PITTSBURGH – The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) today announced healthy preliminary financial results for the 2024–2025 fiscal year, marking a year of artistic excellence, community connection, and financial stability. PSO President & CEO Melia Tourangeau and Board Chair Anthony Bucci reported a $34.6 million operating budget with a surplus of $2.3 million, continuing the Symphony’s track record of responsible stewardship and sustainable growth.

With earned revenues reaching their highest level since before the pandemic, the PSO season demonstrated the Pittsburgh community’s dedication to the enduring vitality of live orchestral music. The results span the fiscal year September 1, 2024, through August 31, 2025. The budget surplus was driven by strategic one-time fundraising initiatives, stronger-than-expected special concert revenue, and savings from unfilled staff and orchestra positions. The PSO is still in the process of a full, independent financial audit, which will be made public on the PSO website.

“The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s 2024–2025 season was defined by the superb joy of sharing incredible music and the strength of a community that makes it possible,” said Melia Tourangeau, President & CEO. “I'm heartened by our resilient and steadfast Pittsburgh audience: in the past year, the PSO has reached over 37,000 households at Heinz Hall, and welcomed some of the greatest artists in the world to our stage.”

“We are proud to have achieved a healthy budget and record-setting sales revenues, but even more proud of what those numbers represent: a community that deeply believes in the power of music to transform lives. By programming boldly, uplifting our region’s music learning ecosystem, and remaining one of the finest artistic experiences in the area, the PSO remains a vital force in Pittsburgh.”

“These results are more than financial metrics — they represent people reconnecting with live performance,” said Anthony Bucci, Board Chair. “The PSO’s surplus budget and record revenues underscore the success of our long-term strategy: to invest in people, programming, and partnerships that make the arts essential to Pittsburgh’s identity and future. We are grateful to our Music Director Manfred Honeck, Principal Pops Conductor Byron Stripling, and all of the incredible PSO musicians for their amazing artistry throughout the season. My fellow board members and I view recent PSO successes as confirmation that our continued investment in people and programming is the right strategy for the future and for the Pittsburgh audiences we serve.”

• Earned revenue, including ticket sales and Heinz Hall rentals, accounted for about 23.5% of total revenue.
• Contributed revenue from individuals, foundations, corporations, and government sources represented approximately 52.8% of the total.
• Endowment draw and other investment income provided the remaining 23.6% in support of PSO operations.
   

The PSO also released its 2024–2025 Annual Impact Report highlighting community partnerships, education programs, and season milestones.

Record Growth in Sales and Audiences

Total ticket sales for the fiscal year reached $9.48 million, a 17% increase over FY24 and the highest annual sales since COVID-19. Attendance grew by over 8,000 seats (a 5% increase), and the PSO welcomed 15,351 new households — the most in a decade.

• Total paid admission to orchestra concerts stood at just over 165,000.
• BNY Classical Series single-ticket revenue was up nearly 20%, with several performances among the top 25 in the past decade.
• A fivefold increase in Choose-Your-Own ticket packages signaled a more flexible and accessible patron experience, helping to offset industry-wide declines in traditional subscription packages.
• Schooltime Concerts participation increased 8.5% in districts and 5.6% in schools, reflecting growing regional engagement.
• PNC Pops Series revenue increased by 18%, including a new all-time record for Highmark Holiday Pops.
• Fiddlesticks Family Concerts revenue increased by 22%.

A Season of Impact and Innovation

The 24/25 season marked the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s 129^th season since its founding in 1896, and the 18^th season of its acclaimed partnership with Music Director Manfred Honeck.

