Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra

Since my first review for the John Williams tribute concert, I also attended their Star Wars Concert in 2019 and most recently the Superhero Soundtrack Concert on 06/04/2022, each time conducted by maestro/M.C. Stuart Chafetz, who is quite a character/personality! I do tend toward the Pops Series rather than classical, operas, or ballets.The Superhero Soundtrack Concert featured musical selections from Marvel Avengers, Superman/Man of Steel, Spider-Man, Batman, Wonder Woman, Fantastic Four, The Incredibles, Supergirl, X-Men: The Last Stand, but also some broader heroic themes such as The Rocketeer, Robin Hood, The Lone Ranger, and Wagner's Flight of the Valkyries. All the great composers represented -- John Williams, Danny Elfman, Hans Zimmer, James Horner, Michael Giacchino! It would have been neat if they included both the older themes too like from the X-Men cartoon, Wonder Woman TV show, Spider-Man theme with lyrics, even just snippets. Tickets started at $25 and we got seats in the rear Orchestra level. Since this was the orchestra it was more of a "listening" experience than "watching" since they didn't do screen projections of imagery from each show/film but you still had a good view of the stage layout and each orchestral section. Please bring more Pops themes! I am a fan of all of these composers, but also have been to concerts featuring music from video games Final Fantasy, or Legend of Zelda. Maybe next music from, say, Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones? It's great to have our own local Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra.

Some salesperson called my mom's house at 8:54 PM Wednesday August 29, 2018. When I simply suggested that was not cool, the salesperson hung up on me. I called back and found a supervisor (I think Jeremiah). Supervisor said he would find out who, would call me back, and make sure all is good. Never happened.

The Sacramento Philharmonic has never been a premier orchestra. Back in the '80s, only having lived in the city for about seven years, my husband and I did start buying season tickets as we adore classical music. I believe Carter Nice was the conductor then. Our annual subscription for about five or six concerts was quite reasonable, and we went with good friends, also music lovers. We did this for about 10 years until we became disillusioned with the programs and never bought another season subscription. About two years ago, on a whim, we decided to give the orchestra another try and bought tickets for a single performance. It was lackluster at best. On the other hand, for 20 years we have been subscribers to the classical series at the Mondavi Center. It is true that the tickets are definitely more expensive. However, we have had the privilege of seeing the world's most celebrated orchestras and renowned soloists. For example, we've now seen Itzhak Perlman five times; Yo-Yo Ma four times; and Joshua Bell, with and without the Academy, at least six or seven. Basically, it comes down to this: The SPO is a mediocre orchestra. There are cities much smaller than Sacto with far more critically acclaimed symphonies. It's unfortunate our city does not have the monetary support from its citizens to afford better programs/musicians. None of the soloists mentioned above, to my knowledge, have ever appeared in Sacto. Incidentally, another reviewer stated that the SPO is just as good as the San Franciso Symphony. This is absolutely ludicrous! We have seen SF countless times at Mondavi, most often conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas. Its sound is extraordinary and cannot be compared to what one would hear in Sacramento. If you don't have great knowledge of classical music and your expectations are modest, then perhaps you might be content with the sound of the SPO. We were not and will continue to support UC Davis, only a 20-minute drive away.

We went to a performance recently and really enjoyed the program so when they called to offer a special deal on a 4 pack of tickets we bought them. We know there's usually a catch but we went with it anyway. Should have gone with our instincts. The catch is that we can't sit together for a popular performance and there are no refunds. Not as great a deal as we thought, unless we want to see less popular events. When we spoke with them about our options the customer service supervisor actually yelled at me over the phone. Will really think twice about purchasing any other tickets in the future.

Wonderful performances and such a Sacramento treasure. The same quality as SF without the cost or hassle.

When I saw an ad on Facebook for the "The Music of Prince" being performed by Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra, I was ecstatic! I searched the website and frequently checked the event page to look for details about the show. I was satisfied and intrigued to hear the music of the late great musical genius,Prince played by an Orchestra. However, upon arrival and while walking to my seat I was told there was no playbill but the show would be announced during the performance. As a professional theatre actress, and supporter of theatre I was surprised. Then I saw one of the ushers with a piece of paper that looked like a program of some sort. I asked her if that was the playbill/program and she said she could only give me one. As my husband and I found our seats, the first thing I read was the name of the vocalist/guitarist that would be performing songs during the entire show. This was extremely disappointing, as this was nothing short of false advertisement. I would not have purchased two $58 dollar tickets to see my favorite artist of all time impersonated in front of the Orchestra that I purchased tickets for to hear play "The music of Prince". The microphone for lead vocals and guitar were so loud that I couldn't enjoy the intricacies of the instruments. At intermission my husband and I decided to leave and stopped by the box office on the way out to ask a couple of questions. One of the employees was extremely rude and dismissive about the dissatisfaction expressed about the lack of information provided about the show and how it didn't match what was marketed. I asked if I could get my money back and she clearly stated that no refunds are given. This is not ok. Poor customer service. There wasn't even an offer to comp tickets to a future show.