson: Old MacDonald’s Farm
Hermann: Teddy Bear’s Picnic (with parade of stuffed animals)
Tickets are $15 per adult. Each adult can bring up to 4 children with them at no additional cost. Children must be accompanied by an adult.
Home for the Holidays
Sunday, December 3, 2:00 PM
Featuring the Dakota Valley Symphony
Featuring a collaboration with the International Festival of Burnsville for pre-concert, intermission, and post-concert festivities.
Join the Dakota Valley Symphony & Chorus for all the Joyous music of Christmas including: Joy to the World, Deck the Halls, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Silent Night, Jingle Bells, O Come All Ye Faithful, and Good King Wenceslas plus a wide selection of music from the many cultures that comprise the Dakota County communities.
This concert is centered on the story of Mary and Joesph’s quest to find a place in Bethlehem to have their Holy Child: The Party of the Inn (La Fiesta de la Posada) as told by American jazz Icon: Dave Brubeck surrounded by traditional choral works including the Halleluiah Chorus from Handel’s Messiah. As a special Holiday treat the International Festivals of Burnsville will present festivities around the concert.
Brubeck: La Fiesta de la Posada
Holcombe: Festive Sounds of Hanukkah
Anderson: Christmas Festival
Handel: Halleluiah Chorus from the Messsiah
John Rutter: Three Favorite Carols
Shepherd’s Pipe Carol
Nativity Carol
Candlelight Carol/Christmas Lullaby
Vivaldi: Gloria (excerpt)
Masquerade: A Mardi Gras Celebration
Sunday, February 4, 2:00 PM
Featuring the Dakota Valley Symphony
Dvorak: Carnival Overture
Erik Whitacre: Godzilla Eats Las Vegas
Arr. John Rutter: When the Saints Go Marching In
Berlioz: Roman Carnival Overture
And more choral favorites
The time between Christmas and Easter all over the world is a time for parties, masked balls, elaborate celebrations and intimate gatherings of all sorts. As this concert travels to New Orleans, Las Vegas, Prague, and Paris, sometimes festive and sometimes a little campy seeks to bring these celebrations to the heart of the Ames Center.
String Works III
Thursday, March 14 at 7:00 PM
Featuring the Dakota Valley Symphony
Performance will be held at the Mraz Center at Burnsville High School
Young Artists' Concert
Sunday, April 21 at 2:00 PM
Featuring the Dakota Valley Symphony and the annual Young Artists Competition winners.
Respighi: Pines of Rome
Randy Stokes: The Light Fantastic
Rossini: William Tell Overture
Young Artists’ Competition Winners
Saint-Saëns: Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Minor (Op. 22, 1st movement) — featuring Tingting Wang, piano
Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No. 2 (Op. 63, 1st movement) — featuring Vladamir Tsiper, violin
The Dakota Valley Symphony admires the maturity, spirit, and technical skill of these young artists. The Young Artists’ Competition performances are accompanied by colorful works by Italian composers Respighi and Rossini, as well as a new premiere by trombonist Randy Stokes. The Dakota Valley Symphony will present its largest orchestra in recent memory and experiment with surround sound in the Ames Center.
