Classical Music

BACH SINFONIA

Takoma Park/Silver Spring Performing Arts Center
Silver Spring, Md.
301-362-6525
bachsinfonia.org

Suoni Belli: Instrumental Wonders of the Italian Baroque — A journey into the Italian Baroque with a concert of grand instrumental works from the heart of Italy: rarely heard masterpieces of Albinoni, Dall’Abaco and Alessandro Scarlatti, a virtuosic trumpet sonata by Torelli and two works by Vivaldi (10/15)

Annual Chamber Performance:
The Bach Project — Experience the soaring beauty of Baroque and Classical period flutes and violoncello of The Bach Project in a program that will transport you to 18th-century France and Germany (1/28/12)

You Decide: Bach’s Audition at Leipzig — In 1722, the Leipzig Town Council held auditions to fill the post of Cantor. Johann Christoph Graupner won the audition, but Bach received the appointment after Graupner’s employer would not release him from his duties. This program explores the audition works heard by the people and Leipzig Town Council, concluding by tallying audience votes to see who should have received this coveted position (3/31/12)

The Bohemian Baroque:

Zelenka — The first hearing in North America of the complete cycle of works by Jan Dismas Zelenka, whose rich and colorful output represents an absolute pinnacle of high Baroque art equal to that of his better known European contemporaries (5/5/12)

BALTIMORE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

410-783-8000
bsomusic.org

Mahler’s Resurrection — Marin Alsop conducts the BSO along with soprano Layla Claire, mezzo-soprano Susan Platts and the Baltimore Choral Arts Society in a performance of Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 (9/15-17)

Tchaikovsky and Dvorák — Marin Alsop conducts the BSO and 29-year-old cellist Alisa Weilerstein in a program of Tchaikovsky’s gripping Symphony No. 6, ”Pathétique and Dvorák’s Cello Concerto plus a world premiere of James Lee III’s Chuphshah! Harriet’s Drive to Canaan, about Harriet Tubman’s yearning for emancipation (9/23-25)

Gutierrez Plays Mozart — Yan Pascal Tortelier conducts the BSO and Cuban pianist Horacio Gutierrez in a program of Sibelius and Elgar in addition to Mozart’s sunny and charming Piano Concerto No. 19 (10/1-2)

The Music of Elton John and More — Broadway star (Movin’ Out) and pianist Michael Cavanaugh performs some of the piano man’s greatest hits in this BSO SuperPops Concert Series (10/13-16)

Mozart and Debussy — New York’s Mostly Mozart Festival Director Louis Langrée conducts the BSO and violinist James Ehnes in a performance that’s an indirect tribute to France, with two works by Frenchman Debussy and Mozart’s Symphony No. 31, ”Paris” (10/20-22)

Rachmaninoff’s Third — Vasily Petrenko conducts the BSO and pianist Barry Douglas in a program that also includes Rimsky-Korsakov’s Capriccio Espagnol and Liszt’s Piano Concerto No. 1 (10/28-30)

Essentially American — Marin Alsop conducts the BSO and baritone William Sharp in a program of American composing legends, including Aaron Copland’s Appalachian Spring and George Gershwin’s An American In Paris (11/10-13)

Joan of Arc at the Stake — On the cusp of the 600th anniversary of Joan of Arc’s birth, Marin Alsop conducts the BSO in a performance of the arguably the most powerful depiction of her travails, Honegger’s 1935 Jeanne d’Arc au Bûcher; the BSO is joined by the Morgan State University Chorus, Peabody Hopkins Chorus and Peabody Children’s Chorus, in a pre-Carnegie Hall concert (11/17-18)

Handel’s Messiah — Edward Polochick conducts the BSO and plays the harpsichord along with soprano Karen Clift, mezzo-soprano Krisztina Szabó, tenor Nicholas Phan, baritone Stephen Powell and the Concert Artists of Baltimore Symphonic Chorale in this holiday special (12/2-3)

Holiday Cirque de la Symphonie — Holiday favorites from the BSO while contortionists and juggling acts offer an awe-inspiring performance as the circus meets the symphony (12/7-11)

Jake Everly and the Brothers Gershwin — Jake Everly conducts the BSO SuperPops, along with pianist Stewart Goodyear and Broadway star Judy McLane (1/5-1/8/12)

Itzhak Perlman — The famous conductor and violinist joins the BSO to perform Vivaldi, Mozart and Brahms; it doesn’t get much more mass-appeal than that (1/12-1/15/12)

Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto — Marin Alsop conducts the BSO and pianist Olga Kern in a program that also includes Ravel’s Boléro and Strauss’s Also Sprach Zarathustra (1/19-1/22/12)

LIFE: A Journey Through Time — Marin Alsop conducts the BSO in a performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 ”Pastoral” as well as the Philip Glass piece that gives the program its title (1/27-1/29/12)

Bach’s Brandenberg — Nicholas McGregan conducts the BSO and BSO soloist Andrew Balio on trumpet in a program that also includes Rameau’s Orchestral Suite from Naïs, Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto and Mozart’s Symphony No. 39 (2/2-2/4/12)

A BSO Valentine — Jake Everly conducts the BSO SuperPops and pianist and vocalist Tony DeSare in a lovely program of songbook standards (2/9-2/12/12)

The Genius of Mozart — James Gaffigan conducts the BSO and pianist Lise de la Salle in a program that explores Mozart’s influence, with Brahms’ Tragic Overture, Wagner’s Overture to The Flying Dutchman and Strauss’s Death and Transfiguration (2/16-2/17/12)

Carmen Fantasy — Marin Alsop conducts the BSO and violinist Madeline Adkins in a program that includes James MacMilian’s The Confession of Isobel Gowdie, Sarasate’s Fantasy on Bizet’s Carmen and Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 5 (2/23-2/26/12)

Prokofiev’s Fifth Symphony — Marin Alsop conducts the BSO in a landmark symphony, considered Prokofiev’s greatest work for its heroic grandeur and emotional depth (2/24-2/25/12)

Voices of Light — The Passion of Joan of Arc — Marin Alsop conducts the BSO and the Baltimore Choral Arts Society… (3/2-3/4/12)

Elgar’s Serenade — Violinst Jonathan Carney leads the BSO in a program of Bach and Mendelssohn as well as Elgar’s Serenade for Strings (3/8/12)

Beethoven and Dvorák — Jirí Belohlávek conducts the BSO and pianist Shai Wosner in a program that includes Kodály’s Dances of Galánta and Janácek‘s Taras Bulba in addition to the marquee composers (3/16-3/18/12)

Tchaikovsky’s Fifth — Marin Alsop conducts the BSO and percussionist Colin Currie in a program that culminates with Tchaikovksy but starts off with American fireworks: Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man and Joan Tower’s response, Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman, plus Jennifer Higdon’s Percussion Concerto (3/22-3/24/12)

Russian Favorites — Lionel Bringuier conducts the BSO and violinist Jonathan Carney in a program of Mussorgsky, Khachaturian, Stravinsky and of course Tchaikovsky, with the Overture to his Romeo and Juliet (4/13-4/15/12)

Do You Hear The People Sing? Miss Saigon to Les Misérables — Jack Everly conducts the BSO SuperPops and the Baltimore Choral Arts Society in this tribute to musical theater’s Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg (4/19-4/22/12)

Beethoven’s Violin Concerto — Jun Märkl conducts the BSO and violinist Arabella Steinbacher in a program that includes Weber’s Overture to Euryanthe and Schumann’s Symphony No. 3, ”Rhenish” (4/26-4/28/12)

Fleisher Plays Ravel — Celebrated pianist Leon Fleisher joins the BSO, conducted by Marin Alsop, in a performance of Ravel’s Piano Concerto for Left Hand as well as Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 7, ”Leningrad” (5/3-5/6/12)

André Watts — The piano superstar joins Marin Alsop and the BSO for a performance of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and Elgar’s Symphony No. 1 (5/10-5/13/12)

The Beat Goes On! The Music of the Baby Boomers — Jack Everly conducts the BSO SuperPops in this mass-appeal program, featuring music by the Beatles, the Beach Boys, the Supremes, Burt Bacharach and more (5/17-5/20/12)

Beethoven’s Ninth — Peter Oundjian conducts the BSO along with soprano Joyce El-Khoury, mezzo-soprano Mary Phillips, tenor Gordon Gietz, bass Morris Robinson and the Baltimore Choral Arts Society in a performance of Beethoven’s triumphant, joyful symphony, along with Bruckner’s hymn Te Deum (5/24-5/26/12)

Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto — Günther Herbig conducts the BSO and pianist Jonathan Biss in a program that also includes Mozart and Schubert (5/31-6/2/12)

Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto and The Rite of Spring — The BSO concludes its season with a performance of Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky plus Kevin Puts’s Symphony No. 4, joined by violinist Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg (6/7-6/10/12)

BARNS AT WOLF TRAP

1645 Trap Road
Vienna, Va.
703-255-1900
wolf-trap.org

The Ahn Trio — this chamber trio kicks off Wolf Trap’s annual Discovery Series in a celebration of Founder’s Day with a new Wolf Trap co-commission, BraziliAHN (10/14)

