Sunday, February 27, 2011

Out sick


In sick, actually, and on one of the busiest weekends of the season. Sigh.

Roy Proctor, in the Richmond Times-Dispatch, liked Virginia Opera's abridged version of Wagner's "Die Walküre" ("The Valkyrie"):

http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/flair/2011/feb/27/tdmet02-downsized-valkyrie-features-powerful-perfo-ar-870261/


Joe Banno, in The Washington Post, pretty emphatically did not:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/20/AR2011022003104.html

Monday, February 21, 2011

Review: Wilson & Schmidt

Feb. 20, Bon Air Presbyterian Church

Cellist James Wilson and pianist Carsten Schmidt came to town over the weekend to play a pair of Beethoven sonatas, the Duo (2009) for cello and piano by Richmond-based composer Allan Blank and "Ricordanza" by George Rochberg. Their performance was enhanced, but then cut short, by the piano.

Bon Air Presbyterian Church owns a Bechstein, a product of the German piano maker whose instruments have been prized by generations of European keyboard greats (Liszt, Backhaus, Schnabel, Lipatti, Richter) but are not as big a presence on the American concert scene. The Bon Air Bechstein may be the only one played in public in Richmond. Its hefty sonority, bright tone and clarity across all registers have contributed greatly to many performances of solo and chamber music, notably in the Richmond Chamber Players' summertime Interlude series and in some programs of Wilson's Richmond Festival of Music.

In this concert, the German-born Schmidt exploited his familiarity with the Bechstein's tonal qualities to especially fine effect in Beethoven’s two Op. 102 sonatas, in which the piano is as prominent and expressive a voice as the cello. Schmidt could play assertively, and with the muscularity that Beethoven often demands, without thickening sound textures or overbalancing the cello. Wilson, in turn, could play with warmth and nuance without fear of his cello being overpowered by the piano.

All was well – very well, indeed – through the first movement of Beethoven's Sonata in D major, Op. 102, No. 2. Then the piano's sostenuto pedal failed. Without it, Schmidt was understandably loth to attempt the sonata's slow movement (adagio con molto sentimento d’affetto).

Despite its premature ending, the program was full and rewarding. In addition to robust and expressive Beethoven, Wilson and Schmidt offered a first local hearing of Blank's Duo, an exceptionally fine melding of lyricism with the compositional and instrumental techniques of the modern era. The four-movement work begins with a baritone aria for cello, one of several soulful tunes that showcase the instrument's range and expressive capacity. The piece's more animated sections sound to be rooted in Jewish folk song and European dances; Bartókian rhythms and klezmer-like riffs happily coexist with a barcarolle and a quasi-waltz.

I suspect that this will become one of Blank's most frequently performed works. Having it introduced by such persuasive interpreters as Wilson and Schmidt certainly helps.

The Rochberg "Ricordanza," which borrows a theme from Beethoven’s C major Sonata, Op. 102, No. 1, is a fairly early (1972) case of a composer well-schooled in modernism turning "neo-romantic," building a work around a full-throated lyrical melody. Rochberg went further than most neo-romantics in this piece – its big tune unabashedly echoes Chopin and Schumann; and Wilson and Schmidt played it very much in that spirit.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Detroit Symphony calls off season


The Detroit Symphony, silenced since Oct. 4 by an impasse over a new contract with its musicians, has canceled the rest of its 2010-11 season.

The DSO's musicians last week rejected what management called its "final offer," calling for significant reductions in base salaries and benefits, partially offset if musicians agreed to take on educational and other community outreach work.

"The proposal would have delayed our ability to address [a $25.3 million cumulative operating deficit], but we are willing to make these types of sacrifices to settle the strike and return our musicians to the stage," Stanley Frankel, the orchestra's chairman, wrote in an e-mail to subscribers and patrons.

The orchestra's management terms the shutdown a suspension, leaving open the possibility of rescheduled concerts should a contract agreement be reached. But

"[a]fter this disappointing vote, we see no purpose in further negotiating," Paul Hogle, the DSO's executive vice president, told Michael H. Hodges of The Detroit News:

http://www.detnews.com/article/20110220/ENT01/102200311/DSO-patrons--politicians-disappointed-by-season-cancellation


"Though the two sides reached consensus on a 3-year, $36-million framework" for musicians' compensation, "representatives from both sides said the biggest disagreements remain over base pay levels; control over scheduling public service work such as teaching, coaching and chamber music; and rules and pay governing Internet broadcasts, video and recordings," the Detroit Free Press' Mark Stryker writes:

http://www.freep.com/article/20110219/ENT04/110219009/DSO-musicians-reject-contract-offer-season-suspended?odyssey=tabtopnewstextFRONTPAGE


Tony Woodcock, president of New England Conservatory, writes that "without major systemic change, the orchestra will go out of business. . . . [T]he DSO and all its problems will not be the last crisis we see over the next couple of years.

"Donors are feeling fatigued by orchestras – the constant demands, the needs, the on-going and unresolved problems. They are questioning the role of 'orchestra monoliths' whose consumption of a community's philanthropic wealth is disproportionate to the value they produce," Woodcock writes:

http://necmusic.wordpress.com/2011/02/09/motwon-blues/

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Boston Symphony taps Wilkins


Thomas Wilkins, onetime associate conductor of the Richmond Symphony, now music director of the Omaha Symphony and principal guest conductor of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, has been named conductor of youth and family concerts by the Boston Symphony.

While in Richmond, "I discovered not only that I was good at [these concerts], but that I loved doing them. I just love getting people to fall in love with classical music," Wilkins tells The Boston Globe's Jeremy Eichler:

http://www.boston.com/ae/music/articles/2011/02/16/thomas_wilkins_named_to_lead_bso_youth_and_family_concerts/

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Blanche Moyse (1909-2011)


Blanche Moyse, one of the founders of the Marlboro Music School and Festival in Vermont, has died at the age of 101. Daughter-in-law of the great French flutist Marcel Moyse, she was a violinist-turned-conductor, celebrated in later life for her performances of Bach's choral works.

An obituary by William Grimes in The New York Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/15/arts/music/15moyse.html?ref=music

Monday, February 14, 2011

Political journo as music critic


Max Frankel, the retired New York Times executive editor, who as a reporter covered Richard Nixon's 1972 visit to China, weighs in on the John Adams-Peter Sellars opus "Nixon in China," now playing at the Metropolitan Opera:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/13/arts/music/13nixon.html?_r=1


Put off by the opera's historical liberties, Frankel endorses the 100-year rule attributed to Shakespeare: "[A] century as the minimal safe distance" between an event and an artistic treatment of it.

