Rossen Milanov
(Photo by PSO staff)

The centerpiece of the Princeton Symphony Orchestra’s (PSO) 2024-25 season is the upcoming celebration of Music Director Rossen Milanov’s 60th birthday at concerts held at Richardson Auditorium on January 11 and 12.

Designated as the season’s Edward T. Cone Concert, the program consists of Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto with Leila Josefowicz as soloist and Tchaikovsky’s rarely heard Manfred Symphony.

“I’m thrilled to collaborate creatively again with my friend, the superb violinist Leila Josefowicz, and I am celebrating my birthday by conducting two works among my favorites in the orchestral repertoire,” said Milanov. “I’m Slavic by birth, so when it comes to conducting works by these great composers, I feel deeply connected to the music.”

As Edward T. Cone Music Director of the orchestra, Milanov regularly collaborates with artists of the orchestral world, and heads the PSO’s June performing arts celebration, the Princeton Festival. He is also the music director of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra and the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra.

Milanov has conducted operas presented by Komische Oper Berlin and Opera Columbus, as well as the Spanish premiere of Tchaikovsky’s Mazeppa and Bartok’s Bluebeard’s Castle with Opera Oviedo (awarded best Spanish production for 2015). He has conducted over 200 concerts with the Philadelphia Orchestra and performances with the New York City Ballet, Zurich Ballet, and La Scala Ballet in Paris. He presents education projects with Carnegie Hall and the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and leads the PSO’s BRAVO! concerts for school children. He is a 2011 ASCAP award winner and a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music and The Juilliard School.

Leila Josefowicz
(Photo by Tom Zimberoff)

Josefowicz received Grammy award nominations for her recordings of Scheherazade.2 with St Louis Symphony conducted by David Robertson, and Esa-Pekka Salonen’s Violin Concerto with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by the composer. Her 2024-25 season includes performances of Luca Francesconi’s Duende — The Dark Notes with New York Philharmonic and Susanna Mälkki, and the British premiere of Helen Grime’s Violin Concerto with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Sakari Oramo at the Aldeburgh Festival. Further engagements include Minnesota Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Gulbenkian Orchestra, and Houston, San Diego, KBS, Singapore, City of Birmingham, Prague, and BBC symphony orchestras.

Sunday’s concert includes a 3 p.m. pre-concert talk hosted by Milanov discussing the works to be performed. The talk is free to ticket holders with general seating in Richardson Auditorium.

In advance of the concert weekend, Milanov will reflect on his years at the PSO with former PSO Executive Director Melanie Clarke at a special PSO Soundtracks presentation, “A Symphony Celebration,” at Princeton Public Library on Tuesday, January 7 at 7 p.m.

For concert tickets, visit princetonsymphony.org.