East Coast Chamber Orchestra (ECCO) — A 17-piece chamber orchestra of young musicians, part of Wolf Trap’s Discovery Series (2/3/12)

Jerusalem String Quartet — part of Wolf Trap’s Discovery Series (3/2/12)

Chicago Symphony Orchestra Brass Quintet (3/30/12)

Rachel Barton Pine — the young violinist performs as part of the Wolf Trap’s Discovery Series (4/13/12)

Joyce Yang — the pianist concludes Wolf Trap’s Discovery Series with an intimate performance of Bach, Schumann and Brahms (4/27/12)

CLARICE SMITH PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

University of Maryland
College Park, Md.
301-405-ARTS
claricesmithcenter.umd.edu

UMD Wind Orchestra — ”Music from Prague” in particular honors Czech-born composer Karel Husa, to celebrate his 90th birthday (9/29)

UMD Symphony Orchestra & Left Bank Quartet — A ”Mountaineers” concert, featuring a performance of Schoenberg’s Concerto for String Quartet, Ruggles’s Marching Mountains, Sibelius’s Symphony No. 2 and ”an unexpected prelude” (9/30)

Reflections from the Keyboard: The Liszt Connection — With the International Piano Archives at Maryland, five pianists present a selection of Franz Liszt’s piano works in celebration of his bicentennial (10/2)

UMD Symphony Orchestra (10/28)

UMD Wind Orchestra (11/4)

Takács Quartet — A program of Janácek, Britten and Ravel, all 20th-Century masters who pushed the boundaries of classical music while retaining the lush melodic qualities of earlier eras (11/12)

Maryland Opera Studio: Menotti’s Amelia al Ballo and Puccini’s Il Tabarro (11/19-22)

UMD Chamber Singers & U Chorale (11/20)

Annual Kaleidoscope of Bands — The UMD Wind Ensemble, UMD Wind Orchestra, University Band, Community Band and Mighty Sound of Maryland Marching Band team up to honor music with a special significance in this country’s history, 150 years after the Civil War began (12/9)

The Festive Baroque — Kenneth Slowik leads School of Music faculty and the UMD Chamber Singers in performances of Bach’s virtuosic ensemble works and choruses from Handel (12/11)

Kronos Quartet and the Alim Qasimov Ensemble (2/18/12)

Eiko & Koma and the Kronos Quartet (2/22-2/23/12)

Fortune’s Bones: The Manumission Requiem — The WPAS Men and Women of the Gospel Choir, soprano Shannon Finney, baritone VaShawn McIlwain and poet and narrator Marilyn Nelson will perform music composed by Ysaye Barnwell as part of a tribute to an African-American slave who served as a doctor in post-Colonial Connecticut (2/26/12)

The Art of Argento Festival — A month-long series of events paying tribute to the music of American composer Dominick Argento in celebration of his 85th birthday (April 2012)

Alisa Weilerstein & Inon Barnatan (4/27/12)

Annual Pops Concert — UMD Wind Ensemble, University Band and Community Band, along with vocalist Ivan Rutherford and students from Music Theater Classes, perform some of Broadway’s best (5/5/12)

COOLIDGE AUDITORIUM AT THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

Thomas Jefferson Building
10 First St. SE
202-707-8000
loc.gov/concerts

Dvořák in the New World: Symposium and Lecture-Recital — New York University’s Michael Beckerman leads a symposium on Dvořák, in collaboration with the Embassy of the Czech Republic (10/1)

Franz Liszt Bicentenary Project Highlights: Louis Lortie — The celebrated pianist performs Liszt’s monumental suites Années de Pèlerinage [Years of Pilgrimage]: Deuxième Année and Troisième Année (10/19); Martin Bruns & Christoph Hammer — Swiss baritone and fortepiano expert offer a recital evoking the intimacy of a Hausmusik evening in Liszt’s day (10/22); Bartók and the Liszt Legacy: Soloists from the Budapest Festival Orchestra, w/Pianist Jenő Jandó — The National Symphony Orchestra’s former conductor Iván Fischer leads the Budapest Festival Orchestra in a chamber concert tracing Liszt’s musical legacy in another towering Hungarian composer (10/25)

Daniel Hope — Violinist Hope is joined by several other instrumentalists in East Meets West, which begins and ends in India and nods to the famous Yehudi Menuhin/Ravi Shankar collaboration (10/28) 