The New Yorker's Alex Ross reminds Frankel that artists essaying current events often are stymied by censors, so they've had to pluck story lines from distant history to comment on the here and now:

http://www.therestisnoise.com/2011/02/hands-off-the-twentieth-century.html


Speaking of rules, one of mine is to ignore music critiques by political journalists who misuse the word "crescendo." That culls the herd drastically. A cursory search of The Times' archives shows that Frankel (or whoever edited his copy) knows how to use the word.

Statuesque


Ionarts' Charles T. Downey rounds up the "Classical Grammys, If You Care" . . .

http://ionarts.blogspot.com/2011/02/classical-grammys-if-you-care.html

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Review: Borromeo String Quartet

Feb. 12, Virginia Commonwealth University

The Borromeo String Quartet – violinists Nicholas Kitchen and Kristopher Tong, violist Mai Motobuchi and cellist Yeesun Kim – is the rock star of chamber music at present, at least among people who read The New York Times, which recently gave the ensemble a huge spread, focusing on the foursome's embrace of new technologies:


www.nytimes.com/2011/01/16/arts/music/16string.html?scp=1&sq=borromeo&st=cse

One of those high-tech innovations came along with the Borromeo for its weekend visit to VCU. The musicians performed facing laptops displaying full scores instead of the usual printed individual parts. As Kitchen explained during the concert, playing with the full score in view enables each musician to see what the others are playing – and, even more usefully, what they are about to play – giving the performers a real-time sense of their roles in the ensemble. This larger picture has been available to listeners, at least those who follow along with scores in their laps; but until now it has been impractical for musicians other than conductors.

Does this new perspective make a qualitative difference in the Borromeo's performance? The last time I heard the group live, in 2003, with a different second violinist, I sensed a slackening of concentration when the music wasn't at some extreme of volume, articulation or expression. I heard no such shortcoming in this performance. This program, however, consistently demanded the sharpest possible focus from all four players.

Especially the centerpiece, the Quartet No. 4 ("Findings") by the Russian-born composer Lera Auerbach. This work, dating from 2007, ranges through 16 sections or episodes, some of them with contrasting subsections, only a couple long enough to qualify as a movement. Kitchen described it as "stream of consciousness" music, the sound equivalent of rooting through objects in an attic, each kindling a feeling or memory, which often overlaps with the one preceding or following it.

The score is highly eventful, peppered with rarified tones and tone combinations – a "normal" string-quartet sound is the exception rather than the rule; episodes or sound-objects appear briefly and in quick succession, usually followed by something markedly different. Performers must play with intense concentration, pushing their technical and expressive limits, but also must have an ear for emotional nuance, atmospherics and humor.

After playing a work this demanding, a quartet might be forgiven for warming up or subsequently decompressing with more conventionally voiced and structured pieces. The Borromeo preceded the Auerbach with Kitchen's arrangement of Bach's Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor and devoted the second half of its program to the first of the famously challenging late Beethoven quartets, the E flat major, Op. 127. Plus the speedy, brilliant finale of Beethoven's Quartet in C major, Op. 59, No. 3, as an encore.

That is a great deal of intense, technically challenging and expressively variable music to pack into two hours, and the Borromeo audibly and visibly relished every note of it. They also played up resonations – a snatch of melody or harmony here, a texture or timbre there – that link these seemingly unrelated works.

Kitchen showed himself to be the equal of any solo or chamber violinist at work today. Cellist Kim was a massively sonorous yet concise and detailed bass voice. Second violinist Tong and violist Motobuchi played their inside parts with unusual clarity and presence. They sounded to be more intent on illuminating each part of the whole than on producing a refined collective sound, and more attuned to rhythm than to long-lined lyricism – but those were the qualities most essential to the pieces they were playing.

A good performance of chamber music is an absorbing experience. This was an enveloping one.

Friday, February 11, 2011

Symphony's Music Marathon


The Richmond Symphony will stage its 2011 Music Marathon from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Feb. 12 in the Nordstrom at Short Pump Town Center, 11800 W. Broad St.

About 100 of the orchestra's musicians, choristers, staff and board members and friends, will perform in chamber and vocal music. Among the performers: Steven Smith, the orchestra's music director, playing violin, and its executive director, David Fisk, on piano, accompanying Smith and playing in chamber ensembles.

The last such event, in 2009, raised $28,000 for the orchestra, which hopes to improve on that result this year. Donors may sponsor individual performers with cash or checks, or via www.GiveRichmond.org

For more information, call the symphony at (804) 788-4717 or visit www.richmondsymphony.com

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

NSO Pops taps Reineke


Steven Reineke, music director of the New York Pops, formerly assistant to the late Erich Kunzel at the Cincinnati Pops, has been named principal pops conductor of Washington's National Symphony. He succeeds Marvin Hamlisch, who is leaving the NSO Pops after 11 seasons.

The 40-year-old Reineke "didn't even know he was in the running" for the DC post, the Cincinnati Enquirer's Janelle Gelfand reports:

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20110208/ENT03/102090318/1028/ENT/Reineke-named-to-National-Symphony-post

Monday, February 7, 2011

Outfitting opera at VCU


Richmond Times-Dispatch columnist Bill Lohmann profiles William Welty, a retired Pace University professor who has donated more than 1,000 costumes and accessories to Virginia Commonwealth University's Opera Theatre:

http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/flair/2011/feb/07/tdmet01-lohmann-the-vcu-operas-new-clothes-ar-824829/


Look for some of Welty's gifts in the VCU Opera Theatre production of Humperdinck's "Hansel and Gretel," scheduled for April 30 and May 1.

One bad girl among many


As the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, prepares to stage "Anna Nicole," Mark-Anthony Turnage's new opera on Anna Nicole Smith, the pole dancer-turned-trophy wife who for a time was femme fatale-in-residence of the tabloids, The Independent's Mark Pappenheim samples the baddest girls of operatic history, from Monteverdi's Poppea to Berg's Lulu:

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/news/deadly-divas-the-baddest-sexiest-women-in-opera-2205730.html

Inquiring minds want to know: Why did Pappenheim omit Carmen?

