What Is the Longwood Symphony Orchestra?

Updated

The Longwood Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a Boston-area orchestra whose stated purpose is "healing the community through music." It performs a regular concert season under Music Director Jotaro Nakano, and each concert is tied to a beneficiary organization — typically a health, care, or community-service group. If you want to know what the organization is, who leads it, and what a season looks like in practice, the details below come from the orchestra's own site.

Mission and identity

The orchestra describes itself with a single phrase: "Healing the community through music." That framing shows up directly in how its concerts are structured — every program listed on the site names a "Benefiting" organization alongside the repertoire.

The model is therefore twofold:

  • Artistic: a full symphonic season with a music director, guest soloists, and standard repertoire mixed with contemporary works.
  • Civic: each performance directs attention (and, by implication, support) to a partner cause.

Leadership

Jotaro Nakano is the Music Director. The site also links to a dedicated page for him ("Read More About Jotaro"), and the 2026–27 season was announced under his name. Administrative leadership includes an Executive Director — Hannah Collins was named to that role in December 2024 — and an Operations Manager, a position held by Miguel Petris as of December 2025.

What a season looks like

The announced 2026–27 season gives a concrete picture of the format: four main concerts plus a Tanglewood event, each with a named beneficiary.

Date Concert Program highlights Benefiting
Oct 17, 2026 City Alive Rossini, The Barber of Seville Sinfonia; Gustavo Larrea, Fayuca; Gershwin, Concerto in F (Albert Cano Smit, piano) Tunefoolery Music
Dec 5, 2026 Moonlit Dreams Massenet, Introduction from Cendrillon; Berlioz, Les Nuits d'été (Corrine Byrne, soprano); Brouwer, Path at Sunrise, Masses of Flowers; Ravel, Daphnis et Chloé Suite No. 2 Children's Dyslexia Centers, Inc.
Mar 20, 2027 In Loving Memory Mazzoli, These Worlds in Us; Mahler, Adagietto from Symphony No. 5; Brahms, Symphony No. 3 Care Dimensions
May 8, 2027 Limitless Veronica Leahy, Song Cycle (co-commission with Cambridge Common Voices); Mozart, Horn Concerto No. 4 (Felix Klieser, horn); Beethoven, Symphony No. 3 (Eroica) Vinfen
May 16, 2027 Longwood Symphony at Tanglewood Arts in Health Symposium & Concert; Felix Klieser, horn; details to be announced —

Two things stand out in that lineup. First, the repertoire is not niche — it pairs canonical works (Gershwin, Berlioz, Mahler, Brahms, Beethoven) with living composers (Larrea, Brouwer, Mazzoli, Leahy). Second, the beneficiaries span music therapy, dyslexia services, hospice and palliative care, and disability services, which is consistent with the "healing" framing rather than a general charity label.

Beyond the concert hall

The site's news section shows the organization operates as a working institution, not just a performance series. Recent items include:

  • Season announcements for 2026–27 and 2025–26
  • A year-end message from the Music Director
  • Staffing news (Operations Manager appointment, Executive Director appointment)
  • A job posting for Operations Manager
  • A news mention involving LSO and Project STEP

It also references an Arts in Health Symposium tied to the Tanglewood date, suggesting the health-and-music angle is treated as a programmatic theme, not only a fundraising tagline.

Practical notes for a first-time visitor

  • Where to start: the "Upcoming Concerts and Events" section is the primary entry point; each listing has a "Read more" link for full details.
  • What is not stated on the page: ticket prices, venue addresses, and whether streaming or subscriptions are available. The site's metadata includes the word "subscription," but no pricing page or payment platform is listed in the available material, so cost and access terms should be confirmed directly with the orchestra.
  • Dates to note: the season runs from October 2026 through May 2027, with the Tanglewood event closing it out.

In short, Longwood Symphony Orchestra is a music director–led Boston orchestra that pairs a conventional symphonic season with a named community beneficiary for each concert, and it presents that work alongside health-focused programming.