Founder’s Day Concert with Genova & Dimitrov — Hailed for their technique and excitement, the Bulgarian-born pianists offer a concert of showstoppers (10/29)

Mozart Piano Quartet — German group known for its passion and technical brilliance (11/4)

Roberto Diaz w/Kwan Yi — With piano accompaniment, one of the world’s top violist plays the Tuscan-Medici Stradivari viola, one of only 11 in existence in the world (11/5)

Borromeo String Quartet and Pianist Seymour Lipkin — Celebrating the birthday of Antonio Stradivari, the critically acclaimed quartet plays the rare Stradivari violin given to the Library of Congress in 1935 (12/17)

BachFest Event with Paolo Pandolfo — A mesmerizing instrumentalist, Pandolfo returns to the Coolidge Auditorium to dazzle with his skills on the violo de gamba (1/28/12)

Cygnus Ensemble — Performing seldom-heard chamber pieces and a world premiere of Harold Meltzer’s Kreisieriana (2/3/12)

Cygnus Ensemble

Leon Fleisher: Liebeslieder, Ligeti and Koston — Katherine Jacobson Fleisher and musicians from the Peabody Institute join the master pianist in this program including ”imaginary operas” (3/8/12)

Con Gioia: Julianne Baird and Prithee de Silva — Acclaimed soprano Baird joins early music scholar/performer de Silva on harpsichord and fortepiano in a performance of Baroque repertoire(3/9/12)

L’Arpeggiata: Christina Pluhar ”La Tarantella” — European harpist and lutenist Christina Pluhar brings her arrestingly virtuosic ensemble to Washington for the first time (3/19/12)

Modigliani Quartet — A French group offers a program of Arriaga, Beethoven and Dohnányi (3/23/12)

Elias Quartet with Pianist Jonathan Biss — Young British quartet founded at Manchester’s Royal Northern Music Conservatory has formed an artistic partnership with a poetic pianist whose reputation for virtuosity and musical integrity continues to grow exponentially (3/28/12)

Arditti Quartet with Pianist Stephen Drury — Irvine Arditti and Stephen Drury mark the John Cage Centennial with a performance of a 1991 Cage violin and piano work (4/10/12)

Quatuor Diotima — ”Definitely the most serious hope for chamber music in France” raves Le Figaro (4/13/12)

BachFest Event: Julliard Baroque — An impressive all-star line-up from the Juilliard School, nine sought-after period instrumentalists, familiar names for early music lovers worldwide (4/14/12)

Concerto Köln w/Jan Freiheit — Cellist Freiheit joins the German orchestra of beautiful period instruments, billed as being ”intriguingly close to hearing what might have been the true sound of the Baroque” (4/20/12)

D.C.’S DIFFERENT DRUMMERS

202-403-3669
dcdd.org

Architects of Music — DCDD’s Fall Concert features guest pianist Anna Maria Raffaella and music by Respighi, Eric Whitacre, Kenneth Alford, JS Bach and Liszt (11/5, Columbia Heights Educational Campus)

Holiday Prism Concert – Featuring DC Swing! and other DCDD small ensembles (12/11, Columbia Heights Educational Campus)

DAVIS PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

Georgetown University
3700 O St. NW
202-687-ARTS
performingarts.georgetown.edu

Friday Music Series: Jennifer Ellis Kampani, Richard Giarusso and Mark Janello — This soprano, baritone and pianist, respectively, perform Italian opera from 18th-century Naples (9/16)

Rogério Souza and Friends: Brazilian Choro — A world-renowned Brazilian guitarist performs choro, a 19th century Brazilian musical style that he’s modernized to including jazz harmonies, dance rhythms and improvisations (9/23)

Michael Beckerman — This New York University professor and pianist offers a lecture-recital (9/30)

FAIRFAX SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

703-563-1990
fairfaxsymphony.org

William Boughton and Karina Canellakis — Boughton conducts the FSO in its season opener featuring guest violinist Canellakis performing Chausson and Saint-Saëns, though the focus is on John Corigliano’s Three Hallucinations, taken from the score for Ken Russell’s film Altered States and Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique (9/17)

Alturas Duo and Javier Farías — Alturas Duo specializes in the indigenous music of South America and the group joins the FSO to perform a world premiere of a double concerto by Chilean Farias, a composer for classical guitar music (10/22)

Yolanda Kondonassis — The musical dynamo performs Argentinian Alberto Ginastera’s exotic, colorful Harp Concerto in a program with the FSO that also includes Mozart, Schubert and Samuel Barber (11/22)