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Review: Richmond Symphony

Victor Yampolsky conducting
Feb. 5, Carpenter Theatre, Richmond CenterStage

When Awadagin Pratt's career took off in the early 1990s, he was the only concert pianist in dreadlocks most classical audiences had ever seen, and one of the few who eschewed formal concert attire and standard pianist's posture.

Those who got past his appearance and listened closely to his playing heard a young proponent of an old tradition: high-romantic pianism, free with rubato and pregnant silences, given to bursts of energy and abrupt shifts in volume, keenly attuned to grand rhetorical gestures.

Performing this weekend with the Richmond Symphony in Brahms' Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor (the same work he played in his last appearances with the orchestra, in 1996), Pratt is still dreadlocked, still tuxedo-free – no longer novel in this new age of "alt-classical" troupes garbed like garage bands – and still a high-romantic, as a pianist had better be in this of all concertos.

The Brahms D minor is an ideal vehicle for a pianist with big technique, high temperament and the ability to put long-breathed phrases into context in a long, rather sprawling musical essay. Pratt is not as volatile a performer as he was 20 years ago; he's more selective in letting loose, more prone to exploit passages of profound quiet. His technique is still immense, but more musically focused, and the spontaneity he brings to a performance is more calibrated.

In the first of two performances of the Brahms, Pratt and guest conductor Victor Yampolsky spent much of the long first movement getting onto each other's wavelengths. Yampolsky, son of the esteemed Russian pianist Vladimir Yampolsky and a violin student of David Oistrakh, drew a tonally rich, rhetorically lofty sound from the orchestra, but set measured, not very flexible tempos that at times drifted out of sync with the piano. These conflicts were mostly resolved in the subsequent adagio and rondo finale.

Yampolsky’s warm and sonorous but straight-faced approach to romantic music yielded rather mellow accounts of Schumann's First Symphony – a "Spring" that danced, but with blunt accents that rarely sprang – and Weber's "Euryanthe" Overture.

The program repeats at 3 p.m. Feb. 6 at the Carpenter Theatre, Sixth and Grace streets. Tickets: $17-$72. Details: (800) 982-2787 (Ticketmaster); http://www.richmondsymphony.com/

Friday, February 4, 2011

'Tipping point' in Detroit


A consortium of banks has called in a $54 million loan to the Detroit Symphony, whose musicians have been on strike since September. The banks' move may lead to settlement of the strike, or may force the orchestra into bankruptcy, writes Daniel Howes, a columnist for The Detroit News:

http://detnews.com/article/20110203/OPINION03/102030374/Banks-want-DSO-s-$54M-loan-repaid

FEB. 10 UPDATE: The musicians reject the latest management contract proposal, upping the odds that the orchestra will cancel the rest of this season. Mark Stryker reports in the Detroit Free Press:

http://www.freep.com/article/20110209/ENT04/110209052/1039/ENT04/DSO-musicians-reject-latest-offer-cancellation-season-next-

NY Phil archives online


The New York Philharmonic has begun to post its voluminous archives on its website. Initial entries include Leonard Bernstein's markings of the scores of Gustav Mahler, his plans for his first season (1958-59) as the orchestra's music director, and the images used for early Young People's Concerts:

http://archives.nyphil.org/


Much more to come: The philharmonic, founded in 1842, is the oldest symphony orchestra in the U.S.; its musicians and early leaders had a "pack-rat mentality . . . and kept meticulous records," Daniel J. Wakin reports in The New York Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/04/arts/music/04archive.html?_r=1&hpw

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Virginia Opera's $500k challenge


An anonymous donor will match up to $500,000 in new or increased donations to Virginia Opera.

The challenge grant, the largest operating gift in the company's history, is intended to "stimulate and leverage new and increased gifts . . . [attract] new audiences through innovation, and [become] stronger partners with the communities we serve," Gus Stuhlreyer, general director and CEO of Virginia Opera, said in a statement.

Virginia Opera changed artistic leadership late last year, with the dismissal of long-time Artistic Director Peter Mark and the hiring of Robin Thompson, a veteran of the New York City Opera and other companies, as artistic advisor. Stuhlreyer and other Virginia Opera officials say that the balance of this season and the 2011-12 season will be spent examining artistic and organizational directions the company may take in the future.

Mark is organizing a new company, Lyric Opera of Virginia, with plans for a four-production season to open in the fall.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Washington National Opera 2011-12


The Washington National Opera's first post-Domingo season will open in September with a production of "Tosca" conducted by . . . Plácido Domingo.

The famed tenor will step down as general director of WNO at the end of this season, and the company will become an affiliate of the Kennedy Center. Domingo will remain a presence, though, with both "Tosca" and the Plácido Domingo Celebrity Series, presenting concerts by sopranos Angela Gheorghiu on March 3, 2012, and Deborah Voigt on March 17, 2012. The concerts are open only to season subscribers and major donors to WNO.

The 2011-12 season also will feature the company's first production of Verdi's "Nabucco" and a Jonathan Miller production of Mozart's "Così fan tutte" in modern dress and set in Washingtion.

The coming season's productions and casting:

* Puccini: "Tosca" (Sept. 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 23 and 24) – Domingo conducting, starring Patricia Racette, Frank Porretta and Alan Held; production by Giulio Chazalettes. In Italian with English captions.

* Donizetti: "Lucia di Lammermoor" (Nov. 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18 and 19) – WNO Music Director Philippe Auguin conducting, with Sarah Coburn and Lyubov Petrova alternating in the title role; production by David Alden. In Italian with English captions.

* Mozart: "Così fan tutte" (Feb. 25 and 28; March 2, 4, 7, 10, 12 and 15) – Auguin conducting, starring Elizabeth Futral, Renata Pokupic, Joel Prieto, Teddy Tahu Rhodes, William Shimell and Ketevan Kemoklidze; production by Jonathan Miller. In Italian with English captions.

* Verdi: "Nabucco" (April 28; May 2, 5, 10, 13, 15, 18 and 21) – Auguin conducting, starring Franco Vassallo and Csilla Boross; production by Thaddeus Strassberger. In Italian with English captions.

* Massenet: "Werther" (May 12, 14, 17, 19, 22, 25 and 27) – Emmanuel Villaume conducting, starring Francesco Meli and Sonia Ganassi; stage director TBA. In French with English captions.

