September 10 Andrés Orozco-Estrada returns for Music of the Americas at The Pavilion

THE WOODLANDS, Texas -- The Houston Symphony heats up the stage at The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion with Music of the Americas September 10 at 8 p.m. This classical concert features Latin-inspired pieces from “West Side Story” and famed composers Leonard Bernstein, James Moody, Silvestre Revueltas, Astor Piazzolla and Heitor Villa-Lobos. Tickets are $20 for orchestra seating. Mezzanine and lawn seating are free courtesy of The Wortham Foundation. Tickets are not required for free seating. Gates open at 7 p.m.

Houston Symphony music director Andrés Orozco-Estrada returns to The Pavilion as the evening’s conductor following his venue debut in May. Orozco-Estrada discovered his talent for conducting at age 15 when he led the youth orchestra of his school in Medellin, Colombia. By age 19, Orozco-Estrada was studying under Uroš Lajovic—a famed student of Felix Weingartner, Richard Strauss, Arnold Schoenberg and Anton Webern—at the Vienna Music Academy. Since completing his degree with distinction, Orozco-Estrada has conducted the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Tonkünstler Orchestra and the Vienna Philharmonic at the Vienna Musikverein, as well as several prominent European orchestras over the past two years alone. Because of his wildly acclaimed success in leading these programs, Orozco-Estrada will continue implementing his innovative concert formats to the Houston Symphony in their 2015-2016 season.

Gianluca Littera, an Italian harmonicist, joins the symphony exclusively for Music of the Americas. Littera, also an accomplished violist, is one of very few soloists in the world today to perform classical and jazz music with the harmonica. Littera has performed with symphonies all over the world and has collaborated on many occasions with the Santa Cecelia Orchestra of the National Academy in Rome.

Before the show, Oak Ridge High School Orchestra performs on the Side Stage from 7-7:45 p.m. Pre-concert activities with The Pavilion Partners and Woodforest National Bank in the North Plaza are sponsored by Fidelity Investments, Renewal by Andersen and Century 21 Realty Partners. Guests can register-to-win Tommy Bahama’s “Best Seats in the House,” which includes dinner for four at the next performing arts event, and participate in Fidelity’s Seat Exchange. Get insight into the evening’s program with Pavilion Talk, a free pre-concert discussion led by noted music scholar and former college professor Ira J. Black from 7:15- 7:45 p.m. in the Orchestra Pit.

At all symphonies, guests are welcome to have a picnic in their seat or on the hill. Keep in mind that beverages cannot be brought into The Pavilion. Sitting on the hill? Lawn chairs also are provided free for this event.

Orchestra tickets can be purchased at The Pavilion Box Office, located at 2005 Lake Robbins Drive in The Woodlands. Tickets are not required for free seating. The Box Office is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m.–5 p.m. and on event days through the start of the show. Tickets also are available at all Ticketmaster outlets, Fiesta, select H-E-B and Walmart locations, by calling 800-745-3000 or online at www.ticketmaster.com.

Preferred parking is available in the on-site Town Center Garage, located along Six Pines Drive. Parking is $10 per vehicle for this and most performing arts events. Tickets for on-site parking can be purchased in advance at all Ticketmaster locations and The Pavilion Box Office. Guests also may park in any of the five free parking lots on the southwest side of The Pavilion. The free, color-coded lots are connected to The Pavilion by corresponding pathways with signs leading across The Waterway.

The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion's 2015 Performing Arts Season is sponsored by Huntsman, Live Nation, Texas Children’s Hospital – The Woodlands, The Wortham Foundation, The Woodlands Development Company, United Airlines, official airline of The Pavilion, Audi of America, official automobile of The Pavilion, and The Pavilion Partners. The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion acknowledges the financial support of The Woodlands Township that is generated by the Event Admissions Tax for its performing arts and educational outreach programs.

If you would like more information about The Pavilion, please visit www.woodlandscenter.org. Look for The Pavilion on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram, or download The Pavilion’s iOS or Android app.