SAN DIEGO — Grammy Award-winning opera singer Isabel Leonard and Grammy Award-winning San Diego singer-songwriter Jason Mraz will join Rafael Payare and the San Diego Symphony at the orchestra’s 2026 gala fundraising concert this fall.

Billed as “Amplify,” the Nov. 21 event will be held at the orchestra’s downtown Jacobs Music Center. The concert will honor philanthropist Raffaella Belanich. A longtime advocate of the symphony, she played a key role in the $163 million reimagining of the historic Jacobs Music Center. She was also instrumental in helping to make the orchestra’s 5-year-old outdoor venue, the $125 million Rady Shell at Jacobs Park, a reality.

Proceeds from the gala will support the symphony’s artistic initiatives and education and community engagement programs throughout the region, which take place across San Diego County and in several locations in Baja California. Local chefs/restaurateurs Richard Blais and Tracy Borkum will serve as chefs for the event, for which tickets are now on sale at sandiegosymphony.org.

” ‘Amplify’ is about bringing people together to experience the energy and joy of live performance, and to celebrate what music makes possible,” said symphony President and CEO Martha Gilmer.

“Every part of the evening is meant to celebrate artistry, imagination and the joy of live performance — from Isabel Leonard, Jason Mraz and our orchestra under Rafael Payare to exceptional food, a welcoming atmosphere and the chance to connect with friends who share a passion for music. It’s an evening that could only happen here, and we’re thrilled to honor Raffaella Belanich, whose generosity and leadership have helped shape the symphony we know today.”

The concert will mark the first time Leonard and Mraz have shared a stage here. Leonard, a mezzo-soprano, has won three Grammy Awards. She was the featured singer last fall for the symphony’s season-opening performances of Ravel’s L’enfant et les sortilèges. In 2022, Leonard performed a recital here with guitarist Pablo Sáinz-Villegas that was presented by San Diego Opera.

Mraz, a longtime North County resident, is a two-time Grammy Award winner who is best known for such popular songs as “I’m Yours,” “I Won’t Give Up,” “The Remedy (I Won’t Worry)” and “Lucky” (his vocal duet with Colbie Caillat). His Nov. 21 gala performance with the symphony, with which he has previously collaborated, will follow his seven-country concert tour of Asia, which concludes Nov. 14 in Seoul, South Korea. His newest album, “Grandma’s Gospel Favorites,” was released in May.

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