For ticket subscriptions and other information, call the Washington National Opera at (202) 295-2400 or visit http://www.dc-opera.org/

Margaret Price (1941-2011)


Margaret Price, the Welsh soprano best-known for roles in the operas of Mozart and Verdi and performances of art-song, has died at the age of 69. An obituary by Zachary Woolfe in The New York Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/01/arts/music/01price.html?_r=1&ref=music


Another obituary, by Barry Millington in The Guardian:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/jan/30/dame-margaret-price-obituary

EMI goes to the bank


EMI, the venerable British recording company that has been the label of classical greats from Fritz Kreisler and Pablo Casals to Itzhak Perlman and Simon Rattle, has been taken over by Citigroup after its previous owner, the venture capital firm Terra Firma, failed to meet debt obligations to the bank.

Roger Faxon, the current head of EMI, says it will be "business as usual" under the new owner, The Guardian's Mark Sweney reports:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/feb/01/guy-hands-emi-citigroup

February calendar


Classical performances in and around Richmond, with selected events elsewhere in Virginia and the Washington area. Program information, provided by presenters, is updated as details become available. Adult single-ticket prices are listed; senior, student/youth, group and other discounts may be offered.

* In and around Richmond: Pianist Awadagin Pratt joins the Richmond Symphony, with guest conductor Victor Yampolsky, in Brahms’ Concerto No. 1 in D minor, Feb. 5-6 at the Carpenter Theatre of Richmond CenterStage. . . . Virginia Commonwealth University's Rennolds Chamber Concerts series presents the Borromeo String Quartet, Feb. 12 at the Singleton Arts Center. . . . Soprano Amanda Pabyan gives a recital on Feb. 18 at the University of Richmond's Modlin Arts Center. . . . Cellist James Wilson and pianist Carsten Schmidt play works by Beethoven, George Rochberg and Richmond-based composer Allan Blank in a Richmond Festival of Music program, Feb. 20 at Bon Air Presbyterian Church.
. . . Ralph Skiano, principal clarinetist of the Richmond Symphony, joins the Oberon Quartet in Brahms' Clarinet Quintet, Feb. 23 at St. Catherine's School. . . . Pianist Thomas Mastroanni marks the Liszt bicentenary with a lecture-recital on "Années de Pelerinage" ("Years of Pilgrimmage"), Feb. 23 at UR's Modlin Center. . . . Erin R. Freeman conducts the Richmond Symphony, with clarinetist Jared Davis and bassoonist Martin Gordon featured in Richard Strauss' "Duett-Concertino," Feb. 25 at Bon Air Baptist Church, Feb. 27 at Randolph-Macon College in Ashland. . . . The Virginia Opera production of "The Valkyrie," a condensed version of Wagner's "Die Walküre," comes to Richmond's Carpenter Theatre on Feb. 25 and 27, following runs at Norfolk's Harrison Opera House (Feb. 5, 9, 11 and 13) and the Center for the Arts at George Mason University in Fairfax (Feb. 18 and 20). . . . The Shanghai Quartet and pipa (Chinese lute) player Wu Man play a new quintet by Lei Liang, Feb. 27 at UR's Modlin Center; on Feb. 26, the composer and performers deliver the Neumann Lecture on Music, "The Role of Music in a Global Society," at the Modlin Center.

* Star turns: Violinist Joshua Bell, whose January recital at Strathmore in the Maryland suburbs of DC was snowed out, has rescheduled his program of Brahms, Schubert and Grieg for Feb. 2. . . . Pianist Yuja Wang joins Juanjo Mena and the Baltimore Symphony in Rachmaninoff's Concerto No. 2, Feb. 10 at Strathmore. . . . VCU-based pianist Dmitri Shteinberg plays Rach 2 with the Charlottesville & University Symphony Orchestra, Feb. 12 at UVa's Old Cabell Hall, Feb. 13 at Monticello High School. . . . Pianist Radu Lupu plays Beethoven's Third Concerto with Gianandrea Noseda conducting the National Symphony, on a program with Tchaikovsky's rarely heard "Manfred" Symphony, Feb. 10-12 at Washington's Kennedy Center. . . . Cellist Alisa Weilerstein plays solo Bach and joins pianist-vocalist Gabriel Kahane in several of his songs, Feb. 15 at Strathmore. . . . Mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato performs on Feb. 15 at the Kennedy Center. . . . Three all-star chamber music encounters on successive nights in the Kennedy Center's Terrace Theater: The Emerson Quartet and Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio play Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Brahms and Schoenberg on Feb. 15; the Orion Quartet and Windscape wind quintet play an arrangement of Bach's "The Art of the Fugue" on Feb. 16 (after playing the Bach on Feb. 15 at UVa); and the Juilliard and Afiara quartets play the Mendelssohn Octet and quartets by Schubert and Bartók on Feb. 17. . . . Violinist Hilary Hahn plays Bach, Beethoven, Ives and more, Feb. 27 at Strathmore.

* New and/or different: Opera Viva, UVa's student-run troupe, stages a choreographed, English-language production of Gluck's "Orfeo ed Euridice" with an all-female cast, Feb. 3, 4 and 6 at the Forum on Observatory Hill in Charlottesville.
. . . DC's Opera Lafayette presents a concert version of André Grétry's "Le Magnifique," Feb. 4 at the Hylton Arts Center in Manassas, Feb. 5 at the Kennedy Center. . . . the Rebel Baroque ensemble plays Handel, Telemann, Corelli and more, Feb. 11 at The Barns at Wolf Trap in Northern Virginia. . . . VCU-based pianist Sonia Vlahcevic gives a lecture-recital on György Ligeti's "Musica Ricercata," Feb. 12 at the Richmond Public Library. . . . The Bang on a Can All-Stars highlight a UVa residency with two concerts in Charlottesville, Feb. 18 at the Eunoia Baptist campus center, Feb. 19 at the Jefferson Theater. . . . More new music from the Verge Ensemble, Feb. 24 at UVa. . . . The Whiffenpoofs, the venerable male chorus from Yale University, join UVa's Virginia Belles and Virginia Gentlemen on Feb. 25 at Old Cabell Hall.


