EarRelevant Staff | 20 SEP 2025
RALEIGH, North Carolina— The North Carolina Symphony has extended music director Carlos Miguel Prieto’s contract through the 2030–31 season and named Justin Bruns its new concertmaster as part of a series of updates for its upcoming 2025–26 season.
Prieto, who became music director in 2023, will continue to hold the Maxine and Benjamin Swalin Chair. During his tenure, he has hired 26 musicians and expanded the orchestra’s statewide programming, which includes more than 300 concerts and education events annually across North Carolina.
Justin Bruns, concertmaster of the North Carolina Symphony. (courtesy of NCS)
Bruns, who held the associate concertmaster position with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra for two decades, joins NCS as concertmaster and will occupy the Annabelle Lundy Fetterman Chair. He has also served as guest concertmaster with orchestras in São Paulo, Hong Kong, and Houston and is active as a chamber musician and educator.
The orchestra’s 93rd season will feature a mix of classical repertoire, contemporary works, and pops concerts. Highlights include Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9, Beethoven’s “Eroica” Symphony, Copland’s Symphony No. 3, and Orff’s Carmina Burana. The season will also introduce audiences to works such as John Adams’ Saxophone Concerto, Carlos Chávez’s Sinfonía india, and Jennifer Higdon’s Suite from Cold Mountain.
Guest artists making their NCS debuts include conductor JoAnn Falletta, pianists Claire Huangci, Jeneba Kanneh-Mason, and Denis Kozhukhin, violinist Maria Ioudenitch, cellist Paul Watkins, and saxophonist Timothy McAllister. Returning artists include conductors Stephanie Childress, Keitaro Harada, Marcelo Lehninger, and Eduardo Strausser; pianists Anne-Marie McDermott and Joyce Yang; and violinists Vadim Gluzman and Paul Huang.
In addition to its Raleigh concerts, the symphony will continue its statewide series in Chapel Hill, Wilmington, New Bern, and Pinehurst, as well as its annual Western North Carolina Residency, which brings education programs and free community concerts to rural counties.
Education remains a central focus, with programming that reaches over 150,000 students annually, including family concerts, in-school ensemble visits, and online resources aligned with state curriculum standards.
The orchestra will announce programming for its 2026 UNC Health Summerfest outdoor series at a later date. Subscriptions and single tickets are available at ncsymphony.org. ■
EXTERNAL LINKS:
- Carlos Miguel Prieto: carlosmiguelprieto.com
- Justin Bruns: ncsymphony.org/people/justin-bruns
- North Carolina Symphony: ncsymphony.org
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