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Classical Music and Opera Listings for G Roald Smeets

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The old Metropolitan Opera House in New York C...

The old Metropolitan Opera House in New York City, 1905 Deutsch: Das „alte“ Metropolitan Opera House in New York im Jahr 1905 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

★ ‘Così Fan Tutte’ (Saturday) In its new manifestation as a scaled-down roving company, the New York City Opera has its first must-see production in this new staging from the director Christopher Alden. This is a libidinous, darkly contemporary and bitterly comic take on Mozart’s tale of two young couples and what frustrated sexual yearning can drive people to do. Mr. Alden goes too far with some baffling and heavy-handed imagery. Still, the production is oddly and eerily powerful, and the young, talented and courageous cast embraces the concept. Christian Curnyn conducts a small orchestra in this intimate 600-seat theater. At 7:30 p.m., Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College, 899 10th Avenue, at 59th Street, Clinton, (212) 870-5600, nycopera.com; $185 and $250 remaining. (Anthony Tommasini)

★ ‘L’Elisir d’Amore’ (Saturday and Tuesday) John Copley’s tired 1991 production of Donizetti’s comedy is enlivened by a terrific cast of singers, including Juan Diego Flórez as Nemorino, Diana Damrau as Adina, Mariusz Kwiecien as Belcore and Alessandro Corbelli as Dulcamara. Donato Renzetti, back at the Met for the first time in more than 20 years, conducts an ideally paced interpretation. At 8:30 p.m. on Saturday and 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, (212) 362-6000, metoperafamily.org; $25 to $460. (Vivien Schweitzer)

‘Macbeth’ (Saturday and Thursday) Adrian Noble’s dark, persuasive 2007 staging of Verdi’s version of Shakespeare’s tragedy returns to the Metropolitan Opera, with Gianandrea Noseda conducting a briskly paced and vibrant reading of the imaginative score. Thomas Hampson is sometimes bland in the title role. Nadja Michael is dramatically convincing although her messy singing is often off pitch and shrill. The rest of the cast, including Günther Groissböck and Dimitri Pittas, is strong. The chorus does a star turn as the witches. George Gagnidze sings the title role on Thursday. At 1 p.m. on Saturday and 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, (212) 362-6000, metoperafamily.org; $25 to $470. (Schweitzer)

★ ‘Manon’ (Monday) When Massenet’s masterpiece was performed at the Royal Opera House in London in 2010, the spectacular soprano Anna Netrebko was acclaimed in the title role, a sensuous, ambitious young woman who goes from innocence to its opposite. She performs it at the Met for the first time in the same Laurent Pelly production, new to the Met, now joined by the tenor Piotr Beczala as des Grieux, her lover, and the baritone Paulo Szot as her cousin, Lescaut. Mr. Pelly updates the action from the 18th century to the Belle Époque 1880s, when the opera was composed; Fabio Luisi conducts. At 7:30 p.m., Metropolitan Opera, Lincoln Center, (212) 362-6000, metoperafamily.org; $55 to $650. (Zachary Woolfe)

Classical Music

★ Emanuele Arciuli (Sunday) This virtuoso Italian pianist offers a formidable program that balances Beethoven’s rich Sonata No. 31 (Op. 110) with Marcello Panni’s “Farben”; Giacinto Scelsi’s “Ka,” Suite No. 10; and Alban Berg’s formidable Sonata (Op. 1). At 6 p.m., the Italian Academy at Columbia University, 1161 Amsterdam Avenue, between 116th and 118th Streets, Morningside Heights, (212) 854-1623, http://www.italianacademy.columbia.edu; free. (Allan Kozinn)

