We have detected that you are using an adblocking plugin in your browser.

The revenue we earn by the advertisements is used to manage this website. Please whitelist our website in your adblocking plugin.

CRITIC’S PICKS | Eight Musical Outings You Should Do This Week

By Michael Vincent on September 23, 2015

MTCP-SEPT26
Photo: Phillip Grondin (via Flickr)

After a summer break, Musical Toronto’s Critic’s Picks are back! Our weekly picks are a fully curated list of some of the best concerts happening now through the end of the week. Of course, this is not to say we are the provocateurs of taste, but simply seek to provide a good weekly summary. For a look at the full breadth of what’s available in and around Toronto, check out our concert listings in the Musical Toronto Datebook.

Thursday 24

TSO | Opening Night: Pinchas Zukerman at Roy Thomson Hall. 7:00 p.m. $50-182.50

Announced yesterday, violinist Itzhak Perlman canceled his scheduled appearance at the TSO season gala due to emergency gallbladder surgery. We wish him well, but no mind, Pinchas Zukerman has gracefully agreed to step in. You’ll hear Dukas’ warmhearted symphonic poem The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Grieg’s Suite No.1 from Peer Gynt, and Bruch’s Violin Concerto No.1. See you there. | DETAILS

Friday 25

TSO | Beethoven Symphony 5 at Roy Thomson Hall. 7:30 p.m. $33.75-148 (repeats Sept. 26-27 *start times and venues vary)

With the standard three B’s: Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms, you could call this program the hits of solid-gold. On the bill is Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in d BWV565, and Brahms’ Double Concerto, with in-house soloists Jonathan Crow (violin) and Joseph Johnson (cello). The program repeats over three days, so pick your poison. | DETAILS

Saturday 26

CANADIAN MUSIC CENTRE/THE MUSIC GALLERY | “Conversations with Post World War II Pioneers of Electronic Music” (Book Launch) at The Canadian Music Centre. 4:00 p.m. Free!
Oshawa-born composer Norma Beecroft has been on a lifelong search for novel sounds. A pioneer in early tape music, she has collided with crucial figures from the 20th century, including John Cage, Pierre Schaeffer, and Iannis Xenakis. Join the Music Gallery’s Artistic Director David Dacks for a conversation with Beecroft as she launches her new e-book, “Conversations with Post World War II Pioneers of Electronic Music”. For fans of electroacoustics, (or the curious) you’ll want to see this. | DETAILS

Sunday 27

OFF CENTRE MUSIC SALON | Russia Cast Adrift at Trinity-St. Paul’s Centre, Jeanne Lamon Hall. 3:00 p.m. $15-50.

Now entering their 21st season, Off Centre Music Salon are exploring Russia tonight with Rachmaninoff, Gavrilin, and Scriabin. Performers including Emilia Boteva, soprano; Nathalie Paulin, soprano; Ernesto Ramirez, tenor; and Geoffrey Sirett, baritone. Note, Off Centre will be performing in their new home at Jeanne Lamon Hall. | DETAILS

MOOREDALE CONCERTS | Stewart Goodyear at Walter Hall. 3:15 p.m. $20-40.

Proclaimed “one of the best pianists of his generation” by the Philadelphia Inquirer, Stewart Goodyear will be in Toronto for a special afternoon of Beethoven’s Diabelli variations, and all thirty Bach Goldberg Variations. The event marks the season premiere for Moordale Concerts. Not-to-be-missed. | DETAILS

Tuesday 29

COC | Chamber Music and Vocal Series: Love Shards of Sappho at Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts. Noon. Free!

The Canadian Opera Company continues with the ever-popular noon hour concert series. What better way to spend your lunch hour than to head over to the Four Seasons Centre for a chance to hear a free concert? Arraymusic will present works by women composers and the female voice, including Monk Feldman: The Love Shards of Sappho; Smith: Hieroglyphs. Performers are Ilana Zarankin, soprano; Brook Dufton, soprano. Seats fill up fast so make sure to come early. | DETAILS

SOUNDSTREAMS | Adrianne Pieczonka: Beyond the Aria at Koerner Hall. 8:00 p.m. $37.50-67.50.

Our friends at Soundstreams are jumping into the 2015/16 season with a concert lead by phenomenal soprano Adrianne Pieczonka.  The concert will include George Crumb’s Ancient Voices of Children, a world premiere by Analia Llugdar, selections from Crumb’s American Songbook, and Luciano Berio’s arrangements of Beatles Songs by Lennon and McCartney. Toronto-based mezzo Krisztina Szabó will also be on hand backed by a chamber orchestra. Don’t miss it. | DETAILS

Wednesday 30

TSO | Gershwin Piano Concerto in F at Roy Thomson Hall. 6:30 p.m. $29.50-83.75

Pianist Kirill Gerstein is in Toronto this week to perform under the baton of guest conductor James Gaffigan and the Toronto Symphony. On the bill is Gershwin’s jazz-inflected Piano Concerto in F. The Concerto marked Gershwin’s first real classical music commission and prompted him to run out and seek out help to write it from figures like Henry Cowell, Wallingford Riegger and Arnold Schoenberg. The concert also includes Shostakovich’s swinging Suite for Variety Orchestra. Especially suited to jazz lovers, this concert is well worth attending. | DETAILS

#LUDWIGVAN

Want more updates on Toronto-centric classical music news and review before anyone else finds out? Get our exclusive newsletter here and follow us on Facebook or Twitter for all the latest.

Michael Vincent
Follow me

Share this article
lv_toronto_banner_high_590x300
comments powered by Disqus

FREE ARTS NEWS STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX, EVERY MONDAY BY 6 AM

company logo

Part of

Terms of Service & Privacy Policy
© 2024 | Executive Producer Moses Znaimer