Grammy-winning opera star Joyce DiDonato joins the Minnesota Orchestra for its opening weekend of performances, sharing her magnificent vocal span, warmth and agility in a performance of Hector Berlioz’s Les Nuits d’été (Summer Nights). Conducted by Thomas Søndergård, the orchestra wows in its performance of the Suite from “Der Rosenkavalier” (The Knight of the Rose-Bearer) by Richard Strauss, Leonard Bernstein’s Overture to “Candide” and an homage to H.P. Lovecraft by Guillaume Connesson.

After upholding the tradition of performing “The Star-Spangled Banner” for opening weekend, the orchestra performs Bernstein’s feisty “Candide” overture, played at a fast and sprightly clip. With its swirling strings, cartoonish percussive rhythms, whimsical winds and a lush melody halfway through introduced by the viola section, it’s a work that’s at once peppy and magnetic.

Three-time Grammy Award winner Joyce DiDonato performs with the Minnesota Orchestra on Sept. 18-19, 2025 at Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis, conducted by music director Thomas Søndergård. (Salvá Lopez / Minnesota Orchestra)

The program devotes the rest of the first act to Berlioz’s “Summer Nights,” a work the French composer set to six poems by his friend and neighbor Théophile Gautier. Ranging in tone from sweet vignettes and aromatic memories to deep anguish and loss, the songs evoke sweeping emotion channeled by the poised and confident DiDonato.

DiDonato and Søndergård made quite the pair standing next to each other — the singer facing the audience and the conductor facing the orchestra, in tune with each other as they brought Berlioz’s expressive music to life.

As a performer, DiDonato is expressive with both her resonant, articulate voice and her face and physicality. Gautier’s poetry is rich in imagery, as in “Le spectre de la rose” (The Ghost of the Rose), sung from the perspective of a dead rose plucked by a beautiful girl, its scent remaining on her breast.

There’s intensity and fierce drama as well, especially in the lament, “Sur Les Lagunes” (On the Lagoons), about a seaman mourning his dead lover. Displaying quite a vocal range in the tune, DiDonato’s voice becomes a piercing wail on the “ah! sans amour!” lines, producing chills. The sadness continues after that in “Assenza” (Absence), with the orchestra’s accompaniment, led by Søndergård, finding subtle nuance and richness.

Addressing the audience after performing the song cycle, DiDonato, a Kansas City native who makes her debut with the Minnesota Orchestra this week, gushed about the full house for an 11 a.m. performance.

“I celebrate you for having a full hall, for having a world class orchestra that shows up and plays with all their heart, and who leads and shows how to face difficult times,” she said. “We come together, we search out harmony, and we look for that place here that feels like home.” She closed with a luxurious encore: “Oh Shenandoah.”

After intermission, the orchestra performs the first movement of “Les Cités de Lovecraft,” titled “Céléphaïs,” by French composer Guillaume Connesson (2017).

The work brings to life a city created by the horror and fantasy writer H.P. Lovecraft’s “Dream Cycle” series. Splashing with a startling sound as it opens, the piece bursts with potent vigor. The strings sound like sirens at times, and skipping rhythms, competing melodies and ethereal wanderings make up for the densely packed music.

Finally, the orchestra performs the Suite from Richard Strauss’ “Der Rosenkavalier,” a terrific piece that continues the build from the previous numbers, displaying a rich and delightful sound. The suite gives an abbreviated musical narrative to the larger opera, telling the story of two older characters vying for the affection of two younger ones, who fall for each other. The music brings out the theatricality of the story— from  passionate love scenes, tender meet-cutes, to comic waltzes and a grand finish.

Altogether, the program made for an invigorating conclusion—story-filled, whimsical, anguished and exuberant.

If you go

What: Søndergård, DiDonato and Strauss

When: 8 p.m. Friday

Where: Orchestra Hall, 1111 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis

Tickets: $55-$125; minnesotaorchestra.org

Capsule: Coloratura Mezzo-Soprano Joyce DiDonato joins Thomas Søndergård and the Minnesota Orchestra for a rousing season opener.

Related Articles

The Dakota celebrates 40 years of music and culture with free block party

‘Field of Bands’ fundraiser at Washington County Fairgrounds to aid veterans and troops

Pop superstar Ed Sheeran to headline U.S. Bank Stadium for the third time

Bob Dylan added to lineup for this weekend’s Farm Aid concert in Minneapolis

Hip hop star Cardi B to make her long-awaited return to the metro

The Gophers men’s basketball team have had two in-state commitments in the 2026 recruiting class, and on Thursday, the U landed a pledge in a big man from Congo by way of California.

The 6-foot-10, 240-pound center Chadrack Mpoyi gave a verbal commitment to Minnesota after a campus visit to Minneapolis in late August. He is from Likasi, Democratic Republic of Congo and has been playing for Crean Lutheran High School in Irvine Calif.

“Next chapter,” Mpoyi wrote on social media.

Considered a bruising player, Mpoyi is the 151st ranked recruit in the 2026 class, according to 247Sports composite list. He had offers and visits to Oregon State, Utah State and California-Santa Barbara over the last month. He also has reported offers from California, Utah, Loyola Marymount and East Carolina.

“Chadrack has only scratched the surface of what he can become,” Crean head coach Austin Loeb said in a statement to OC Sports Zone. “His size, athleticism and natural gifts make him a special player, but what excites me most is his willingness to work, learn and grow. Even more importantly, his faith in Christ shapes who he is and how he carries himself.”