Bargemusic (Saturday, Sunday and Thursday) This floating concert hall’s concerts on Saturday and Sunday are devoted to chamber works by Haydn, Mendelssohn and Arensky, along with improvisations on Bach themes, by the violinist Mark Peskanov, the pianist Olga Vinokur, the cellist Dave Eggar and the percussionist Chuck Palmer. And on Thursday the pianist David Kalhous plays Morton Feldman’s “For Bunita Marcus.” Saturday and Thursday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m., Bargemusic, Fulton Ferry Landing, next to the Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn, (718) 624-2083, bargemusic.org; $35, $30 for 65+, or $15 for students. (Kozinn)

Yefim Bronfman (Friday) This powerhouse pianist, admired for his virtuoso technique and probing musicianship, offers a program of Haydn’s Sonata in C (Hob. XVI:50); Brahms’s Piano Sonata No. 3 in F minor; and Prokofiev’s Sonata No. 8 in B flat. At 7:30 p.m., Isaac Stern Auditorium, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $17 to $99. (Schweitzer)

★ ‘Brooklyn Village’ (Saturday and Sunday) The climax of a season of rejuvenation and bold invention for the Brooklyn Philharmonic finds the ensemble collaborating with the Brooklyn Youth Chorus and Roulette in a multimedia meditation on Brooklyn’s neighborly history. The program features new pieces by David T. Little, Matthew Mehlan and Sarah Kirkland Snider, framed with older pieces, narration and video. At 7:30 p.m., Roulette, 509 Atlantic Avenue, near Third Avenue, Boerum Hill, Brooklyn, (917) 267-0363, roulette.org; $25 to $35, or $20 for students and 65+. (Steve Smith)

★ Czech Liederabend (Thursday) An important behind-the-scenes figure in the rise of Czech opera in America, Yveta Synek Graff has served as an artistic consultant, translator and language coach for companies across the country. She recently donated her collection of scores and archival documents to the Juilliard School, which is returning the great favor with an evening of songs by Bendl, Dvorak, Haas, Janacek, Kapralova, Martinu and Smetana, performed by Juilliard singers and pianists. At 6 p.m., Juilliard School, Lincoln Center, (212) 769-7406, juilliard.edu; free. (Woolfe)

★ Ecstatic Music Festival (Saturday and Wednesday) The final two concerts in this year’s survey of the intersections between “popular” and “classical” music — whatever those terms mean — are highlights. On Saturday John Darnielle, the piercing lyricist of the Mountain Goats, is joined by the vocal quartet Anonymous 4 for songs from his new work, “Transcendental Youth,” set in a lonely town north of Seattle. Wednesday brings the premieres of works by Du Yun, Samson Young, Derek Bermel and Gaybird Leung, all of which combine Chinese and Western instruments. At 7:30, Merkin Concert Hall, 129 West 67th Street, Manhattan, (212) 501-3330, kaufman-center.org; sold out on Saturday, $25 on Wednesday. (Woolfe)

★ Elias String Quartet (Friday and Sunday) The Elias String Quartet, an acclaimed ensemble from Britain, takes its name from Mendelssohn’s oratorio “Elijah.” On a Weill Recital Hall program on Friday the Elias plays a work Mendelssohn wrote when just 18: Quartet in A minor, “Ist Es Wahr?” (“Is It True?”). There are also quartets by Mozart and Janacek. Then on Sunday afternoon, the Elias will repeat the Janacek piece, along with works by Purcell, Suk and Mendelssohn, as part of the affordable Schneider Concerts series at the New School. Friday at 7:30 p.m., Weill Recital Hall, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $54. Sunday at 3 p.m., Tishman Auditorium, Mannes College the New School for Music, 66 West 12th Street, Greenwich Village, (212) 229-5488, newschool.edu; $17, or $15 seniors. (Tommasini)

Ensemble ACJW (Sunday) David Robertson, the music director of the St. Louis Symphony, leads this fine ensemble in Wagner’s “Siegfried Idyll,” Ligeti’s Chamber Concerto, John Adams’s “Gnarly Buttons” and Haydn’s Symphony No. 8 (“Le Soir”). At 7:30 p.m., Zankel Hall, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $38 to $50. (Kozinn)

