Hero's Journey
Buy Tickets
From the glittering heights of Hollywood to the groundbreaking genius of Beethoven, the Illinois Symphony Orchestra—under the baton of Music Director Taichi Fukumura—invites you to a night of unforgettable musical brilliance! Experience the fiery charm of Bartók’s Romanian Folk Dances, the cinematic sweep of Miklós Rózsa’s Violin Concerto with the dazzling virtuosity of Canadian violinist Blake Pouliot, and the explosive power of Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony—a revolutionary masterpiece that forever changed the course of music history.
Violinist Blake Pouliot has anchored himself among the ranks of classical phenoms. A tenacious young artist with a passion that enraptures his audience in every performance, Pouliot has established himself as “one of those special talents that comes along once in a lifetime” (Toronto Star).
Taichi Fukumura, Music Director of the Illinois Symphony Orchestra and newly appointed Assistant Conductor of The Cleveland Orchestra, is one of the most electrifying young talents on the podium today. A Second Prize Winner of The Mahler Competition 2023 and a four-time recipient of the prestigious Solti Foundation U.S. Career Assistance Award (2021–2024), Fukumura is rapidly emerging as a bold new voice in American orchestral music.
Join us at 7:30 PM on Friday, November 7, 2025, at the First United Methodist Church in Springfield, Illinois and on Saturday, November 8, 2025, at the ISU Center for the Performing Arts, in Normal, Illinois. Please join us one hour prior to the concert for Concert Comments, a special pre-concert discussion that will take you, the listener, inside the music.
Taichi Fukumura, Music Director | Blake Pouliot, Violin
Bartók Romanian Folk Dances – Rózsa Violin Concerto – Beethoven Symphony No. 3 “Eroica”
Listen LIVE! Engage Your Mind.
Tickets: $65 / $45 / $30
Students (Age 24 & Under): $10