The Gophers’ two local recruits are Nolen Anderson (Wayzata) and Cedric Tomes (East Ridge). Anderson is considered a four-star prospect, while Mpoyi and Tomes have received three stars from 247Sports.

You never would’ve known that the Wild are mired in a contract dispute with the best player in franchise history based on the way everybody was acting on Thursday morning at TRIA Rink in St. Paul.

After general manager Bill Guerin spoke to reporters, declining to go into detail about the ongoing contract negotiations, superstar winger Kirill Kaprizov spoke to reporters, as well, smiling big, cracking jokes, and declaring his love for Minnesota.

No barbs being thrown back and forth. No contention to be found. No sign that that Kaprizov and his agent Paul Theofanous reportedly turned down what would’ve been the richest deal in NHL history last week.

All was well as the Wild took the ice for training camp.

It will be hard for to keep the good vibes rolling unless Kaprizov puts pen to paper in short order.

You can only put on a happy face for so long now that everybody is back together in the same locker room.

This will become a distraction for the Wild sooner rather than later if they’re unable to resolve the contract dispute.

It already has to some degree.

Never mind that Guerin tried to drive the conversation toward the Wild and their pursuit of the Stanley Cup during the 30 minutes he spoke on the record. He was forced to answer questions about the contract negotiations.

Never mind that Kaprizov made it clear that he was focused on playing hockey above everything else during the 15 minutes he spoke on the record. He was forced to answer questions about the contract negotiations.

That will be a recurring theme the longer it takes for this process to play itself out. This isn’t going away anytime soon. Not with how much the Wild are banking on Kaprizov to be the straw that stirs the drink for the foreseeable future.

Meanwhile, the fan base has been freaking out ever since news broke about Kaprizov, and for good reason, especially considering the precedent set once upon a time by former superstar winger Marian Gaborik.

It was hard not to go down the rabbit and think about when the Wild were unable to work something out with Gaborik and they ended up losing him for nothing in the end.

That should serve as a cautionary tale.

As much as the Wild want to work something out with Kaprizov, if that doesn’t come to fruition in the near future, Guerin might have to at least consider entertaining the idea of trading him to the highest bidder to make sure he gets something for him.

As the contract negotiations wear on, more questions continue to pop up, all of which need answers.

Is this Kaprizov not wanting to lock himself into a certain dollar figure while the salary cap continues to rise? Is this Theofanous simply trying to squeeze every dollar out of the Wild before finally making a deal? Is this going to be in the rearview mirror when the Wild play the St. Louis Blues in the opener in a few weeks?

The fact that nobody knows the answer to any of those question is proof this has already become a distraction for the Wild. This going hang over the heads of everybody involved until there’s a resolution.

Related Articles

Kirill Kaprizov says he’s happy in ‘Minny’ as Wild camp begins

Wild coach John Hynes will be Olympic assistant

New Iowa Wild coach brings wealth of NHL and AHL experience

Jonas Brodin expected to miss Wild training camp

High AAV, fewer years might be right for Kirill Kaprizov — and Wild

Minnesota employers added 5,900 jobs in August, and the state unemployment rate increased one-tenth of a percentage point to 3.6%, according to data from the Department of Employment and Economic Development released Thursday.

Minnesota’s growth equated to a 0.2% increase in jobs in August, compared to effectively flat employment for the United States as a whole.

Minnesota also added nearly 1,100 workers to its labor force, which accounts for the rise in the unemployment rate despite the addition of more jobs. The state’s labor force participation rate was 68.1% compared with 62.3% nationally. This measures the percentage of people either working or actively seeking work, and is used to calculate the headline unemployment rate. As more people enter the work force, the unemployment rate rises eve as jobs are added.

The state’s unemployment rate in August compares with 4.3% nationally.

Over the year, Minnesota gained 39,255 jobs, up 1.3%, DEED said in its news release. The private sector gained 37,692 jobs, up 1.4%. Both figures outpaced national statistics: U.S. employment grew 0.8% over the year with the private sector up 0.9%.

“Minnesota’s labor market had a strong month in August, adding thousands of jobs and people looking for work,” said DEED Commissioner Matt Varilek in the release. “We continue to monitor our economy for signs that federal disruptions are affecting Minnesota employers. But in August, we outpaced national trends.”

August represented a turnaround from July, for which the state now reports a net loss of 500 jobs compared with June. Those data were revised upward by 3,900 jobs from the initially reported net loss of 4,400 jobs. Varilek at the time attributed that to “mass federal layoffs and funding interruptions, erratic tariffs and shrinking immigration.”

Government employers shed 2,400 jobs, or 0.5%, in August, mostly at the local level.

Construction gained 1,900 jobs, or 1.3%, in August, the third consecutive month of growth, and Education and Health Services rose 4,300 jobs, or 0.7%. Manufacturing lost 900 jobs in August, down 0.3%.

On Sept. 9, the national Bureau of Labor Statistics announced preliminary revisions for national-level job estimates over the past year through March 2025. Minnesota’s annual data will be updated after national revisions are finalized in February.

Related Articles

Business People: Northern Clay Center names new executive driector

Other voices: Tariffs, uncertainty have led to a stall in hiring

University of Minnesota and Teamsters reach tentative deal, Farm Aid concert is on

Working Strategies: Career planning for your 60s and beyond

Mass layoffs at Bremer Bank’s Lake Elmo facility follow Old National merger