Great Music in a Great Space (Wednesday) Kent Tritle, who began his inaugural season as director of cathedral music and organist of the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in the fall, revives the concert series Great Music in a Great Space. On Wednesday he conducts the cathedral choirs in Bach’s “Jesu Meine Freude” and Scarlatti’s “Stabat Mater.” At 7:30 p.m., Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, 1047 Amsterdam Avenue, at 112th Street, Morningside Heights, (212) 316-7490, stjohndivine.org; $20 to $30. (Schweitzer)

‘Instrumentals’ (Friday and Saturday) The American Mavericks series hits Chelsea in two wide-ranging nights of creativity. The Friday program pairs the opalescent drones of William Basinski’s “Vivian and Ondine” with Tristan Perich’s chirping, chiming one-bit electronics. On Saturday, Mary Halvorson, an inventive jazz guitarist and composer, steers a new septet, and Peter Gordon leads an ensemble in music by Arthur Russell, a protean composer who anticipated today’s vogue for flouting genres and embracing pop music. At 8 p.m., the Kitchen, 512 West 19th Street, Chelsea, (212) 255-5793, Ext. 11, thekitchen.org; $15. (Smith)

★ JACK Quartet (Sunday) As part of its invaluable Neighborhood Concert series, Carnegie Hall presents the dynamic and excellent JACK Quartet in a free program at Henry Street Settlement in the Lower East Side. The JACK players champion 20th-century repertory and contemporary music of all styles. On this enticing program they present works by Ives and Ruth Crawford Seeger and a recent work by Steven Mackey, who plays electric guitar with the quartet in his piece, “Physical Property.” At 3 p.m., Abrons Arts Center, 466 Grand Street, at Pitt Street, Lower East Side, (212) 598-0400, abronsartscenter.org and carnegiehall.org. (Tommasini)

Juilliard Orchestra (Thursday) James DePreist leads this excellent young ensemble in George Walker’s “Lyric” for Strings; Schumann’s Cello Concerto in A minor with the Juilliard cellist Jiyoung Lee as soloist; and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 4. At 8 p.m., Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 769-7406, juilliard.edu; free tickets required. (Schweitzer)

Julliard415 and Clarion Music Society (Friday) The student ensemble of the Juilliard School’s new historical-performance program joins forces with the Clarion Music Society and its artistic director, Steven Fox, for a Baroque extravaganza. Mr. Fox will conduct Bach’s Violin Concerto in A minor (BWV 1041); Handel’s “Silete Venti (Be Silent, Winds)”; Corelli’s Concerto Grosso in D (Op. 6, No. 4); and Bach’s “Magnificat.” At 8 p.m., Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 769-7406, juilliard.edu; free tickets required. (Schweitzer)

Lisa Moore (Friday) As the original pianist in the Bang on a Can All-Stars, Ms. Moore developed an outgoing performing style and a broad taste for contemporary composition, qualities that she has expanded upon since she left the group to pursue a solo career. In this Carnegie Hall Neighborhood Concert, she a kaleidoscopic selection of works that includes Philip Glass’s early “Mad Rush,” a handful of ètudes by Don Byron and music by Martin Bresnick, John Adams, Missy Mazzoli, Jerome Kitzke, Frederic Rzewski and Henry Cowell. At 8 p.m., LaGuardia Performing Arts Center, 31-10 Thomson Avenue, Long Island City, Queens, (718) 482-5151, carnegiehall.org; free, but reservations are required. (Kozinn)