Highlights from the season include:

• The August release of an acclaimed version of Mozart’s Requiem conceived by Manfred Honeck, titled Requiem: Mozart’s Death in Words and Music. This marks the newest installment in Reference Recordings’ Pittsburgh Live! series, which has been nominated for 12 GRAMMY® awards and won three.
• An Opening Night Gala with Itzhak Perlman, the second-highest grossing Gala in PSO’s history.
• A one-night special concert with legendary cellist Yo-Yo Ma — which included an arrangement of Fred Rogers’ songs for cello choir — and piano superstar Lang Lang performing Grieg’s Piano Concerto.
• The naming of the Heinz Hall stage as the Simmons Family Stage in honor of the generosity of Richard P. Simmons during the June concert with Yo-Yo Ma.
• Popular artists including Nas, Shaggy, Ray Angry of The Roots, Chris Kirkpatrick of *NSYNC, and more.
• BNY Classics debuts of some of the most compelling voices in classical music today, including pianist Víkingur Ólafsson, cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, and conductors Elim Chan and Lorenzo Viotti.
• Four world premieres and PSO commissions by composers Lera Auerbach, Hannah Ishizaki, and Reza Vali, and a new suite by Manfred Honeck from Richard Strauss’ opera Arabella. The PSO also performed works by 12 other living composers.
• PNC Pops performances of Clouds in My Coffee, a tribute to iconic 1960s singer-songwriters including Joni Mitchell, Carole King, and Carly Simon.
• Beyond the concert hall, the Symphony expanded its community impact: regional concerts included performances at St. Vincent Basilica with organist Paul -Jacobs, West Virginia University with violinist Augustin Hadelich, and Indiana University of Pennsylvania with violinist María Dueñas.
• Fiddlesticks in Your Neighborhood concerts at the Kamin Science Center, Moon Township, and Mars.
• Free community concerts including Light Up Night, Americana at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall & Museum, and the Juneteenth concert led by Byron Stripling.
• Schooltime on the Road brought live performances to regional schools in outlying counties that cannot get to Heinz Hall due to distance.
• The launch of PSO Go, a new student ticket program, made classical music more accessible to young audiences. As of November 2025, PSO Go is Presented by S&T Bank, elevating access and exposure to this program.
• The Digital Schooltime platform extended PSO learning programs online, connecting educators and students to PSO resources beyond the concert hall.

With Gratitude

The PSO is grateful for the support of the Pittsburgh community, its donors, subscribers, and every sponsor, supporter, fan, and volunteer for making the season and its many highlights possible.

• BNY Classics concerts are made possible by title sponsorship support from BNY.
  PNC Pops concerts are made possible by title sponsorship support from PNC.
• Highmark Holiday Pops concerts are made possible by title sponsorship support from Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield.
• The recording of Mozart’s Requiem is made possible by generous support from Catharine M. Ryan and John T. Ryan III. PSO is grateful for additional support from Richard Becherer in memory of Charlene Castellano.
• The Yo-Yo Ma performance was made possible by a grant from the Arthur J. and Betty F. Diskin Cultural Endowment Fund of the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh.
• Fiddlesticks in Your Neighborhood is supported in part by Presenting Sponsor The Wilson Group, and supported by FedEx and the PA Department of Education. Fiddlesticks Musical Exploration is endowed by Gerald and Audrey McGinnis, honoring the Center for Young Musicians, and supported by FedEx.
• Light Up Night and Americana at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall free concerts are sponsored by Dollar Bank.
• Schooltime on the Road concerts are supported by EQT Foundation, Audia Group, and the David R. & Frances F. Levin Charitable Foundation, and the PA Department of Education with support from State Senator Camera Bartolotta. Schooltime at Heinz Hall is made possible by generous support from Firewater --Response, the Jack Buncher Foundation, EQT Foundation, Audia Group, and PSO’s Educational Improvement Supporters.
• PSO Go is Presented by S&T Bank.
• The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra is grateful for overall support from local and state government entities: Allegheny Regional Asset District, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Community and Economic Development, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, and the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
• Fairmont Pittsburgh is the official hotel of the Pittsburgh Symphony.
• Delta Air Lines is the official airline of the Pittsburgh Symphony.
• Radio station WQED-FM 89.3/WQEJ-FM 89.7 is the official voice of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.

About the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
Now in its 130th season, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra is recognized among America’s finest ensembles, renowned for its artistic excellence, global reach, and deep local impact. Under the leadership of Music Director Manfred Honeck, the PSO brings the joy and inspiration of great music to concertgoers at Heinz Hall and to audiences worldwide through recordings, broadcasts, and community initiatives. For more information, visit www.pittsburghsymphony.org.