The Orchestra San Antonio will open its 2026-27 season on November 14 with a concert called “Of Myth and Legacy,” headlined by the world premiere of a violin concerto featuring soloist Anna Lee. The performance takes place in the H-E-B Performance Hall at the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts. Organizers provide information about the concert.
The concerto, Juan Pablo Contreras's “La Minerva,” is inspired by the Roman goddess of wisdom, courage, and the arts and features Anna Lee as soloist, according to CultureMap San Antonio. Contreras is a Latin Grammy-nominated Mexican composer whose work often blends classical symphonic forms with Mexican cultural themes, per the Classical Music Institute. The program also includes Clarice Assad's “Ode to Carmen Miranda,” receiving its San Antonio premiere, alongside Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 5, the same organization notes.
Assad's piece, a seven-minute work built on Latin rhythms and lounge-inspired interludes, reflects on the rise and personal struggles of 1940s Brazilian star Carmen Miranda during her Hollywood years. It was commissioned and world-premiered in November 2023 by Houston's ROCO chamber orchestra, according to Clarice Assad. An hour before the concert, audiences can attend “Stories Behind the Sound,” a session offering hearings from guest artists along with background on the evening's program, CultureMap San Antonio reports. Organizers provide information about the event.
A Growing Resident Orchestra
The Orchestra San Antonio, known as TOSA, is a 60-musician resident ensemble operating under the nonprofit Classical Music Institute, which has been based at the Tobin Center since 2014. About 10 core members live in San Antonio and teach locally, while the rest travel in for performance cycles, per the Classical Music Institute. Leonardo Pineda, a Venezuelan conductor, serves as TOSA's Music Director after being appointed in October 2025, according to Bard College.
TOSA's President and CEO, Paul Montalvo, leads the orchestra, according to Texas Public Radio. The Classical Music Institute's activities include educational programs and a full resident symphony. Beyond its own concert season, TOSA also serves as the resident pit orchestra for OPERA San Antonio and Ballet San Antonio, including 18 performances of “The Nutcracker” across two seasons, per the Orchestra San Antonio.
Steady Footing Amid Local Turbulence
Financially, the orchestra has operated on a lean model, launching with a $2.1 million budget in 2024 and targeting growth to $2.5 million, Texas Public Radio reported. The orchestra's longer-term budget target is not specified here. The orchestra's model remains lean amid a volatile regional arts economy.
That volatility has been on full display elsewhere in San Antonio's classical music scene. The San Antonio Philharmonic saw Music Director Jeffrey Kahane resign in February 2026, prompting the orchestra to cancel the remainder of its 2025-26 season, according to the San Antonio Express-News. Hoodline previously reported that the Philharmonic later named associate conductor Felipe Tristán as interim music director.
Kahane, meanwhile, remains part of the broader discussion of San Antonio's classical music scene. Hoodline covered developments in the city's classical scene. Against that backdrop, this article also notes TOSA's steady residency at the Tobin Center and its programming mix of Latin American composers alongside canonical works like Tchaikovsky's Fifth.