New York Philharmonic (Friday, Saturday, Wednesday and Thursday) On Friday and Saturday, Christoph von Dohnanyi conducts the sensual and dark-hued Adagio, Fugue and Maenads’ Dance from Hans Werner Henze’s opera “The Bassarids,” as well as Schubert’s Symphony No. 9, “Great.” On Wednesday, Mr. Dohnanyi conducts Schnittke’s “(K)ein Sommernachtstraum” and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6, “Pathétique.” On Thursday he leads the Schnittke and Tchaikovsky, along with Dvorak’s Violin Concerto, with the excellent Frank Peter Zimmermann as soloist. At 2 p.m. on Friday, 8 p.m. on Saturday, 6:45 p.m. on Wednesday and 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 875-5656, nyphil.org; $31 to $121. (Schweitzer)

★ Orpheus Chamber Orchestra (Saturday) Chris Thile, a mandolin virtuoso known for his work in the exhilarating progressive-bluegrass band Punch Brothers, is featured as the soloist in his inventive, appealing Mandolin Concerto. The program also includes the premiere of Clint Needham’s “When We Forget” and a suite from Leonard Bernstein’s “Trouble in Tahiti,” with Copland’s “Appalachian Spring” as a nightcap. At 7 p.m., Isaac Stern Auditorium, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $14.50 to $110. (Smith)

★ Marc Peloquin and David Del Tredici (Friday) The pianist Marc Peloquin has become of the most eloquent and devoted interpreters of David Del Tredici’s music in recent years, and to celebrate the composer’s 75th birthday, Mr. Peloquin and Mr. Del Tredici are giving a performance at Bargemusic that includes a handful of Mr. Del Tredici’s recent works, including “Mandango,” “Carioca Boy” and the premiere of “Ray’s Birthday Suit.” The program also includes music by Bizet and Rachmaninoff. At 8 p.m., Bargemusic, Fulton Ferry Landing, next to the Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn, (718) 624-2083, bargemusic.org; $35, $30 for 65+, or $15 for students. (Kozinn)

★ Murray Perahia (Sunday) The pianist Murray Perahia may not play particularly adventurous programs. But he plays the music of the masters exquisitely, and his artistry has seemed at its peak in recent seasons. As part of Lincoln Center’s Great Performers series, he plays a recital with works by Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Schubert and an interesting Chopin group. At 3 p.m., Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 721-6500; $35 to $77. (Tommasini)

★ San Francisco Symphony (Tuesday through Thursday) Michael Tilson Thomas and the ensemble at the center of the American Mavericks series open a four-evening residency on Tuesday, offering Cage’s “Song Books” voiced by Joan La Barbara, Meredith Monk and Jessye Norman, and the New York premiere of “Absolute Jest” by John Adams. Wednesday’s program features Ives’s “Concord” Sonata as orchestrated by Henry Brant, along with pieces by Carl Ruggles and Morton Feldman; a chamber program on Thursday includes music by Harry Partch, David Del Tredici, Lou Harrison and Mason Bates. (The series concludes on March 30.) Tuesday and Wednesday at 8 p.m., Isaac Stern Auditorium, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $29.50 to $75. Thursday at 8:30 p.m., Zankel Hall, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $50. (Smith)

★ Michael Schade and Luca Pisaroni (Sunday) Mr. Schade, a distinguished tenor, and the rising, rich-voiced bass-baritone Mr. Pisaroni join the pianist Justus Zeyen in an impeccably proper program of duets by Mendelssohn and songs by Mozart, Schubert, Schumann and Brahms. At 5 p.m., Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 721-6500, lincolncenter.org; $45 to $77. (Woolfe)

★ So Percussion (Monday) One of the most colorful ensembles around, and lately one of the engines that drives New York’s new music world, So Percussion and guest artists (including Matmos, the electronica group) pay tribute to John Cage and his legacy in a program called “We Are All Going in Different Directions.” Some of Cage’s most vivid percussion works, including the Third Construction and the Quartet for Percussion from “She Is Asleep,” are included, as are works by Dan Deacon, Cenk Ergun, Jason Treuting and So Percussion itself. At 7:30 p.m., Zankel Hall, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $39. (Kozinn)