Feb. 2 (8 p.m.)
Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD
Joshua Bell, violin
Sam Haywood, piano
Brahms: Sonata No. 2 in A major, Op. 100
Schubert: Fantasy in C major, D. 934
Grieg: Sonata No. 2 in G major, Op. 13
$55-$115
(202) 785-9727 (Washington Performing Arts Society)
http://www.wpas.org/


Feb. 3 (8 p.m.)
Feb. 4 (8 p.m.)
Feb. 6 (2 p.m.)
Forum at Observatory Hill, University of Virginia, Charlottesville
Opera Viva
Sarah Kennedy conducting
Gluck: "Orfeo ed Euridice"
Melanie Ashkar (Orfeo)
Leah Manning (Euridice)
Brianna Meese (Amore)
Lauren Hauser, Rajni Rao & Kayla Winslow (the Furies)
Maria Buser, Sarah Cain, Kate Gadzinski, Priscilla Goh, Mahati Gollamudi, Olivia Holloway & Lisa Newill-Smith (ensemble)
Martin Kane, stage director
Haley Anderson, choreographer
in English
$10, at door
(434) 832-9038
http://artsandsciences.virginia.edu/music/concertsevents/index.html

Feb. 3 (7 p.m.)
Feb. 4 (8 p.m.)
Feb. 5 (8 p.m.)
Kennedy Center Concert Hall, Washington
National Symphony Orchestra Pops
Michael Krajewski conducting
Candice Nicole, Whitney Kaufman, Aaron Philips & Andrew Johnson, vocalists
"Disney in Concert," selections from "The Lion King," "Beauty and the Beast," "Mary Poppins," others $20-$85
(800) 444-1324
http://www.kennedy-center.org/

Feb. 4 (8 p.m.)
Merchant Hall, Hylton Arts Center, George Mason University, Manassas
Opera Lafayette
Ryan Brown conducting
André Grétry: "Le Magnifique" (concert version)
Emiliano Gonzalez Torro (Le Magnifique)
Elizabeth Calleo (Clémentine)
Jeffrey Thompson (Aldobrandin)
Karim Sulayman (Fabio)
Marguerite Krull (Alix)
Doug Williams (Laurence)
Randall Scarlata (Horace)
Catherine Turocy, stage director
in French, English narration & captions
$15-$25
(703) 993-2468
http://www.hyltoncenter.org/

Feb. 4 (8 p.m.)
Coolidge Auditorium, Library of Congress, First and Independence streets SE, Washington
Salzburg Hyperion Ensemble
Richard Strauss: Sextet from "Capriccio"
Schoenberg: "Transfigured Night"
Brahms: Sextet No. 2 in G major, Op. 36
Free; tickets required
(703) 573-7328 (Ticketmaster)
www.loc.gov/rr/perform/concert/1011-schedule.html

Feb. 5 (8 p.m.)
Feb. 6 (3 p.m.)
Carpenter Theatre, Richmond CenterStage, Sixth and Grace streets
Richmond Symphony
Victor Yampolsky conducting
Weber: “Euryanthe" Overture
Schumann: Symphony No. 1 ("Spring")
Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1
Awadagin Pratt, piano
$17-$72
(800) 982-2787 (Ticketmaster)
http://www.richmondsymphony.com/

Feb. 5 (8 p.m.)
Feb. 9 (7:30 p.m.)
Feb. 11 (8 p.m.)
Feb. 13 (2:30 p.m.)
Harrison Opera House, 160 Virginia Beach Boulevard, Norfolk
Virginia Opera
Joseph Rescigno conducting
Wagner: "The Valkyrie" ("Die Walküre")
Erik Nelson Werner (Siegmund)
Melissa Citro (Sieglinde)
Kelly Cae Hogan (Brünnhilde)
James Johnson (Wotan)
Nina Lorcini (Erda)
Todd Robinson (Hunding)
Michelle Owens (Helmwige)
Elizabeth Hogue (Gerhilde)
Joyce Lundy (Ortlinde)
Nicole Jenkins (Siegrune)
Dianne Barton (Rossweise)
Heather Sreves (Grimgerde)
Sarah Williams (Schwertleite)
Lillian Groag, stage director
in German, English captions
$25-$114
(866) 673-7282
http://www.vaopera.org/

Feb. 5 (7:30 p.m.)
Terrace Theater, Kennedy Center, Washington
Opera Lafayette
Ryan Brown conducting
André Grétry: "Le Magnifique" (concert version)
Emiliano Gonzalez Torro (Le Magnifique)
Elizabeth Calleo (Clémentine)
Jeffrey Thompson (Aldobrandin)
Karim Sulayman (Fabio)
Marguerite Krull (Alix)
Doug Williams (Laurence)
Randall Scarlata (Horace)
Catherine Turocy, stage director
in French, English narration & captions
$60 (waiting list)
(800) 444-1324
http://www.kennedy-center.org/

Feb. 6 (3 p.m.)
Camp Concert Hall, Modlin Arts Center, University of Richmond
Richard Becker, piano
program TBA
Free
(804) 289-8980
http://www.modlin.richmond.edu/

Feb. 6 (2 p.m.)
Frying Pan Farm Park, 2709 W. Ox Road, Herndon
Virginia Virtuosi
"Animal Rescue: a Musical Adventure," works by Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, Vivaldi, Rimsky-Korsakov, others
Free
(703) 437-9101
http://www.virginiavirtuosi.com/

Feb. 8 (7 p.m.)
Vlahcevic Concert Hall, Singleton Arts Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, Park Avenue at Harrison Street, Richmond
Patrick Smith, French horn

Dmitri Shteinberg, piano
Charles West, clarinet
Peter Martin, percussion
Nicholas Kenney, Roger Novak, Amy Roberts & Kristin Smith, French horns
works by Alex Wilder, Kerry Turner, Randall Faust, others
$5
(804) 828-6776
http://www.vcumusic.org/

Feb. 9 (8 p.m.)
Merchant Hall, Hylton Arts Center, George Mason University, Manassas
Opole – Philharmonic of Poland
Boguslaw Dawidow conducting
Liszt: "Mazeppa"
Liszt: Piano Concerto No. 1
Evgeni Mikhailov, piano
Brahms: Symphony No. 4
$32-$48
(703) 993-2468
http://www.hyltoncenter.org/

Feb. 10 (7 p.m.)
Feb. 11 (8 p.m.)
Feb. 12 (8 p.m.)
Kennedy Center Concert Hall, Washington
National Symphony Orchestra
Gianandrea Noseda conducting
Smetana: "The Kiss" Overture
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 3
Radu Lupu, piano
Tchaikovsky: "Manfred" Symphony
$20-$85
(800) 444-1324
http://www.kennedy-center.org/

Feb. 10 (8 p.m.)
Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Juanjo Mena conducting
Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 2
Yuja Wang, piano
Bruckner: Symphony No. 6
$28-$88
(877) 276-1444 (Baltimore Symphony box office)
http://www.strathmore.org/

