See a Concert Under the Stars with the Longwood Symphony Orchestra, Featuring BU Faculty

See a Concert Under the Stars with the Longwood Symphony Orchestra, Featuring BU Faculty

If you've hit the dreaded midweek slump and are looking to breathe new life into your day-to-day, bring your friends, some ice-cold drinks, and a picnic blanket to the Charles River Esplanade tonight and enjoy a free concert by the Longwood Symphony Orchestra.

The July 16 concert kicks off the Boston Landmarks Orchestra's 2025 Summer Series, which features free performances at the Edward A. Hatch Memorial Shell each Wednesday through August 27.

Tune in for renditions of Tchaikovsky's tense and dramatic Polonaise from Eugene Onegin, an operatic take on a novel about the bitterness of love that mirrors the Russian composer's fractured marriage; David Popper's Polonaise de Concert, Op. 14, featuring young performer Gabriel Jojatu on the cello; George Enescu's vibrant medley of traditional Romanian folk songs in Romanian Rhapsody No. 1, Op. 11; and Antonín Dvořák's cheerful Symphony No. 8 in G major, Op. 88, a stark contrast from the Czech composer's otherwise stormy work. Ronald Feldman (CFA'70), the former Longwood Symphony Orchestra music director, will take the helm as guest conductor.

The nationally recognized orchestra, named after Boston's Longwood Medical Area, comprises mostly healthcare professionals-such as research scientists, caregivers, and medical students-from local hospitals and universities, including Boston University's Sargent College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences.

Jennifer Zuk, a Sargent assistant professor of speech, language, and hearing sciences, has played the flute and piccolo in the orchestra for 10 years. With undergraduate degrees in music education and cognitive science, Zuk was drawn to the orchestra's unique model of involving medical practitioners, she says. After a few years of vying for the orchestra's competitive seat, her chance came when a substitute flute player position opened while she was in her doctorate program at Harvard Medical School.

"I feel like the opportunity came to me when I needed it most, because it ended up being this outlet for me that helped ground me and provided some really important self-care through a really rigorous time in my academic training," says Zuk, who has been playing the flute and piccolo since she was nine years old.

Named after Boston's Longwood Medical Area, the Longwood Symphony Orchestra comprises mostly healthcare professionals from local hospitals and universities, including BU's Sargent College of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences.

Zuk isn't the only BU faculty member who dedicates several hours of the week to the orchestra. Sargent Dean Jack Dennerlein has been a member since he first moved to Boston in 1988.

"I was going to graduate school at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a colleague of mine played in the orchestra, found out I played bass, and invited me to a concert, where he introduced me to the conductor, Dennerlein says. "The conductor was so thrilled to have a bass player that I didn't even have to audition; he just asked me when I was showing up for rehearsal."

Dennerlein says what sets the community orchestra apart and makes the experience especially meaningful is seeing medical professionals from various fields come together to create something as a group-with a huge community impact.

For over 30 years, the orchestra's Healing Art of Music Program has sought to showcase musical diversity through its public performances, while raising just over $2.8 million for more than 50 health-related nonprofit organizations.

"We're not just performing for ourselves, we're performing for the community," Dennerlein says. "I grew up watching the Fourth of July concerts that were broadcast from the Hatch Shell, and to be able to perform on the same stage as the Boston Pops is kind of like a childhood dream come true."

Auditions for the orchestra's 2025-2026 season are currently open to anyone, though preference is given to members of the medical community.

"I love that this is our completely free and openly accessible concert," says Zuk. "What gets me really excited about that is to think about the access that this brings, to think about bringing community members access to high-quality, meaningful music that is more available and accessible to them than it may otherwise be."

The Longwood Symphony Orchestra season premiere is tonight, Wednesday, July 16, 7 to 9 pm, at the Edward A. Hatch Memorial Shell, 47 David G. Mugar Way, Boston. The event is free and open to the public. In the event of rain, the concert may be rescheduled to Thursday, July 17, or canceled. Updates will be posted on the Longwood Symphony Orchestra site.

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