★ Les Violons du Roy (Sunday) Bernard Labadie leads this brilliant ensemble and La Chapelle de Québec in Bach’s dark masterpiece, the “St. John Passion” (BWV 245). The roster of soloists, an intriguing mix of established and up-and-coming singers, includes the soprano Karina Gauvin, the countertenor Damien Guillon, the tenors Ian Bostridge and Nicholas Phan and the bass-baritones Neal Davies and Hanno Müller-Brachmann. At 2 p.m., Isaac Stern Auditorium, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $15.50 to $93. (Woolfe)

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G Roald Smeets Classical Music/Opera Listings

Posted by groaldsmeets on
Billy Sunday and wife (LOC)

Billy Sunday and wife (LOC) (Photo credit: The Library of Congress)

★ ‘L’Elisir d’Amore’ (Saturday) John Copley’s tired 1991 production of Donizetti’s comedy is enlivened by a terrific cast of singers, including Juan Diego Flórez as Nemorino, Diana Damrau as Adina, Mariusz Kwiecien as Belcore and Alessandro Corbelli as Dulcamara. Donato Renzetti, back at the Met for the first time in more than 20 years, conducts an ideally paced interpretation. At 1 p.m., Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, (212) 362-6000, metoperafamily.org; $30 to $495. (Vivien Schweitzer)

‘Macbeth’ (Monday and Thursday) Adrian Noble’s dark, persuasive 2007 staging of Verdi’s version of Shakespeare’s tragedy returns to the Metropolitan Opera, with Gianandrea Noseda conducting a briskly paced and vibrant reading of the imaginative score. Thomas Hampson is sometimes bland in the title role. Nadja Michael is dramatically convincing although her messy singing is often off pitch and shrill. The rest of the cast, including Günther Groissböck and Dimitri Pittas, is strong. The chorus does a star turn as the witches. At 7:30 p.m. on Monday and 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, (212) 362-6000, metoperafamily.org; $25 to $430. (Schweitzer)

★ ‘Manon’ (Saturday and Tuesday) The great and glamorous soprano Anna Netrebko sings the title role in the Met’s new production of Massenet’s “Manon,” and she is the reason to see it. Her singing is not flawless, but with her plush, shimmering sound and vocal charisma, she gives an uncommonly intense and vulnerable portrayal of the young, winsome French woman with a fatal weakness for riches and pleasures. Laurent Pelly’s production combines colorful modern costumes with skewered-looking sets in an attempt to make the story seem more pertinent and gritty. But the result is at best ineffective and at time baffling. The tenor Piotr Beczala brings his ardent voice, good taste and dashing looks to the Chevalier des Grieux, who falls hard for Manon. Fabio Luisi conducts a stylish, lithe performance. Saturday at 8 p.m. and Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., Metropolitan Opera House, (212) 362-6000, metoperafamily.org; $112 to $490 remaining. (Anthony Tommasini)

★ ‘Das Rheingold’ (Wednesday) Before the Metropolitan Opera presents three complete cycles of Wagner’s “Ring,” in Robert Lepage’s production, the company is warming up with an extra single performance of “Dan Rheingold.” The warm-up is less for the cast and orchestra, it would seem, than for the machine: the 45-ton set consisting of 24 planks on a crossbar that rise and sink like seesaws, to become undulant rivers, trees, tunnels, jutting platforms and projection walls for videos. Until now Mr. Lepage’s heatedly debated production has only been seen in installments. Now comes the chance to see it as a complete cycle, and see if the machine works without a hitch. Bryn Terfel is Wotan; Eric Owens is Alberich; Stephanie Blythe is Fricka; Fabio Luisi conducts. At 8 p.m., Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, (212) 362-6000, metoperafamily.org. $104 to $380 remaining. (Tommasini)