Feb. 11 (8 p.m.)
Ferguson Arts Center, Christopher Newport University
Opole – Philharmonic of Poland
Boguslaw Dawidow conducting
Johann Strauss II: "Emperor Waltzes"
Johann Strauss II: "Carnival Messages"
Johann Strauss II: Adele’s aria from "Die Fledermaus"
Iwona Sobotka, soprano
Mozart: Queen of the Night’s aria from "The Magic Flute"
Izabela Matula, soprano
other works TBA
$42-$72
(800) 745-3000
http://www.fergusoncenter.cnu.edu/

Feb. 11 (8 p.m.)
The Barns at Wolf Trap, Trap Road, Vienna
Rebel Baroque
works by Telemann, Corelli, Handel, others
$35
(888) 945-2468 (Tickets.com)
http://www.wolftrap.org/

Feb. 11 (8 p.m.)
Coolidge Auditorium, Library of Congress, First and Independence streets SE, Washington
Utrecht String Quartet
Auerbach: Quartet No. 1
Schubert: Quartet in B flat major, D. 112
Meijering: "Mein junges Leben hat (k)ein End" (after Sweelinck)
Tchaikovsky: Quartet No. 2 in F major, Op. 22
Free; tickets required
(703) 573-7328 (Ticketmaster)
www.loc.gov/rr/perform/concert/1011-schedule.html

Feb. 12 (2 p.m.)
Gellman Room, Richmond Public Library, First and Franklin streets
Sonia Vlahcevic, piano
lecture-recital on Ligeti’s "Musica Ricercata"
Free
(804) 646-7223
http://www.richmondpubliclibrary.org/

Feb. 12 (8 p.m.)
Vlahcevic Concert Hall, Singleton Arts Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, Park Avenue at Harrison Street, Richmond
Rennolds Chamber Concerts:
Borromeo String Quartet
Bach-Kitchen: Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor

Lera Auerbach: String Quartet No. 4 ("Findings")
Beethoven: Quartet in E flat major, Op. 127
$32
(804) 828-6776
http://www.vcumusic.org/

Feb. 12 (8 p.m.)
Old Cabell Hall, University of Virginia, Charlottesville
Feb. 13 (3:30 p.m.)
Monticello High School, 1400 Independence Way, Charlottesville
Charlottesville & University Symphony Orchestra
Kate Tamarkin conducting
Berlioz: "Roman Carnival" Overture
Respighi: "The Pines of Rome"
Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 2
Dmitri Shteinberg, piano
$20-$35
(434) 924-3376
http://www.cvillesymphony.org/

Feb. 12 (8 p.m.)
Center for the Arts, George Mason University, Fairfax
Opole – Philharmonic of Poland
Boguslaw Dawidow conducting
Mozart: "The Magic Flute" Overture
Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 1
Evgeni Mikhailov, piano
Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 ("Eroica")
$25-$50
(888) 945-2468 (Tickets.com)
http://www.cfa.gmu.edu/

Feb. 12 (8 p.m.)
Feb. 13 (3 p.m.)
Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD
National Philharmonic
Piotr Gajewski conducting
Mozart: Symphony No. 20 in D major
Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 26 ("Coronation")
Christopher Taylor, piano
Mozart: "Coronation" Mass
Danielle Talamantes, soprano
Linda Maguire, mezzo-soprano
Robert Baker, tenor
Christòpheren Nomura, baritone
National Philharmonic Chorus
$32-$79
(301) 581-5100
http://www.strathmore.org/

Feb. 13 (3 p.m.)
Vlahcevic Concert Hall, Singleton Arts Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, Park Avenue at Harrison Street, Richmond
Allyson Keyser, trumpet
other artists TBA
program TBA
Free
(804) 828-6776
http://www.vcumusic.org/

Feb. 13 (4 p.m.)

Bon Air Presbyterian Church, 9201 W. Huguenot Road, Richmond
Musicians and friends of Bon Air Presbyterian Church
"The Artists Recital," vocal and instrumental works TBA
Donation requested
(804) 272-7514

Feb. 13 (3 p.m.)
Feb. 14 (8 p.m.)
Shaftman Performance Hall, Jefferson Center, 540 Luck Ave., Roanoke
Roanoke Symphony
David Stewart Wiley conducting
Bach: "Air on a G String"
Mozart: Romanza from "Eine kleine Nachtmusik"
Astor Piazzolla: "The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires"
Akemi Takayama, violin
Arvo Pärt: "Fratres"
Grieg: "Holberg Suite"
$21-$49
(540) 343-9127
http://www.rso.com/

Feb. 14 (7:30 p.m.)
Terrace Theater, Kennedy Center, Washington
Charlie Albright & Anne-Marie McDermott, pianos
Janáček: Sonata No. 1 ("From the Street")
Menotti: "Ricercare and Toccata on a Theme from ‘The Old Maid and the Thief' "
Mozart: Sonata in D major, K. 375a, for two pianos
Rogerson: work TBA (premiere)
Schumann: "Carnaval"
$35
(800) 444-1324
http://www.kennedy-center.org/

Feb. 15 (8 p.m.)
Williamsburg Library Theatre, 515 Scotland St.
Chamber Music Society of Williamsburg:
Nobilis Piano Trio
program TBA
$15 (waiting list)
(757) 258-4814
http://www.chambermusicwilliamsburg.org/

Feb. 15 (8 p.m.)
Old Cabell Hall, University of Virginia, Charlottesville
Tuesday Evening Concerts:
Orion String Quartet
Windscape wind quintet
Bach: "The Art of the Fugue" (Samuel Baron arr.)
$28-$30
(434) 924-3376
http://www.tecs.org/

Feb. 15 (7:30 p.m.)
Terrace Theater, Kennedy Center, Washington
Emerson String Quartet
Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio
Beethoven: Variations in E flat major, Op. 44, for piano trio
Mendelssohn: Andante and Scherzo, Op. 81, Nos. 1-2, for string quartet
Brahms: Piano Quartet No. 3 in C minor, Op. 60
Schoenberg: "Transfigured Night" (string sextet version)
$38
(800) 444-1324
http://www.kennedy-center.org/

Feb. 15 (8 p.m.)
Kennedy Center Concert Hall, Washington
Joyce DiDonato, mezzo-soprano
David Zobel, piano
program TBA
$25-$65
(202) 785-9727 (Washington Performing Arts Society)
http://www.wpas.org/

