The Mighty Pines: An Orchestral Forest Adventure
What happens when an orchestra becomes a forest? Find out at The Mighty Pines, our family concert for every generation. But the adventure starts before the lights dim.
Arrive 30 minutes early and step into our instrument petting zoo. Get your hands on the violins, violas, cellos, and basses that will carry you through Rome. Feel the weight of a French horn. Pluck the strings of a harp. Talk to the musicians who play them. They love showing young ears what makes these instruments so special!
Then, when you’re ready, take your seat. Ottorino Respighi’s symphonic poem Pines of Rome takes you on a grand tour of Rome’s most majestic trees, and the stories they guard.
The journey unfolds in four movements, each a different forest, each painted in the orchestra’s most brilliant colors. First, the pines of a villa garden; shimmering, peaceful, full of birdsong. Then, deep into the catacombs, where ancient pines stand guard over sacred ground; darker, more mysterious. The Appian Way brings us to monumental pines, soldiers of stone and wood standing witness to history. And finally, the Janiculum Hill, where pines reach toward the sky in a blaze of orchestral triumph and light.
This is music that tells a story. This is a forest you can hear. This is a force of nature that moves mountains, and generations experience it together.
Date & Time
Sunday, November 15, 2026
Instrument Petting Zoo | 2:00 PM
First Performance | 2:30–3:30 PM
Instrument Petting Zoo | 4:30 PM
Second Performance | 5:00–6:00 PM
Location
Atlas Performing Arts Center - Lang Theatre (View map)
Tickets
General Admission $35 | Ages 16 and under FREE | All Ages
Program
Ottorino Respighi, Pines of Rome
The Pines of the Villa Borghese
Pines Near a Catacomb
The Pines of the Janiculum
The Pines of the Appian Way
Conductor & Artistic Director
Victoria Gau
Now in her 29th season leading Capital City Symphony, conductor Victoria Gau has been praised for her “strong sense of style and drama” by The Washington Post. She is also Artistic Director of Cantate, where she conducts the Cantate Chamber Singers and Concert Choir, and previously served for nine years as Associate Conductor of National Philharmonic.
A passionate advocate for American composers, particularly female and BIPOC composers, Gau is equally committed to supporting emerging artists. She founded Cantate’s Young Artists of Color program, now expanded as Lift Every Voice, and continues to champion young composers and performers through Cantate and CCS partnerships.
Her guest-conducting work includes the Alexandria and Akron Symphonies, Columbia Symphony, Friday Morning Music Club Orchestra, Open Page Ensemble, and the Kennedy Center Messiah Sing-Along. In 2025, she led performances of Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms in Paris, and in May 2026 she made her Carnegie Hall debut conducting Brahms’ Schicksalslied. She holds degrees in Viola Performance and Conducting from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music.
Venue
Atlas Performing Arts Center - Lang Theatre
This performance takes place at Atlas Performing Arts Center - Lang Theatre, an inviting venue where creativity meets community.
Filled with energy, imagination, and heroism, this lively program invites families to experience the joy of music together.