Classical Music

Beyond the Machine (Friday through Sunday) The Juilliard School’s annual celebration of bleeding-edge music and technology honors John Cage, whose aesthetics and philosophy anticipated today’s interconnected, media-saturated world. The program includes Cage’s “Radio Music,” “Third Construction” and “Winter Music,” as well as a new piece by Nick Didkovsky and a dramatic setting based on a multimedia work by Teru Kuwayama, a journalist who spent nine years embedded with the Marines in Afghanistan. At 8 p.m., Rosemary and Meredith Willson Theater, Juilliard School, Lincoln Center, 60 Lincoln Center Plaza, (212) 769-7406, juilliard.edu; free, but only standby tickets are available. (Steve Smith)

Cappella Romana (Friday) In a program offered in conjunction with the Metropolitan Museum’s “Byzantium and Islam: Age of Transition” exhibition, this West Coast vocal group, directed by Alexander Lingas, presents a program of music composed in and around Jerusalem between the seventh and ninth centuries. At 7 p.m., Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium, Metropolitan Museum of Art, (212) 535-7710, metmuseum.org/tickets; $35. (Allan Kozinn)

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (Friday, Sunday and Thursday) The clarinet is in the spotlight on Friday, when David Shifrin joins the Orion String Quartet for Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet in A; Weber’s Clarinet Quintet in B flat; and the New York premiere of Marc Neikrug’s Clarinet Quintet. On Sunday the lineup features works for piano and strings by Rachmaninoff and Glazunov. On Thursday the focus shifts to new music, with music by Jorg Widmann, George Benjamin and Bruno Mantovani. At 7:30 p.m. on Friday and 5 p.m. on Sunday at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center; $27 to $65. At 7:30 p.m. on Thursday at the Kaplan Penthouse, Lincoln Center; $30. Both events at (212) 875-5788, chambermusicsociety.org. (Schweitzer)

★ Collegium Vocale Gent (Saturday) Outnumbered for a change by performances of Bach’s “St. John Passion,” this “St. Matthew Passion” — its bigger, more popular sibling — has an outing in the expert hands of the conductor Philippe Herreweghe and his exemplary Belgian ensemble; Julian Prégardien handles the role of the Evangelist, and Michael Nagy sings Christus. At 7:30 p.m., Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 721-6500, lincolncenter.org; sold out. (Smith)

Cutting Edge Concerts (Monday) This annual new-music series, hosted by the composer Victoria Bond, opens with a program filled with historical resonances. Rufus Müller, a tenor widely admired for his interpretations of Bach’s music, joins the pianist Jenny Lin in Ms. Bond’s “Leopold Bloom’s Homecoming.” And N. Lincoln Hanks, whose piano work “Monstre Sacré” receives its premiere, has extensive experience in early-music vocal groups. Also appearing is the Danjam Orchestra, a jazz ensemble. The festival continues through April 30. At 7:30 p.m., Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway, at 95th Street, (212) 864-5400, symphonyspace.org; $20, or $15 for students and 65+. (Smith)

De Profundis: The Deep End (Sunday) Some alumni and students from the Yale School of Music have come up with a great concept, not to mention a catchy title, for an unusual program, “De Profundis: The Deep End (Music for Low Instruments).” The bassoonist Frank Morelli, the trombonist Scott Hartman and the tuba player Jerome Stover are joined by cellists, a double bassist and other musicians for works by Mozart, Bruckner, Bach, Prokofiev, Jacob Druckman and more. Weill Recital Hall, Carnegie Hall. At 7:30 p.m., (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $15 to $25. (Tommasini)

★ Emerson String Quartet (Wednesday) This eminent quartet is in the middle of a three-concert series of late works by Mozart and Beethoven. Repertory does not get more standard than this, but the Emerson plays it with fresh power. The second program features Mozart’s Adagio and Fugue in C minor (K.546) and Quartet in B flat (K.589, “Prussian”) and Beethoven’s Quartet in B flat (Op. 130), along with both its monumental original ending, the Grosse Fuge (Op. 133), and the alternate finale with which the composer replaced it. At 7:30 p.m., Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 721-6500, lcgreatperformers.org; $90 remaining. (Zachary Woolfe)