Sergey Antonov — The cellist performs Alexander Glazunov’s short, exquisite Chant du Ménéstrel and a work by Glazunov’s best-known student, Dmitri Shostakovich, his Symphony No. 11 (1/14-1/15/12)

Rick Rowley — The pianist joins the FSO to conclude its three-year exploration of Sibelius in a program that also includes audience favorites Stravinsky and Rachmaninoff (3/17-3/18/12)

Adam Golka — The pianist helps the FSO end its season celebrating the richness of French and English music in a program that also includes Britten and Ravel (5/12/12)

FOLGER CONSORT

Folger Elizabethan Theatre
201 East Capitol St. SE
202-544-7077
folger.edu

A New Song: Celebrating the 400th Anniversary of the King James Bible — The Washington National Cathedral’s Cathedra chamber choir joins the Folger Consort in its season opener, with music inspired by the visionary, world-changing translation of the Bible by King James (9/30-10/2)

O Magnum Mysterium: Christmas Music from Renaissance Spain — A vocal ensemble featuring soprano Rosa Lamoreaux and baritone William Sharp, the wind ensemble Piffaro, the Renaissance Band and an organist present holiday music from the 16th-Century Spanish Golden Age (12/9-18) ^

Heavenly Revelations: Hildegard von Bingen and Medieval France — Renowned female vocal ensemble Anonymous 4 and multi-instrumentalists Shira Kammen and Debra Nagy join the Consort in a performance of soaring melodies and ecstatic poetry of 12th-Century mystic and nun Hildegard von Bingen plus 13th-Century works by elite of Paris’s Notre Dame Cathedral (1/6-1/7/12, Washington National Cathedral)

The Songbird: Francesca Caccini at the Medici Court — Soprano Michele Kennedy and harpsichordist Joseph Gascho join the Consort to perform music by Francesca Caccini, a guiding spirit behind the revolutionary music of the earliest operas and the brilliant solo songs of the Baroque; the concert is part of Folger’s celebration of 1,000 years of women writers (3/16-3/18/12)

City of Ladies: The Musical World of 15th-century Burgundy — Contertenor Drew Minter and multi-instrumentalist Tom Zajac join the Consort to toast the French courts of the early 15th-Century, which fostered a culture that treasured its musicians, artists and writers and the revelatory idea of beauty for its own sake (4/13-4/15/12)

GAY MEN’S CHORUS OF WASHINGTON, D.C.

202-293-1548
gmcw.org

Red & Greene, featuring Ellen Greene — Broadway’s original Audrey from Little Shop of Horrors joins the chorus for its annual holiday show and season kick-off (12/16-18, Lisner Auditorium)

The Kids Are All Right — Pittsburgh’s performing arts troupe Dreams of Hope joins the chorus in a celebration championing gay equality for youth and adults, featuring powerful songs and stories from LGBT youth and allies (2/18/12, Lisner)

Richard O’Brien’s The Rocky Horror Show — An all-male version of the wild, gender-bending cult musical, produced by special arrangement with Samuel French (3/16-3/18/12, Lisner)

Together Again — The chorus’s ensembles Potomac Fever and Rock Creek Singers join forces for an entertaining evening of songs (4/21/12, New York Avenue Presbyterian Church)

Heart Throbs — A showcase of adoring men in music, conjuring a ”Teenage Dream” or twenty, from your first fantasy dream date to a boy band crush (6/2-6/3/12, Lisner)

KENNEDY CENTER

202-467-4600
kennedy-center.org

Mathias Hausmann — Vocal Arts DC presents baritone Hausmann, known for his versatility and artistic charisma (10/12)

New York Festival of Song — ”Songs for One and All: An Evening of Solo Song Cycles and Vocal Quartets,” in this program presented by Vocal Arts DC (10/22)

Tokyo String Quartet — Kicking of the Fortas Chamber Music season with Mozart, Szymanowski and Dvorak (10/26)

The Orion String Quartet — A program of Bach, Schubert, Webern and Brahms (11/1)

Kennedy Center Chamber Players — Violinist Nurit Bar-Josef, cellist David Hardy and pianist Lambert Orkis offers a program of Bach and Mendelssohn (11/6)

Augustin Hadelich — Noted violinist offers a recital, accompanied by pianist Rohan de Silva, of Beethoven, Poulenc, Zimmermann, Brahms and Sarasate (12/7)

Lydia Teuscher — Up-and-coming German soprano, presented by Vocal Arts DC (1/26/12)

Florian Boesch — Vocal Arts DC presents this Austrian baritone, one of the leading lied interpreters of his generation (2/15/12)

