Ask the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra’s artistic director Mark Turner what his plans are for next season and he’ll tell you quite plainly, “It’s a new perspective.” The way he’s getting that ‘new’ perspective is by packing his roster with as many recognizable, yet underplayed pieces of music as he can find.

Many of these pieces are really well known but haven’t been performed in our city for decades; some of them have never been performed here before. “Pieces like Brahms Violin Concerto or the Sibelius Symphony No. 5 are considered repertoire pieces for classical musicians,” Turner explains. “For some reason, these master works have not been part of our programming and we are going to change that.”

This year’s Masters Series includes a huge roster of Canadian talent. To open the season Quebec pianist Charles Richard-Hamelin will be a piano lover’s favorite with his rendition of Chopin Piano Concerto No. 2. The keys will continue to ring out in November with a pair of pianists on stage. Saskatoon’s Thomas Yu will be back in town to perform. Yu won the CBC piano competition last year.  Joining him on stage is Godwin Friesen another young piano prodigy from our city. Friesen took home the 2015 National Music Competition.

January will see the SSO take part in a Mozart Festival here in Saskatoon. There will be a movie screening of Amadeus, public lectures and a concert featuring Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 5.

In March the SSO will help commemorate the 125th Anniversary of the Ukrainian immigration to Canada. Soprano Kateryna Khartova and Carissa Klopoushak will take to the stage in a celebration of Ukrainian culture. There may even be a perogy or two in the lobby.

The Masters Series will wrap with a celebration of Canada’s 150th birthday. The show opens with Raven Steals the Light  “It’s one of the craziest, scariest musical openings I’ve ever heard in my life,” says Turner. “It sounds like chaos!”

The top selling Pop Series has some big name concerts in it as well. Along with a holiday Christmas show featuring music from The Grinch Who Stole Christmas and A Charlie Brown Christmas, there’s plenty to sing along to.

In the Fall the SSO will be collaborating with the Fireside Singers on a Broadway blockbuster. “We wanted to help take the local music scene to the next level,” says Turner. The chorus and symphony will bring classics from The Sound of Music, Oklahoma, Phantom of the Opera and many more to the stage.

Dust off those acid wash jeans cause it’s time to flashback to the 1980s with Careless Whisper: The SSO Does the 80s. Jeans and Classics are coming back to the stage to perform tunes from Prince, The B-52s, Tears for Fears and the Bangles, just to name a few.

The last of the Pops Series is sure to sell out at the SSO is celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the release of Star Wars. The music of John Williams from all 7 scores will be performed. There’s sure to be a few costumes roaming around the lobby for this show.

Other additions to this season include bringing back the chamber orchestra for the Baroque Series. These are smaller, more intimate shows that capitalize on Maestro Eric Paetkau’s experience playing and conducting in the Baroque tradition. The Sunday Chamber Series is still a go and Time for Toddlers is expanding from 3 dates into 4 because of high demand.

The SSO is also expanding their After Dark concerts into a season. These will be three pop-up performances that will only be announced days before the show. These concerts will be experimental, interactive and incorporate other art forms. It’s all about the element of surprise with these ones.

From the long list of local talent to the expansion in many of it’s programs, it seems as though classical music is alive and well in Saskatoon and fans have a lot to look forward to.