★ Mahan Esfahani (Sunday) European critics have described this Iranian harpsichordist as a daring, inventive interpreter, and New Yorkers will have a chance to determine that for themselves in this debut program, which includes music by Byrd, Bach, Scarlatti and Mel Powell. At 5 p.m., Frick Collection, 1 East 70th Street, Manhattan, (212) 547-0715, frick.org. The concert is sold out, but returned tickets may be available at the box office. (Kozinn)

★ Juilliard Orchestra (Tuesday) Even on an ordinary day, this conservatory ensemble is talented, but the results should be riveting when it is led this week by the galvanizing conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen. The program — Sibelius’s “Pohjola’s Daughter” and Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony — gives Mr. Salonen and the orchestra great opportunities for stirring displays of color. At 6:30 p.m., Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 769-7406, juilliard.edu; free with tickets. (Woolfe)

Manhattan School of Music (Friday through Sunday, and Tuesday) Manhattan School of Music has several programs the coming week. On Friday through Sunday, the Opera Theater presents Schubert’s singspiel “Die Verschworenen” (“The Conspirators”), a take on the Lysistrata story, about one woman’s mission to end the Peloponnesian War. Schubert made his name with his piano works, songs, symphonies and chamber music, but his stage works did not fare so well, either during his lifetime or posthumously, so this concert at Ades Performance Space is special. On Friday, George Manahan conducts the Manhattan Philharmonia in Grondahl’s Trombone Concerto, Elgar’s lush Cello Concerto and Stravinsky’s “Petrushka” in the Borden Auditorium. On Tuesday, Kent Tritle conducts the school’s Chamber Choir in the Borden Auditorium in Menotti’s “The Unicorn, the Gorgon and the Manticore,” a work modeled on a 16th-century madrigal comedy initially intended as a ballet. Opera Theater: 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 2:30 p.m. on Sunday; Manhattan Philharmonia: 7:30 p.m. on Friday; Chamber Choir at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. All at 122nd Street and Broadway, Morningside Heights, (917) 493-4428, msmnyc.edu; $10; $5 for 65+. (Schweitzer)

★ Metropolitan Museum Artists (Saturday) This incisive chamber group, under its artistic director, Edward Arron, presents richly varied programs. This week’s concert features underplayed works by Stravinsky, Debussy, Fauré, Virgil Thomson and Germaine Tailleferre. At 7 p.m., Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium, Metropolitan Museum of Art, (212) 535-7710, metmuseum.org/tickets; $35. (Woolfe)

Musicians From Marlboro (Saturday) The touring wing of the renowned Marlboro Music School and Festival fields eager groups of young instrumentalists; the results can be lively. This concert sticks to old favorites: Haydn’s String Quartet in G (Op. 54, No. 1), the Brahms Clarinet Trio in A minor (Op. 114) and Beethoven’s String Quintet in C (Op. 29). At 8 p.m., Washington Irving High School, 40 Irving Place, Manhattan, (212) 586-4680, pscny.org; $13. (Woolfe)

New Jersey Symphony (Friday through Sunday) Under its inspiring music director, Jacques Lacombe, this orchestra can pack a great punch in its interpretations of the standard repertory. It doesn’t get more standard than Beethoven’s Third and Fifth Symphonies, which will follow the premiere of “Sinfonia No. 4 (Strands)” by the New Jersey composer George Walker. At 8 p.m. on Friday and 3 p.m. on Sunday at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, 1 Center Street, Newark, and at 8 p.m. on Saturday at the State Theater, 15 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick, (800) 255-3476, njsymphony.org; $20 to $85. (Woolfe)

