Locals and visitors to St. Louis have long cherished performances by the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. The 2025/26 season is especially anticipated as Powell Hall reopens within the new Jack C. Taylor Music Center, named for the late Jack C. Taylor, longtime SLSO supporter, philanthropist and founder of Enterprise Mobility. This season celebrates the orchestra’s 145th year — the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra is the second-oldest professional symphony in the United States, after the New York Philharmonic.
© Sam Fentress
The reopening concludes a two-year, $140 million renovation focused on expanding access to music for local residents and visitors from across the country and around the world. The project balanced careful preservation of Powell Hall’s celebrated acoustics and historic visual character with modern enhancements to improve both audience experience and artist amenities.
Norwegian design firm Snøhetta served as design architect, working alongside St. Louis–based Christner Architects. Their collaboration protected the hall’s century-old acoustic qualities while introducing thoughtful updates that respect the building’s history.
Originally opened in 1925 as an ornate movie palace with 4,000 seats and a venue for live performances, Powell Hall became the home of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra in 1968 and has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 2001. After renovation, the hall seats 2,683 guests and remains a key landmark in the St. Louis Grand Center Arts District.
© Sam Fentress
Renovation highlights include new seating, upgraded amenities, and enhanced accessibility and safety features. Backstage, the orchestra gained improved instrument storage, expanded practice rooms and dressing facilities, plus a state-of-the-art recording studio to support both live performance capture and educational work. A nearly 4,000-square-foot Education and Learning Center now anchors SLSO’s expanding education initiatives: it provides rehearsal space for the organization’s two choruses and Youth Orchestra and serves as a community gathering space to strengthen the orchestra’s role in music education and local engagement. As part of the rebuild, SLSO commissioned internationally recognized artist Sheila Hicks to create a permanent, site-specific installation for the new main entrance.
SLSO’s 146th season celebrates the transformative power of music and the return to renovated Powell Hall. The season’s programing features an impressive roster of guest artists and showcases bold, large-scale masterworks such as Richard Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben, Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem, Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, Maurice Ravel’s complete Daphnis et Chloé, and W.A. Mozart’s The Magic Flute. The St. Louis Symphony Chorus and the St. Louis Symphony IN UNISON Chorus will play prominent roles throughout the season.
© Sam Fentress
Beyond core classical repertoire, the SLSO continues to present popular film-score performances, with six films scheduled in the series, beloved holiday concerts, and classical crossover events celebrating artists such as Dolly Parton, Chuck Berry and John Coltrane. The season also includes collaborations with a variety of performers, including Sissel, Tower of Power and Ben Rector, offering diverse musical experiences for audiences of all ages.