Concert Review: The Buffalo Philharmonic Opens Its 90th Season

Joshua Bell and the premiere of “City of Light” brought a capacity audience to its feet

Editor’s Note: This review was originally published in The Buffalo Hive, where I serve as Managing Editor.

JoAnn Falletta conducting the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra September 28, 2024. Photo by Kirsten Anderson for The Buffalo Hive.

Warm summer evenings gave way a cool, cloudy night as Buffalo music lovers filed into Kleinhans Music Hall for the opening of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra’s 90th Season (September 28, 2024). BPO Music Director JoAnn Falletta enjoyed two standing ovations before a single note was played following BPO Chairman of the Board Scott Stenclik’s remarks honoring the institution’s 90th birthday and Falletta’s 25th anniversary as Music Director.

A quarter-century ago, JoAnn Falletta broke a decrepit, outdated glass ceiling when she became the first woman to lead a major American orchestra. She has since been followed by Marin Alsop in Baltimore (2005), Natalie Stutzmann in Atlanta (2022), and Xian Zhang in Seattle (2025).

In an era of bankrupt orchestras and dw…