Anna Caterina Antonacci — Awarded France’s highest national distinction, this soprano/mezzo-soprano crosses the Atlantic courtesy of Vocal Arts DC (4/11/12)

Gidon Saks — A familiar voice around Washington, given his roles with the Washington National Opera, the Israel-born, Canada-based Saks comes back courtesy of Vocal Arts DC (5/30/12)

NATIONAL PHILHARMONIC

Music Center at Strathmore
5301 Tuckerman Lane
N. Bethesda, Md.
301-493-9283
nationalphilharmonic.org

Corigiliano’s Red Violin Concerto and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 — The first woman to lead a major U.S. orchestra, Buffalo Philharmonic’s JoAnn Falletta makes her debut conducting the National Philharmonic with violinist Michael Ludwig, soprano Esther Heideman, mezzo-soprano Patricia Miller, tenor John Aler and bass Kevin Deas (10/1-2)

All Beethoven — Piotr Gajewski conducts the orchestra with pianist Piotr Paleczny (11/5-6)

Women Pioneers — Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright hosts this charity-benefiting concert with violinist Chee-Yun, soprano Audrey Elizabeth Luna, mezzo-soprano Magdalena Wór, tenor Robert Baker and baritone Jordan Shanahan (11/12)

Handel’s Messiah — Stan Engebretson conducts this signature holiday piece (12/10-11)

Holiday Celebration with the Washington Symphonic Brass (12/22)

Bach’s Unaccompanied Cello Suites — Featuring cellist Zuill Bailey (1/7/12)

Beethoven, Haydn and Mozart (1/7/12)

All Tchaikovsky — Gajewski conducts the orchestra and the Gold Medal winner of the XIV International Tchaikovsky Piano Competition (2/4-2/5/12)

Brian Ganz: Chopin Project — Featuring pianist Brian Ganz (2/11/12)

All Bach (2/25/12)

All Mozart (3/24/12)

Sarah Chang Plays Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto (4/28-4/29/12)

All Debussy (5/5/12)

Debussy’s Martyrdom of St. Sebastian — The Washington-area premiere of this rare, beautiful and too-long neglected work, debuted in Paris in 1912 (5/19/12)

NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

Kennedy Center Concert Hall
202-467-4600
kennedy-center.org

Season Opening Ball Concert with Joshua Bell and Thomas Hampson — Christoph Eschenbach conducts the NSO and violinist Bell and baritone Hampson in a program of Dvorak, Bruch, Copland and Ravel (9/25)

Beethoven’s Symphony No. 8 with Orff’s Carmina Burana — Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos conducts the NSO, the Choral Arts Society of Washington, the Children’s Chorus of Washington and several soloists in this dramatic program (9/29-10/1)

Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain — John Storgårds makes his NSO debut conducting violinist Gidon Kremer in a program that also includes Sibelius, Liadov and Nielsen (10/6, 10/8-9)

NSO Pops’ Season Opener with Rebecca Luker — Steven Reineke conducts the NSO Pops and Tony-nominee Luker in ”Some Enchanted Evening: The Music of Rodgers and Hammerstein” (10/13-15)

Peter and the Wolf — Mark Stephenson conducts the NSO in a Family Concert performance of the music from the Oscar-winning film by Suzie Templeton (10/16)

Lorin Maazel — The famed conductor leads the NSO in a program of Berlioz, Grieg and Mussorgsky/Ravel, along with pianist Simon Trpceski, making his NSO debut (10/27-29)

Stravinsky’s Suite from The Firebird — Oliver Knussen conducts the NSO and pianist Peter Serkin in a program that also includes the first NSO performances of Shepherd’s Wanderlust, Messiaen‘s Le Réveil des oiseaux and Benjamin’s Duet (11/3-5)

Leonard Slatkin — The famed former NSO conductor returns to lead a program of Saint-Saens, Rachmaninoff and a debut from Anna Clyne, with cellist Gautier Capuçon (11/10-12)

Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 ”Pastoral” — Christoph Eschenbach conducts the NSO and violinist Leonidas Kavakos in a heavy-hitting program that also includes Brahms’s Violin Concerto (11/17-19)

Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 1 — Eschenbach conducts the NSO and mono-named violinist Midori in a program that includes the first NSO performance of an NSO co-commission, Golijov’s Sidereus (12/1-3)

NSO Pops w/The Canadian Tenors — The globe-trotting tenors sing songs of the season with the Children’s Chorus of Washington (12/8-11)

Handel’s Messiah — Matthew Halls makes his debut as NSO conductor, along with soloists and the University of Maryland Concert Choir, all performing the holiday tradition (12/15-18)

