H+H Artistic Director Jonathan Cohen leads Handel’s L’Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato, a musical celebration of the human spirit featuring the period instrument orchestra and chorus, guest soloists, and new spoken word by Massachusetts Poet Laureate Regie Gibson.
These performances mark the first for Lecolion Washington, Jr. as President and CEO of H+H.
BOSTON | The Handel and Haydn Society’s 2026–27 Season opens on October 2 + 4 at Symphony Hall with The Art of Living, a musical exploration and celebration of the human spirit featuring George Frideric Handel’s L’Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato (the Cheerful Man, the Thoughtful Man, and the Moderate Man). Handel’s most celebrated masterpiece before Messiah, the work is based on two companion poems of 17th-century English writer John Milton, adapted and extended by librettist Charles Jennens. H+H Artistic Director Jonathan Cohen leads the period instrument orchestra and chorus with guest soloists soprano Joélle Harvey, tenor Paul Appleby, and bass-baritone Michael Sumuel. For the first time with H+H at Symphony Hall, H+H welcomes friend and collaborator Massachusetts Poet Laureate Regie Gibson to the stage to share new spoken reflections for the art of living today.
These performances mark the first for Lecolion Washington, Jr. in his role as President and CEO of H+H. All concert goers are invited to join H+H musicians, staff, and Board members for a reception to greet him following both performances.
“As the first Black leader in the 211-year history of H+H, I could not be more honored to welcome all to experience the extraordinary music of H+H as we open our new season,” said Washington. “L’Allegro explores the joyful extrovert and the contemplative introvert hidden within us all. No matter how you see the world, Handel’s music beautifully captures each persona, moving us to embrace one another’s similarities and differences. This is music to bring us together, and that feels remarkably relevant and personally meaningful for today.”
To share new reflections about the art of living, H+H warmly welcomes spoken word artist Regie Gibson to the Symphony Hall stage for these concerts. H+H has enjoyed a long partnership with Gibson, who has performed with and composed the text for the Handel and Haydn Society’s “Crossing the Deep” and free Emancipation Proclamation Concerts held annually on New Year’s Eve.
A favorite of Boston audiences, regularly featured soprano soloist Joélle Harvey returns alongside operatic tenor Paul Appleby in his H+H debut and bass-baritone Michael Sumuel, who last performed with H+H in “Glories of Bach” during the 2022-23 Season. H+H Chorus members Sonja DuToit Tengblad, Sarah Vitale, and Teresa Wakim are featured step out soloists.
Despite its Italian title, the work is written in English and composed in a unique structure that’s not quite an opera, oratorio, or cantata; it was described at its 1740 premiere in London as an “entertainment,” which Handel’s inventive orchestration provides. The work features virtuosic solos for Baroque cello, flute, and horn; oboe, organ, carillon, and theorbo (a large plucked instrument of the lute family), are also featured. Lyrics praise the virtues of an extroverted life full of sensual pleasures, sweet music, and lively community in L’Allegro, then of beauty to be found in an introverted, melancholy lifestyle marked by quiet contemplation and peace in il Penseroso. The third movement, with text drafted by Jennens, honors a moderate approach to life, il Moderato.
Concert Information
The Handel and Haydn Society presents The Art of Living on Friday, October 2, 2026 at 7:30pm and Sunday, October 4 at 3:00pm at Symphony Hall (301 Massachusetts Ave., Boston).
Individual tickets to The Art of Living as well as subscription packages for H+H’s 2026-27 Season are now on sale at handelandhaydn.org or by calling the H+H Box Office at 617.262.1815. H+H is pleased to now offer mobile ticketing.
H+H offers programs to make concert attendance more accessible and is focused on creating a welcoming experience for all. H+H is a certified partner of SocialRx (formerly Art Pharmacy), a program that enables healthcare providers to prescribe tickets to creative experiences that support mental health, reduce isolation, and strengthen overall well-being. Full time undergraduate and graduate students can attend all eight programs in our season with a $25 Masterpass. Young adults enjoy three Friday evening concerts plus networking and social events with a $120 H² membership. H+H also provides complimentary tickets and special programming for families through the City of Boston Family Days Program.
New this season, The Society @ H+H membership provides flexibility when purchasing tickets. Members pay one monthly rate of $9, and can then purchase one ticket to each of our eight season programs for just $10 (a few blackout dates apply). Tickets can be purchased months in advance or the day of a concert, pending availability. Members are seated together to create community at concerts and also enjoy benefits such as early access to tickets and 20% off the purchase of additional tickets.
Musically Speaking
Beginning 45 minutes before each performance, all concert goers are welcome to attend “Musically Speaking,” a pre-concert talk that provides background and context about the music and instruments featured on the program. This talk is hosted by Teresa Neff, H+H’s Christopher Hogwood Historically Informed Performance Fellow. Questions are encouraged!
About the Handel and Haydn Society
Boston’s Grammy-winning Handel and Haydn Society performs Baroque and Classical music with a freshness, a vitality, and a creativity that inspires all ages. Called “one of the most exciting ensembles of historically informed performances in the world” (OperaWire), H+H is in its 212th consecutive season of captivating audiences (the most of any performing arts organization in the United States), speaking to its singular success at welcoming new people to this extraordinary music, generation after generation.
H+H performed the “Hallelujah” chorus from Handel’s Messiah in its first concert in 1815, gave the American premiere in 1818, and ever since has been both a musical and a civic leader in the Boston community. During the Civil War, H+H gave numerous concerts in support of the Union Army (H+H member Julia Ward Howe wrote “The Battle Hymn of the Republic”) and on January 1, 1863, H+H performed at the Grand Jubilee Concert celebrating the enactment of the Emancipation Proclamation. All are welcome to celebrate freedom at H+H’s free Emancipation Proclamation Concert held annually on New Year’s Eve in partnership with the Museum of African American History.
H+H’s Orchestra and Chorus delight more than 76,000 listeners annually through concerts at Symphony Hall and other leading venues as well as radio broadcasts. Through the Karen S. and George D. Levy Learning and Education Program, H+H supports eight youth choirs of singers in grades 2–12 and provides thousands of complimentary tickets to students and communities throughout Boston, ensuring the joy of music is accessible to all. H+H provides deeply discounted tickets and hosts special events for undergraduate students and concertgoers under 40 through the H+H Masterpass and H² membership programs. H+H has released 16 CDs on the CORO label and has toured nationally and internationally. In all these ways, H+H fulfills its mission to inspire the intellect, touch the heart, elevate the soul, and connect all of us with our shared humanity through transformative experiences with Baroque and Classical music.