Mission Chamber Orchestra Opens 2026 with Acclaimed Masterpieces by Women Composers

The Mission Chamber Orchestra celebrates Women's History Month with works by three female composers, Beach, Price and Williams.

The mark of true equality for women in the classical music world is when their music is included in concert programs without anyone noticing that it’s Women’s History Month. Mission Chamber Orchestra’s (MCO) first performance of 2026, Dreams and Destinations, features works by three women composers that were chosen for their excellence, not their composers.

“It was not something that we did intentionally because we were trying to perform female composers,” said MCO’s Music Director, Juan Cristóbal Palacios. “It’s just there is an amazing body of music needs to be recognized. And who better than Mission Chamber Orchestra to do that?”

Since its founding in 1996 at Mission College by conductor Emily Ray, MCO has been known for bringing little known music gems to audiences.

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The theme of the concert is “traditions,” and each piece reflects traditional music from different countries.

Beach’s Gaelic Symphony “is a masterpiece,” said Palacios. “It is full of tunes from many countries. Some are from Ireland. Some of them belong to African American culture. One of the movements is called Siciliana, which is an Italian dance.”

Price’s Andante Moderato has an unmistakably American sound that weaves African American Spirituals into warm and lyrical textures.

“The harmony that she creates, and the tension with beauty is absolutely amazing,” said Palacios. “It is an amazing piece.”

In Williams’ Fantasia on Welsh Nursery Tunes, each movement is built on a Welsh children’s song or lullaby. First performed in 1942, it’s one of Williams’ most popular works.

The final work on the program is Armenian American composer Alan Hovhaness’ (1911-2000) Fantasy on Japanese Woodprints for Xylophone and Orchestra. Xylophone soloist Galen Lemmon recently directed his Pre-University Percussion ensemble to great acclaim at Santa Clara’s Lunar New Year Together festival.

Hovhaness composed the Fantasy while he was studying Asian musical styles in Japan and it includes many elements of Japanese music, including taiko drums.

“The compositional style gives the conductor much latitude in putting the parts together,” Palacios said. “The use of the percussion is very much in a Japanese style, as well as the musical vocabulary.”

This concert also includes MCO’s longstanding Side-by-Side program of including student musicians in performance. The program has grown since its beginning in 2010, with students participating in most performances.

“All the students will be performing the in first piece,” said Palacios. “Some of the kids are starting to play the whole concert with us.”

MCO has a Pay-What-You-Can ticketing model.

“That means, if you can afford just $1, you go in and play one pay $1,” said Palacios. “This is good for families and especially for students.”

Although MCO doesn’t have hard numbers, board members say that the program has increased audience numbers.

Next year, MCO celebrates its 30th anniversary and plans a celebratory season, Palacios said. One of the featured soloists will be the Bay Area’s own piano virtuoso, Jon Nakamatsu. You can find information and tickets for Dreams and Destinations at missionchamber.org/events-tickets/

Listen to some of the music on MCO’s March program:
Amy Beach: tinyurl.com/beach-symphony
Florence Price: tinyurl.com/Price-symphony
Grace Williams: tinyurl.com/Williams-symphony

Carolyn Schuk can be reached at carolyn@santaclaraweekly.com.