Feb. 15 (7:30 p.m.)
Mansion at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD
Alisa Weilerstein, cello
Gabriel Kahane, piano & voice
Bach: Suite No. 3 in C major for solo cello
Bach: Suite No. 5 in C minor for solo cello
Kahane: songs
$28
(301) 581-5100
http://www.strathmore.org/

Feb. 16 (7:30 p.m.)
Terrace Theater, Kennedy Center, Washington
Orion String Quartet
Windscape wind quintet
Bach: "The Art of the Fugue" (Samuel Baron arr.)
$38
(800) 444-1324
http://www.kennedy-center.org/

Feb. 17 (8 p.m.)
Old Cabell Hall, University of Virginia, Charlottesville
Ru-Pei Yeh, cello
Helen Huang, piano
Beethoven: Sonata in G minor, Op. 5, No. 2
Brahms: Sonata in F major, Op. 99
Elliott Carter: Sonata for cello and piano
Free
(434) 924-3376
http://artsandsciences.virginia.edu/music/concertsevents/index.html

Feb. 17 (7:30 p.m.)
Terrace Thrater, Kennedy Center, Washington
Juilliard String Quartet
Afiara String Quartet
Schubert: Quartet in G minor, D. 173
Bartók: Quartet No. 3
Mendelssohn: Octet
$38
(800) 444-1324
http://www.kennedy-center.org/

Feb. 18 (7:30 p.m.)
Camp Concert Hall, Modlin Arts Center, University of Richmond
Amanda Pabyan, soprano
pianist TBA
works by Haydn, Schubert, Lee Hoiby, others
$32
(804) 289-8980
http://www.modlin.richmond.edu/

Feb. 18 (6 p.m.)
Eunoia, 1500 Jefferson Park Ave., Charlottesville
Bang on a Can All-Stars
marathon concert, program TBA
Free
(434) 924-3376
http://uvaartsboard.org/

Feb. 18 (8 p.m.)
Feb. 20 (2 p.m.)
Center for the Arts, George Mason University, Fairfax
Virginia Opera
Joseph Rescigno conducting
Wagner: "The Valkyrie" ("Die Walküre")
Erik Nelson Werner (Siegmund)
Melissa Citro (Sieglinde)
Kelly Cae Hogan (Brünnhilde)
James Johnson (Wotan)
Nina Lorcini (Erda)
Todd Robinson (Hunding)
Michelle Owens (Helmwige)
Elizabeth Hogue (Gerhilde)
Joyce Lundy (Ortlinde)
Nicole Jenkins (Siegrune)
Dianne Barton (Rossweise)
Heather Sreves (Grimgerde)
Sarah Williams (Schwertleite)
Lillian Groag, stage director
in German, English captions
$44-$98
(888) 945-2468 (Tickets.com)
http://www.vaopera.org/

Feb. 19 (11 a.m.)
Carpenter Theatre, Richmond CenterStage, Sixth and Grace streets
Richmond Symphony LolliPops
Erin R. Freeman conducting
Michael Boudewyns, actor
"Green Eggs and Ham"
$17
(800) 982-2787 (Ticketmaster)
http://www.richmondsymphony.com/

Feb. 19 (8 p.m.)
Jefferson Theater, 110 E. Main St., Charlottesville
Bang on a Can All-Stars
program TBA
ticket price TBA
pre-performance talk at 7:15 p.m.
(434) 924-3376
http://uvaartsboard.org/

Feb. 19 (8 p.m.)
Merchant Hall, Hylton Arts Center, George Mason University, Manassas
Virginia Symphony Pops
Benjamin Rous conducting
"Virginia Symphony Goes to the Movies," works TBA
$25-$45
(703) 993-2468
http://www.hyltoncenter.org/

Feb. 19 (2 p.m.)
Terrace Theater, Kennedy Center, Washington
Simon Trpceski, piano
works by Haydn, Chopin, Prokofiev, Shahov
$40
(202) 785-9727 (Washington Performing Arts Society)
http://www.wpas.org/

Feb. 19 (8 p.m.)
Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Hans Graf conducting
Rossini: "William Tell" Overture
Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 2
Ingrid Fliter, piano
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 2 ("Little Russian")
$28-$88
(877) 276-1444 (Baltimore Symphony box office)
http://www.strathmore.org/

Feb. 20 (4 p.m.)
Bon Air Presbyterian Church, 9201 W. Huguenot Road, Richmond
Richmond Festival of Music:
James Wilson, cello
Carsten Schmidt, piano
Beethoven: Sonata in C major, Op. 102, No. 1
Beethoven: Sonata in D major, Op. 102, No. 2
Allan Blank: Duo for cello and piano
George Rochberg: "Ricordanza"
$25
(804) 519-2098 (Chamber Music Society of Central Virginia)
http://www.cmscva.org/

Feb. 22 (8 p.m.)
Vlahcevic Concert Hall, Singleton Arts Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, Park Avenue at Harrison Street, Richmond
Marjorie Bagley, violin
pianist TBA
program TBA
$5
(804) 828-6776
http://www.vcumusic.org/

Feb. 22 (8 p.m.)
Coolidge Auditorium, Library of Congress, First and Independence streets SE, Washington
Quatuor Debussy
Katherine Chi, piano
Philip Glass: Quartet No. 2 ("Company")
Puccini: "Crisantemi"
Milhaud: Quartet No. 9, Op. 140
Franck: Piano Quintet
Free; tickets required
(703) 573-7328 (Ticketmaster)
www.loc.gov/rr/perform/concert/1011-schedule.html

Feb. 23 (7 p.m.)
Vlahcevic Concert Hall, Singleton Arts Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, Park Avenue at Harrison Street, Richmond
VCU Symphonic Wind Ensemble
Terry Austin directing
program TBA
$5
(804) 828-6776
http://www.vcumusic.org/

Feb. 23 (7 p.m.)

