Thousands settled onto blankets and folding chairs across Van Cortandt Park’s Parade Ground June 9. Far from the velvet seats and chandeliers of Lincoln Center, one of the world’s most celebrated orchestras was preparing to perform on a towering stage free of charge.

Part of its Concerts in the Park series, the New York Philharmonic’s free summer programming has brought orchestral sounds to public green spaces across the city since 1965. First launched  in Van Cortlandt Park in 1971, the grounds have transformed into an open-air concert hall for one night nearly each summer since then.

Just before the 8 p.m. performance, audience members streamed into the field, where families were already unpacking sandwiches and dogs lounged beside picnic blankets as friends shared bottles of wine. Anticipation for the concert was brewing in the air.

Kingsbridge Heights resident Jeanine Mapenze sat on a tapestry with her husband, her three children scampering after the family’s pup nearby.

“We probably wouldn’t go down to Lincoln Center as a family, but here the kids can run around, listen for a little while, come back and listen again,” Mapenze said. “It feels welcoming.”

Among the crowd was 42-year-old Martin Brown, who traveled from Hunts Point with his 9-year-old son, Trey. Neither had attended a live orchestral performance before.

“My son has never seen live classical music before, I’ve never seen it,” Brown said. “I don’t know if he’ll become a musician, but now he knows this world exists.”

That idea surfaced repeatedly throughout the evening, that children would see possibilities they might not otherwise encounter.

On stage, 11-year-old Celine Kim’s composition, “Happy Cities,” inspired by New York City and Busan, South Korea, was featured alongside “Orchestra on E,” written by 9-year-old Peace Dixon. Both young composers emerged from the Philharmonic’s Very Young Composers program, which allows students to write original music and hear it performed by professional musicians.

On stage, cellist Carter Brey, who was entering the final weeks of a nearly three-decade career with the Philharmonic, performed Camille Saint-Saëns’ Cello Concerto No. 1. He later told The Press the annual parks event remains among his favorite performances.

“I think it’s more important than ever that we go out into the communities,” he said. “We bring this music to people for free in an environment where they don’t feel that they need to be following some sort of dress code or rules of behavior.”

Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson, who attended the concert, said opportunities like this are particularly important in communities where orchestral music may not be as visible as other art forms.

“For families that can’t necessarily afford programs if there’s a fee for service, that’s why you have to make it free,” Gibson said. “I think it’s about choice and about accessibility.”

Representation, she added, matters too.

Leading the orchestra was Elim Chan, who is set to become music director of the San Francisco Symphony and is among a growing number of women conducting major orchestras. Yet women remain significantly underrepresented on the podium.

According to data compiled by Women’s Philharmonic Advocacy, women accounted for just 33 of the 159 conductors scheduled to lead concerts with the nation’s 21 largest orchestras during the 2024-25 season.

Though progress has been made, Brey said female conductors continue to encounter challenges in a profession long dominated by men.

“It’s still challenging to be taken seriously as a woman in that arena,” he said. “I hope that her appointment to this very high-profile position in San Francisco will do a lot to put that to bed.”

Chan was not available for an interview.

15-year-old Veronica Chang was among those who watched the orchestra from the lawn. A Spuyten Duyvil resident who hopes to attend Juilliard and pursue a career as a violinist, Chang said seeing musicians perform at that level made her goals feel more tangible.

“I play violin at school, so seeing people do it at this level is really inspiring,” she said. “It makes it feel like something I could actually pursue.”

Keywords

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