Four chamber and jazz performances remain in Mount Wilson Observatory’s 2026 Sunday Afternoon Concerts in the Dome series, staged inside the dome of the 100-inch telescope above Pasadena. The next concert is set for Sunday, July 5.
The series is operated by the Mount Wilson Institute, the Pasadena-based nonprofit at 75 S. Grand Ave. that manages the observatory atop the San Gabriel Mountains. According to the observatory’s website, performances run through October 4, with two intimate sets each Sunday — at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. — and tickets at $65.
The 100-inch telescope is the instrument where, in the observatory’s own phrasing, astronomer Edwin Hubble “discovered our place in an expanding universe.” Its dome was designed by the Chicago architect D.H. Burnham, the observatory says, and it describes the acoustics as rivaling “the great cathedrals of Europe.”
Artistic Director Cécilia Tsan, Principal Cellist of the Long Beach Symphony and the Los Angeles Master Chorale, has curated the series since it began in 2017. She typically performs in several of the season’s concerts.
The remaining 2026 lineup, according to the observatory’s website:
- July 5 — A brass quintet performs music from Leonard Bernstein’s “Suite from West Side Story,” with Dan Rosenboom and Rob Schear, trumpets; Laura Brenes, horn; Alex Iles, trombone; and Doug Tornquist, tuba.
- August 9 — Jazz pianist Tom Ranier leads a “Carte Blanche” trio with guitarist Larry Koonse and bassist Darek Oles.
- September 6 — A string quartet — Benjamin Hoffman and Chiai Tajima, violin; Alex Granger, viola; Stella Cho, cello — performs Todd Mason’s String Quartet No. 5, “The Phoenix” (2025), and Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 15, Op. 132.
- October 4 — The season closes with piano quartets by Mahler and Brahms, played by pianist David Kaplan, violinist Ambroise Aubrun, violist Ariana Solotoff and Tsan on cello.
The 2026 season opened May 24 with “Piano and Strings,” which sold out, according to the observatory. That program also marked the debut public performance of the observatory’s new Steinway grand piano, according to materials distributed by the observatory. A June 7 concert by the Rogue Lemon Collective followed.
In a 2023 interview with The Argonaut, Tsan described what she hoped audiences would take from the series: “I want the audience to walk away with basically a message of unity. To me, when I see how people can connect through music, it makes me happy.”
She also described the setting. “You see LA from above and it’s magical,” she told The Argonaut. “Yes, it’s a bit harder to breathe up there. But the views on the grounds are so stunning and inspiring.”
Before You Go. The venue is at 100 Mt. Wilson Circle Road, Mount Wilson, in the San Gabriel Mountains above Pasadena and Altadena. Access to the dome is by a 53-step staircase; the observatory states there is no ADA-compliant access, and children under 6 are not admitted. The site sits at about one mile of elevation. A U.S. Forest Service Adventure Pass is required to park ($5 day, $30 annual). A reception is held outside the dome at 4 p.m. between performances. Tickets: mtwilson.edu/concerts.
The next ticket the observatory will sell is for July 5. After that, three more Sundays remain before the season closes on the first weekend of October.
Mount Wilson Observatory — Concerts in the Dome (Series) — May 24 – October 4, 2026 | 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM. 🔗 https://www.mtwilson.edu/concerts/ News N’ Roses