First English Lutheran Church, Stuart Circle (Monument Avenue at Lombardy Street), Richmond
Delaware State University Concert Choir
Curtis Everett Powell directing
program TBA
Free
(804) 355-9185
http://www.felcrichmond.org/

Feb. 23 (7:30 p.m.)
Turner Hall Chapel, St. Catherine’s School, Grove Avenue at Three Chopt Road, Richmond
Oberon Quartet
Ralph Skiano, clarinet
John Corigliano: "Snapshot"
Astor Piazzolla: "Tango Ballet"
Brahms: Clarinet Quintet
Free
(804) 288-2804
http://www.stcatherines.org/

Feb. 23 (7:30 p.m.)
Camp Concert Hall, Modlin Arts Center, University of Richmond
Thomas Mastroanni, piano
lecture-recital on Liszt’s "Années de Pelerinage" ("Years of Pilgrimmage")
Free
(804) 289-8980
http://www.modlin.richmond.edu/

Feb. 24 (8 p.m.)
Old Cabell Hall, University of Virginia, Charlottesville
Verge Ensemble
new-music program TBA
Free
(434) 924-3376
http://artsandsciences.virginia.edu/music/concertsevents/index.html

Feb. 24 (8 p.m.)
Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Marin Alsop conducting
Mozart: "The Magic Flute" (semi-staged version)
singers from Washington National Opera's Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program
Baltimore Choral Arts Society
Tom Hall directing
Michael Ehrman, stage director
in German
$28-$88
(877) 276-1444 (Baltimore Symphony box office)
http://www.strathmore.org/

Feb. 25 (8 p.m.)
Feb. 27 (2:30 p.m.)
Carpenter Theatre, Richmond CenterStage, Sixth and Grace streets
Virginia Opera
Joseph Rescigno conducting
Wagner: "The Valkyrie" ("Die Walküre")
Erik Nelson Werner (Siegmund)
Melissa Citro (Sieglinde)
Kelly Cae Hogan (Brünnhilde)
James Johnson (Wotan)
Nina Lorcini (Erda)
Todd Robinson (Hunding)
Michelle Owens (Helmwige)
Elizabeth Hogue (Gerhilde)
Joyce Lundy (Ortlinde)
Nicole Jenkins (Siegrune)
Dianne Barton (Rossweise)
Heather Sreves (Grimgerde)
Sarah Williams (Schwertleite)
Lillian Groag, stage director
in German, English captions
$29-$99
(866) 673-7282
http://www.vaopera.org/

Feb. 25 (8 p.m.)
Bon Air Baptist Church, Forest Hill Avenue at Buford Road, Richmond
Feb. 27 (3 p.m.)
Blackwell Auditorium, Randolph-Macon College, 205 Henry St., Ashland
Richmond Symphony
Erin R. Freeman conducting
Elgar: Introduction and Allegro for string quartet and orchestra
Schreker: Intermezzo, Op. 8
Richard Strauss: "Duett-Concertino" for clarinet, bassoon and orchestra
Jared Davis, clarinet
Martin Gordon, bassoon
Poulenc: Sinfonietta
$20
(800) 982-2787 (Ticketmaster)
http://www.richmondsymphony.com/

Feb. 25 (7 p.m.)
Old Cabell Hall, University of Virginia, Charlottesville
Yale Whiffenpoofs
The Virginia Belles
The Virginia Gentlemen
program TBA
ticket prices TBA
(434) 924-3376
http://artsandsciences.virginia.edu/music/concertsevents/index.html

Feb. 26 (2 p.m.)
Gellman Room, Richmond Public Library, First and Franklin streets
Williamsburg Chamber Players
program TBA
Free
(804) 646-7223
http://www.richmondpubliclibrary.org/

Feb. 26 (3 p.m.)
Camp Concert Hall, Modlin Arts Center, University of Richmond
Neumann Lecture on Music:
Lei Liang, composer
Shanghai Quartet
Wu Man, pipa
"The Role of Music in a Global Society"
Free; tickets required
(804) 289-8980
http://www.modlin.richmond.edu/

Feb. 26 (7:30 p.m.)

First Presbyterian Church, 100 E. Frederick St., Staunton
Waynesboro Symphony Orchestra
Peter Wilson conducting
Chadwick: Elegy
Roskott: Trumpet Concerto
Paul Neebe, trumpet
Hanson: Symphony No. 2 ("Romantic")
Free
(540) 942-3828
www.waynesborosymphonyorchestra.org/

Feb. 26 (7 p.m.)
Kennedy Center Opera House, Washington
Washington National Opera
Plácido Domingo/Philippe Auguin conducting
Puccini: "Madame Butterfly"
Ana María Martinez/Catherine Naglestad (Cio-Cio San)
Alexey Dolgov/Thiago Arancam (Pinkerton)
Michael Chioldi/Hyung Yun (Sharpless)
Margaret Thompson/Ning Liang (Suzuki)
Ron Daniels, stage director
in Italian, English captions
$55-$300
(800) 876-7372
http://www.dc-opera.org/

Feb. 26 (8 p.m.)
Coolidge Auditorium, Library of Congress, First and Independence streets SE. Washington
Paolo Pandolfo, viola da gamba
Thomas Boysen, therobo & baroque guitar
works by Sainte-Colombe, Marais
Free; tickets required
(703) 573-7328 (Ticketmaster)
www.loc.gov/rr/perform/concert/1011-schedule.html

Feb. 27 (4 p.m.)
Vlahcevic Concert Hall, Singleton Arts Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, Park Avenue at Harrison Street, Richmond
Charles West, clarinet
other artists TBA
program TBA
$5
(804) 828-6776
http://www.vcumusic.org/

Feb. 27 (7:30 p.m.)
Camp Concert Hall, Modlin Arts Center, University of Richmond
Shanghai Quartet
Wu Man, pipa
Lei Liang: Quintet for pipa and string quartet
other works TBA
$34
(804) 289-8980
http://www.modlin.richmond.edu/

Feb. 27 (2:30 p.m.)
American Theatre, 125 E. Mellen St., Hampton
Quartetto Gelato
program TBA
$25-$30
(757) 722-2787
http://www.hamptonarts.net/

Feb. 27 (3:30 p.m.)
Old Cabell Hall, University of Virginia, Charlottesville
Rivanna String Quartet
Debussy: Quartet in G minor
Britten: Quartet No. 2 in A major, Op. 36
Matthew Burtner: "Somata/Asomata"
$20
(434) 924-3376
http://artsandsciences.virginia.edu/music/concertsevents/index.html

Feb. 27 (4 p.m.)
Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD
Hilary Hahn, violin
Valentina Lisitsa, piano
Tartini-Kreisler: "Variations on a Theme by Corelli"
Beethoven: Sonata No. 5 in F major ("Spring")
Ives: Sonata No. 4
Bach: Sonata No. 1, BWV 1001
Anthiel: Sonata No. 1
$35-$85
(202) 785-9727 (Washington Performing Arts Society)
http://www.wpas.org/