The Calgary Philharmonic has a packed spring ahead, with three distinct concerts hitting the Jack Singer Concert Hall in May.

First up is Alberta in Harmony: The Planets, a joint performance with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra on May 2. More than 125 musicians from Alberta's two professional orchestras will share the stage, conducted by Naomi Woo, for a program featuring John Luther Adams' Become Ocean and Gustav Holst's beloved planetary suite. Both the Edmonton and Calgary dates are sold out.

On May 8, conductor Cosette Justo Valdés returns to lead Postcards from Italy, a musical travelogue featuring works by Stravinsky, Respighi, and Mendelssohn — each piece evoking the sights, characters, and landscapes of Italy in its own way.

Closing out the month, conductor Earl Lee leads the orchestra on May 22 and 23 in Mahler's First Symphony, a sweeping orchestral epic that moves from the joys of springtime through to triumphant resolution. The concert also features Robert Schumann's Cello Concerto, performed by distinguished British cellist Steven Isserlis in his first ever appearance with the Calgary Phil.