SOUTH BEND, IN — The South Bend Symphony Orchestra opens its 2025–26 Season and the June H. Edwards Mosaic Series with Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante on Sunday, September 7, 2025, at 2:30 p.m. The performance takes place at the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center and will be conducted by Music Director Alastair Willis. Tickets for this concert, and the entire 2025–26 Season, are now on sale! Find out more information at southbendsymphony.org!
“We’re thrilled to open the season with a program that highlights the incredible artistry of our own musicians,” said Sarah Perschbacher, Interim Executive Director of the South Bend Symphony Orchestra. “This concert not only celebrates timeless works by Bologne, Still, and Mozart, but also showcases the depth of talent within our orchestra. It’s a perfect start to an exciting season ahead.”
The performance opens with Joseph Bologne’s Symphony No. 1 in G major, an energetic work by the trailblazing 18th-century composer. Following this is William Grant Still’s Mother and Child, a bittersweet movement drawn from his Suite for Violin and Piano, reimagined for orchestra.
Then South Bend Symphony musicians Aviva Hakanoglu, Principal Second Violin, and Nicholas Jeffery, Principal Viola, take the lead as soloists in Mozart’s beloved Sinfonia Concertante.
“I absolutely love playing with the South Bend Symphony,” says Aviva Hakanoglu. “There is such a high level of musicianship and camaraderie that feels unique to this ensemble. It is an honor to have the opportunity to be featured as a soloist. Nick and I began our tenures with the Symphony at the same time and have gotten to play together not only in the orchestra, but also in the Symphony-to-Go String Quintet. It is so easy and fun to play together! Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante gives us the chance to shine, and is also full of conversations with each other and the orchestra. It’s going to be a very special experience to make chamber music as soloists and with this beloved orchestra!
“I am very excited to play this amazing piece with my friends and colleagues!” says Nicholas Jeffery. “Mozart gave violists a real gift with this piece, and I am looking forward to the performance.”
The South Bend Symphony Orchestra is grateful to its Season Sponsors: Jack M. Champaigne and Jordan Lexus of Mishawaka for their support of the June H. Edwards Mosaic Series.
SUBSCRIPTIONS / TICKETS
Subscriptions
Discounts, priority seating, and other exclusive benefits are available to season subscribers. Subscribe at www.southbendsymphony.org or by phone at (574) 232-6343.
SINGLE TICKETS
Single tickets are available through the Morris Box Office, open Tuesday – Wednesday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. and Thursday – Friday 10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. by phone at 574-235-9190, or online at morriscenter.org.
DeBartolo Performing Arts Center Ticket Office, open Monday – Friday, Noon to 6 p.m., by phone 574-631-2800 or online at www.performingarts.nd.edu.
Dates, programs, and venues are subject to change.
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About the South Bend Symphony Orchestra
The South Bend Symphony Orchestra inspires, entertains, and unites the community through the transformative power of orchestral music. As the region’s only professional orchestra, it presents over 20 mainstage performances and nearly 70 smaller ensemble concerts each year, reaching more than 29,000 audience members annually. Deeply rooted in the Michiana region, the Symphony is dedicated to building a vibrant and connected arts community.
Recognized for its artistic excellence and organizational strength, the South Bend Symphony has earned support from the National Endowment for the Arts and numerous state and local arts agencies. It is also the proud recipient of the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County’s prestigious Leighton Award for Nonprofit Excellence, honoring it as the best-run nonprofit in the county.
Learn more about the South Bend Symphony Orchestra at www.southbendsymphony.org.
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About Aviva Hakanoglu
Aviva Hakanoglu enjoys a varied career as a performer and educator. A violinist with the Euclid Quartet, she is a full-time Lecturer at Indiana University South Bend where the quartet is in residence. In addition to its local performance and educational engagements, the quartet performs around the country and is active in the recording studio. Aviva is a director of the Louise E. Addicott Summer Chamber Music Festival, a ten-day event established by the Euclid Quartet on the campus of IU South Bend.
Aviva has enjoyed an active orchestral career. She is the principal second violin of the South Bend Symphony, and previously held positions in the Terre Haute and Owensboro Symphonies.
Aviva has always searched for creative ways to bring music into her community. She organizes musical events across Michiana, including at the Civil Rights Heritage Center and the St. Joseph County Public Library. Previously, Aviva served as assistant director of the Three Village Chamber Players, a chamber music collective that provides free concerts and educational events around Long Island.
Aviva earned her D.M.A. from Stony Brook University and her M.M. from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. She holds a B.A. in Philosophy and Music from Harvard. Her mentors include Jennifer Frautschi, Philip Setzer, Simin Ganatra, the Pacifica Quartet, and the Emerson Quartet.
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About Nicholas Jeffery
Nicholas Jeffery is a violist and teacher in Kalamazoo Michigan. He holds degrees from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music where he studied with Catherine Carroll and Masao Kawasaki, and from the University of Wisconsin-Madison where his main teacher was Sally Chisholm. As a performer, Dr. Jeffery has been a member of the Madison Symphony Orchestra and served as Principal Viola of the Illinois Symphony Orchestra. An active chamber musician, Dr. Jeffery helped found the Ursa Ensemble, a mixed chamber ensemble in Chicago, IL, and has been invited to appear as a guest artist with the Willy Street Chamber Players, and the Heart Strings Ensemble in Madison, WI.
Dr. Jeffery is strongly committed to teaching and maintains a full studio of private students at the Crescendo Academy of Music. As a member of the Hunt String Quartet at the University of Wisconsin, he visited area elementary schools to present musical lessons and give performances in the classroom. He currently serves as Principal Viola of the South Bend Symphony Orchestra, and Assistant Principal of the Kalamazoo Symphony where he also performs as a member of the Burdick-Thorne String Quartet.