2023-24 Season Preview
What is a Cathedral?
Surely, it is sacred ground, but it also serves as a cultural center, a space for convening, and a place of inspiration.
Join us this year in our home, Washington National Cathedral, as we explore the many roles that a great Cathedral plays in its community, from architectural marvel to community gathering space.
Subscriptions and single tickets will be released later this summer. To stay updated on sale dates, subscribe to our newsletter.
October 22, 2023
Two Cathedrals: Baroque Splendor from Mexico City
CCS and Washington Bach Consort join forces to celebrate baroque music from
Mexico City’s Cathedral, extraordinary music resulting from a collision of cultures.
December 16-17, 2023
Joy of Christmas
Bells ring and jubilant voices beckon to all this holiday season. Gather with us
at Washington National Cathedral to celebrate the Joy of Christmas.
January 31, 2024
Seventeenth Annual High School Choir Festival
Choirs from schools around the Washington, DC region come together for
a series of magnificent performances. Steven Fox conducts over 100 of DC’s
best and brightest young singers in this favorite choral tradition.
March 10, 2024
Sonic Bloom: Music of Bruckner, Esmail, and Gabrieli
Immerse yourself in the music of Gabrieli, Bruckner, and Esmail as
trumpets and voices resound in the vast expanse of the Cathedral Nave.
May 19, 2024
Duke Ellington’s Sacred Concert
Chorus meets big band: journey with us through jazz, choral music, blues
and more in Ellington’s Sacred Concert, a work deemed “one of the
towering giants of American music.”
Want more information on Washington National Cathedral’s 2023-24 concerts? Visit cathedral.org/music/concerts-recitals, or continue reading below!
September 3, 2023
Labor Day Organ Recital
Bruce Neswick, artist-in-residence at St. James by-the-Sea Episcopal
Church, La Jolla, CA, and founding director of the Girls Choir at
Washington National Cathedral.
November 11, 2023
Veterans Day Concert: A National Tribute
National Veterans Day is an opportunity to honor those who have served in the
Armed Forces, celebrate their indomitable spirit and triumph over adversity,
and recognize their extraordinary sacrifices for our nation. Join Washington
National Cathedral and “The President’s Own” United States Marine Chamber
Orchestra for an evening of patriotic and celebratory music.
November 19, 2023
Thanksgiving Day Celebrity Organ Recital
Caroline Robinson, Organist and Associate-Choirmaster at the
Cathedral of St. Philip in Atlanta.
December 8-10, 2023
Handel’s Messiah
Join Washington National Cathedral Choir and Baroque Orchestra for Handel’s
beloved Messiah. The Cathedral’s soaring architecture and Gothic splendor offer
a venue unlike any other in Washington to experience Handel’s masterpiece.
December 15, 2023
Christmas with The King’s Singers
Celebrate the magic of the Christmas season with one of Britain’s
most beloved vocal ensembles, The King’s Singers, in their only
Washington-area appearance. From Christmas favorites to
lesser-known gems to some brand-new surprises, there’s no better way
to embrace the warmth of the season than with these six talented singers.
December 25, 2023
Christmas Day Organ Recital
Cathedral Organists Thomas Sheehan and Rebecca Ehren.
February 18, 2024
President’s Day Organ Recital
Kola Owolabi, Professor of Organ at the University of Notre Dame.
February 3rd, 2024
Onward and Upward
Celebrate Black History Month at the Cathedral through this inspirational evening
of spoken word, dance, and music. Featuring Children of the Gospel, the Katherine
Smith Contemporary Dance Ensemble, the SE Tennis and Learning Center’s
“Blacks in Wax.”
March 24, 2024
J.S. Bach’s St. Matthew’s Passion
The Washington National Cathedral Choir and Baroque Orchestra perform
Johann Sebastian Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, among the greatest
masterpieces of the sacred concert canon.
March 31, 2024
Easter Day Organ Recital
Thomas Sheehan and Rebecca Ehren, Cathedral Organists.
May 26, 2024
Memorial Day Celebrity Organ Recital
Thomas Sheehan, Cathedral Organist.
May 5, 2024
In the Company of the Saints
Michael McCarthy conducts the Washington National Cathedral Choir in a concert that explores the legacies of saints from St. Peter and St. Paul,
to Hildegard of Bingen, to Martin Luther King, Jr.
June 30, 2024
Marin Alsop Conducts Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony
The National Orchestral Institute + Festival, world-renowned conductor Marin Alsop,
and Heritage Signature Chorale perform Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with poetry
by 2017 Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith alongside Pulitzer Prize-winning composer
Jennifer Higdon’s blue cathedral.
July 4, 2024
A July 4th Musical Celebration!
An Independence Day concert featuring Thomas Sheehan and Rebecca
Ehren, Washington National Cathedral Choir, and Washington
Symphonic Brass, that celebrates the enduring values that make
America strong, resilient, and compassionate. Happy birthday, America!