SHENANDOAH CONSERVATORY

Shenandoah University
Winchester, Va.
540-665-4569
ConservatoryPerforms.org

The Pridonoff Duo — A four-hand/two-piano program including Saint-Saens and Percy Grainger’s setting of George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess (11/6)

Tafelmusik — Canada’s award-winning orchestra on period instruments performs a program of Baroqued standards (11/16)

Le Donne Curiose — Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari’s comic opera is presented in a production similar to that of the production at Wolf Trap this year, including the same set and direction (11/18-20)

John O’Conor and the Shenandoah Conservatory Symphony Orchestra — The Conservatory’s artist-in-residence joins the orchestra to perform Grieg’s famous Piano Concerto (2/11/12)

Anton Nel — The pianist, an acclaimed interpreter of Beethoven’s music, performs Beethoven, Bach and Debussy (2/26/12)

Alexej Gorlatch — The 23-year-old pianist performs works by Brahms, Chopin and Beethoven (3/25/12)

Ann Schein (4/15/12)

STRATHMORE

5301 Tuckerman Lane
N. Bethesda, Md.
301-581-5100
strathmore.org

Soheil Nasseri — One of New York’s most acclaimed young musicians takes on one of the most difficult classics in the piano repertoire, Beethoven’s Hammerklavier Sonata (10/6, the Mansion)

Great Noise Ensemble — Part of the Celebrating American Composers series, the challenging D.C. new music ensemble presents a program of works composed around the turn of the 21st Century, or in other words, now (10/14, Mansion)

Classical Music: The Ives Project — Strathmore hosts a project to help make American composer Charles Ives better known, through a series of music, readings and performance. Highlights include: Post-Classical Ensemble with Pianist Jeremy Denk, Baritone William Sharp and Actor Floyd Keng (11/3, Music Center); Beethoven and Ives w/Pianist Jeremy Denk and Reader William Sharp (11/4, Music Center); JACK Quartet: Ives and Other Innovators (11/5, Mansion); Amstel Saxophone and New Century Saxophone Quartets — Part of the Celebrating American Composers series, these two ensembles team up to reveal new depths of versatility in the saxophone (11/20, Mansion)

Jenny Lin — Part of the Celebrating American Composers series, pianist Lin ventures thorugh the American Songbook with piano versions of classic jazz and show tunes (12/1, Mansion)

5 Browns Holiday Concert — Dubbed the ”Fab Five” by People, this talented group of piano-playing siblings stops by Strathmore for a night of beautiful holiday classics (12/2, Music Center)

Wendy Richman — Part of the Celebrating American Composers series, violist Richman offers a world premiere by Catholic University professor Stephen Gorbos, as well as another by Peabody Institute professor David Smooke (12/8, Mansion)

Imani Winds — Grammy-nominated ensemble adds excitement and blurs genres with programs that include classical compositions as well as those of jazz, even Klezmer (1/26/12, Mansion)

Clancy Newman and Noreen Cassidy-Polera — The cellist and pianist offer a program of Bloch, Mendelssohn, Brahms and Newman (1/29/12, Mansion)

WASHINGTON BACH CONSORT

National Presbyterian Church
4101 Nebraska Ave. NW
202-429-2121
bachconsort.org

A Vintage Year: 1685 — Bach, Scarlatti and Handel were all born in 1685, and they’re the focus of this concert (9/25)

Noontime Cantata Series — Six free, monthly concerts include an organ prelude and fugue featuring area keyboard artists, and one of J.S. Bach’s Cantatas with chorus and orchestra (10/4, 11/1, 12/6, 3/6/12, 4/3/12, 5/1/12, Church of the Epiphany)

In Solo Flight — Canadian soprano Agnes Zsigovics and counter-tenor Daniel Taylor join organ soloist Scott Dettra for a concert of solo virtuosity (11/6)

Christmas in Leipzig — Music of Bach and his contemporaries to get you in the holiday spirit (12/4)

The Art of the Fugue — Bach’s Die Kunst der Fugue is considered his last will and testament, and one of the most beautiful pieces in all of music (3/25/12)

Heaven on Earth — A glorious afternoon of Bach music, both sacred and secular (4/29/12)

WASHINGTON PERFORMING ARTS SOCIETY

202-833-9800
wpas.org

Till Fellner — Featured pianist in WPAS’s Hayes Piano Series (10/1, Kennedy Center)

