Our 2025 festival is happening now!
Classical Up Close is an annual festival of FREE concerts from the world-class musicians of the Oregon Symphony and their friends. Audience experience is friendly and relaxed; allowing for interactions with the musicians in a way no other concert series in Portland offers. There are no tickets for these concerts, and seating is first-come first-seated. Bring your family and friends — and expect the unexpected as you enjoy free world-class classical concerts!
2025 highlights Include:
Visit the Events page now to explore the programs for this year's festival!
2025 highlights Include:
- Performance venues include community centers, a world-famous book store, a senior living facility, libraries, and churches all around the Portland Metro Area. North, south, east and west — there are free concerts near you!
- On May 16, Oregon Symphony Music Director David Danzmayr performs alongside Toronto Symphony Orchestra Principal Cello Joseph Johnson, Oregon Symphony Concertmaster Sarah Kwak, and Oregon Symphony Violinist Vali Phillips.
- On-air host at All Classical Radio, Christa Wessel returns to emcee our evening concerts. A crowd favorite, Christa leads our audiences and musicians through delightful question and answer sessions.
Visit the Events page now to explore the programs for this year's festival!
Learn more about our festival
About this video:
"Mary Weisensee (Creative Services Manager at Tualatin Valley Community Television) contacted Classical Up Close in November 2018, and we expressed our interest in doing something with them. She facilitated a meeting with Thaddeus Girard, MACC Administrator and Kevin Howard, production manager, and we talked about Classical Up Close and what kind of production we could do together. Kevin has been the point person ever since. He’s wonderful to work with!" said Nancy Ives, Classical Up Close co-founder and Oregon Symphony principal cello.
We are very grateful to Kevin for his hard work and the beautiful production of this video spotlight on our mission and music. It is currently playing on TVCT, but you can watch it anytime here. We hope you enjoy it!
"Mary Weisensee (Creative Services Manager at Tualatin Valley Community Television) contacted Classical Up Close in November 2018, and we expressed our interest in doing something with them. She facilitated a meeting with Thaddeus Girard, MACC Administrator and Kevin Howard, production manager, and we talked about Classical Up Close and what kind of production we could do together. Kevin has been the point person ever since. He’s wonderful to work with!" said Nancy Ives, Classical Up Close co-founder and Oregon Symphony principal cello.
We are very grateful to Kevin for his hard work and the beautiful production of this video spotlight on our mission and music. It is currently playing on TVCT, but you can watch it anytime here. We hope you enjoy it!
