BACKSTAGE PASS with Carlos Miguel Prieto

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Music Director Carlos Miguel Prieto is joined by Concertmaster Justin Bruns, who will perform Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto, to share insights about the music. The program also features Haydn's Symphony No. 49, known as "La Passione," and Schumann Symphony No. 2.

The music discussed in this podcast will be performed by the North Carolina Symphony, with Justin Bruns as soloist, in Wilmington on October 8 at the Wilson ...

Music Director Carlos Miguel Prieto shares insights and connections behind our opening weekend program: Debussy’s Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun, Stravinsky’s dazzling Petrushka, and the centerpiece of the program—Rachmaninoff’s breathtaking Piano Concerto No. 3.The music discussed in this podcast will be performed by the North Carolina Symphony, with guest pianist Boris Giltburg, at Raleigh's Meymandi C...

Music Director Carlos Miguel Prieto shares the personal stories and connections behind our season finale: Gabriela Ortiz’s Kauyumari, Copland’s iconic Appalachian Spring, and Silvestre Revueltas’ powerful Night of the Mayas.

The music in this podcast will be performed by the North Carolina Symphony Raleigh's Meymandi Concert Hall at the Martin Marietta Center for the Performing Arts, May 8-9, 2026.

Whether you&rsquo...

In this week’s Backstage Pass, Carlos explores the rare and striking pairing at the heart of this program and discusses why this unusual combination creates a transcendent musical experience.

The North Carolina Symphony will be joined by guest soloists and the North Carolina Master Chorale for these concerts in Raleigh on April 10th and 11th.

Whether you’re gearing up for the performance or simply want to enrich your lis...

Beethoven’s Emperor & Bartók’s Bold Brilliance

Join Carlos for an insider’s journey into two monumental works of the concert stage. He dives into the majesty and fire of Beethoven’s Emperor Piano Concerto—featuring his longtime friend and collaborator, the extraordinary pianist Anne‑Marie McDermott—before exploring the color, wit, and orchestral imagination of Bartók’s Concerto for Orche...

Join Music Director Carlos Miguel Prieto as he dives into a vibrant, all‑American program—Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess: A Symphonic Picture, John Adams’ Saxophone Concerto featuring Timothy McAllister, Bernstein’s spirited excerpts from On the Town, and James P. Johnson’s jubilant "Victory Stride." Carlos shares the stories and musical threads that connect these iconic voices and illuminate the richness o...

In this episode, Music Director Carlos Miguel Prieto reflects on the enduring artistic bond between Aaron Copland and Carlos Chávez. Featuring Copland’s Clarinet Concerto and his monumental Symphony No. 3, alongside Chávez’s Sinfonía india, the conversation explores artistic friendship and the power of musical storytelling.

Principal Clarinet Samuel Almaguer joins Carlos to reflect on the concerto’s technical deman...

In this episode of BACKSTAGE PASS with Carlos Miguel Prieto, Carlos shares his love for Beethoven and focuses on his middle period—a time of bold ideas, emotional clarity, and music that helped usher in the Romantic era. 

In So Much Genius: Beethoven’s Middle Years, Carlos explores the beauty of Fidelio Overture, Symphony No. 4, and the Violin Concerto in D which is being performed by guest violi...

In episode 2 of BACKSTAGE PASS, Music Director Carlos Miguel Prieto shares exclusive insights into this week’s’ program of works by Aaron Copland, Samuel Barber, and Antonín Dvořák.Prieto is joined by Principal Clarinet Samuel Almaguer as they explore Copland’s Clarinet Concerto—a work that blends jazz rhythms and sweeping Americana into a singular musical voice. Almaguer shares his personal connection to th...

Introducing the North Carolina Symphony’s new podcast—BACKSTAGE PASS with Carlos Miguel Prieto.

In this premiere episode, Music DirectorCarlos Miguel Prieto shares exclusive insights on this weekend’s 2025/26 classical season opener with your North Carolina Symphony. Hear Carlos’ thoughts on Dvořàk’s “New World” Symphony, Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 4,and Barber’s Overture...