What Makes It Great? with Rob Kapilow — This year’s series examines the genius of Beethoven, beginning with his Symphony No. 1; the Peabody Chamber Orchestra will perform the piece after Kapilow’s discussion (10/2, National Museum of Natural History)

From The Top w/Christopher O’Riley — A taping of the NPR show focused on pre-collegiate musicians (10/16, National Gallery of Art)

Gil Shaham — Part of WPAS’s Celebrity Series, the violinist Shaham performs Schubert, Bach and Franck accompanied by pianist Inon Barnatan (10/30, Strathmore)

Marouan Benabdallah — Featured pianist in the Hayes Piano Series and winner of the 2009 ACF International Piano Competition (11/5, Kennedy Center)

Garrick Ohlsson — Part of WPAS’s Piano Masters Series, known for his virtuoso with Chopin (11/8, Strathmore)

Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique (11/19, Kennedy Center)

Kathryn Stott — English pianist, part of the Hayes Piano Series (12/3, Kennedy Center)

What Makes It Great? with Rob Kapilow – Beethoven’s Sonata No. 23, ”Appassionata” is next in the series, with pianist Yuliya Gorenman (12/4, National Museum of Natural History)

Orion Weiss — Hayes Piano Series (1/7/12, Kennedy Center)

WPAS Men, Women and Children of the Gospel Choirs and the Choral Arts Society of Washington — These choruses join forces — 300 singers in all — again this year to celebrate the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. in ”Living the Dream…Singing the Dream” (1/22/12, Kennedy Center)

Joshua Bell — Few classical musicians attain the mainstream celebrity status of this violinist (1/23/12, Kennedy Center)

Brad Mehldau (1/28/12, Sixth & I)

Simone Dinnerstein (1/29/12, Strathmore)

Susan Graham — Accompanied by pianist Malcolm Martineau, the mezzo-soprano sings works by Purcell, Mendelssohn, Schubert, Schumann, Liszt, and even Sondheim and Coward (2/4/12, Kennedy Center)

Jonathan Biss (2/4/12, Sixth & I)

Sol Gabetta (2/11/12, Kennedy Center)

Leif Ove Andsnes (2/12/12, Strathmore)

Emerson String Quartet (2/15/12, Strathmore)

Chris Botti (2/17/12, Kennedy Center)

Julia Fischer (2/18/12, Sixth & I)

Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra — Lorin Maazel conducts (2/29/12, Kennedy Center)

Yefim Bronfman — ”One of the greatest pianists active today,” raves the New York Times (3/2/12, Strathmore)

Benjamin Grosvenor (3/3/12, Kennedy Center)

What Makes It Great? with Rob Kapilow – Beethoven’s Cello Sonata No. 3 in A Major is the third in the series, with cellist Zuill Bailey and pianist Yuliya Gorenman (3/4/12, Sixth & I)

Vadim Repin (3/16/12, Strathmore)

Murray Perahia (3/18/12, Strathmore)

Mikhail Simonyan (3/31/12, Kennedy Center)

Anoushka Shankar (4/13/12, Lisner)

European Union Youth Orchestra (4/15/12, Kennedy Center)

What Makes It Great? with Rob Kapilow – Beethoven’s Violin Concerto is next in the series, with the Peabody Chamber Orchestra and violinist Keng-Wyen Tseng (4/29/12, National Museum of Natural History)

Stefan Jackiw (5/5/12, Kennedy Center)

The Philadelphia Orchestra (5/11/12, Strathmore)

Itzhak Perlman (5/14/12, Kennedy Center)

Jeremy Denk (5/19/12, Sixth & I)

WASHINGTON NATIONAL OPERA

Kennedy Center Opera House
202-295-2400
dc-opera.org

Tosca — Puccini’s Tosca stands as one of the most popular operas of all time, marked by virtuosity, drama and musical perfection that virtually define the art form of opera (Now-9/24)

Opera In The Outfield: Tosca — A free, live broadcast (9/22, Nationals Park)

Lucia di Lammermoor — The perfect complement to Donizetti’s dazzling bel canto score, acclaimed director David Alden‘s dark and edgy production of Lucia di Lammermoor is ”a magnificent conception,” evoking ”some haunted, dream-like early Victorian limbo,” according to London’s The Daily Telegraph) (11/10-19)

Cosi Fan Tutti — In Mozart’s game of love and seduction, two young men wager that their fiancées will remain faithful, even when tempted (2/25-3/15/12)

Plácido Domingo Celebrity Series: Angela Gheorghiu — Making her WNO debut, Romanian soprano Angela Gheorghiu will dazzle with her magnificent voice and stage presence (3/3/12)