★ New York Philharmonic (Friday and Saturday) It is always worthwhile to hear the master conductor Christoph von Dohnanyi, who has two more performances of a program that features the dynamic and deeply probing violinist Frank Peter Zimmermann in Dvorak’s Violin Concerto. Mr. Dohnanyi opens with a work by Schnittke and, after intermission, conducts Tchaikovsky’s great “Pathétique” Symphony. At 8 p.m., Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 875-5656, nyphil.org; $63 to $127 remaining. (Tommasini)

Lisette Oropesa and Brian Mulligan (Sunday) The invaluable series of voice recitals presented by the George London Foundation often pairs a singer of international standing with a recent winner of a foundation award. But this season’s series ends with a concert featuring two rising young artists, accompanied by pianist Ken Noda. The soprano Lisette Oropesa, who made her Metropolitan Opera debut in 2006, shares the program with the baritone Brian Mulligan, heard at the Met last year as Valentin in Gounod’s “Faust.” There will be works by Mozart, Bizet, Liszt, Wagner and Dominick Argento. At 5 p.m., Morgan Library & Museum, 225 Madison Avenue, at 36th Street, (212) 685-0008, Ext. 560, themorgan.org; $45, or $35 for members. (Tommasini)

★ Pepe Romero (Saturday) One of the eloquent guitarists of his generation, Mr. Romero offers a program that traces the guitar’s history, starting with works by the late Renaissance vihuelists Milán and Sanz, including 19th-century scores by Sor and Tárrega and 20th-century works by Rodrigo, Turina and Moreno Torroba, as well as a few Albéniz transcriptions and a piece by Celedonio Romero, Mr. Romero’s father. At 8 p.m., 92nd Street Y, at Lexington Avenue, (212) 415-5500, 92y.org; $48, or $25 under 35. (Kozinn)

★ St. Thomas Church (Friday and Tuesday) John Scott conducts the superb St. Thomas Choir of Men and Boys, with a slate of stylish soloists, in a performance of Bach’s magnificent but problematic “St. John Passion” on Friday evening. On Tuesday, Mr. Scott conducts the Sinfonia Players and a smaller consort of vocalists in another timely work, Buxtehude’s “Membra Jesu Nostri,” a cycle of seven cantatas regarded as the first Lutheran oratorio. Friday at 7:30 p.m. and Tuesday at 6:30 p.m., St. Thomas Church, 1 West 53rd Street, Manhattan, (212) 664-9360, saintthomaschurch.org/music/concerts; on Friday $45 to $95, or $35 for students and 65+; Tuesday free. (Smith)

★ Tallis Scholars (Friday) Peter Phillips and his superb British vocal ensemble have reimagined the 1520 summit at Calais between Henry VIII of England and Francis I of France, with particular attention to the music that might have been sung by each ruler’s Chapel Royal. The program focuses mostly on works by the composers who led the two choirs — William Cornysh, on the English side, and Jean Mouton, on the French — and is devoted mostly to sacred works, including Ave Maria settings by both composers, sections of a Mass by Mouton and a Magnificat by Cornysh. At 7:30 p.m., St. Bartholomew’s Church, Park Avenue at 51st Street, (212) 378-0222, stbarts.org/music-and-art; $25 to $40, or $15 for students and 65+. (Kozinn)

★ Teares of the Muses (Friday) A viol consort of faculty from New York University, this group has been resident at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church on the Upper West Side since 2007. Its current program, “O Traurigkeit,” includes music from its fine recent CD, “Ein Lämmlein: 17th-Century German Passion Music.” The concert is a memorial for David Fenton, a tenor viol player in the ensemble, who died in November. At 7:30 p.m., St. Michael’s Church, 225 West 99th Street, Manhattan, (212) 228-5820, tearesofthemuses.com; $20, or $15 for students. (Kozinn)

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:

Correction: March 31, 2012

A classical music entry in the Listings pages on Friday about a concert by the viol consort Teares of the Muses, at St. Michael’s Church on West 99th Street in Manhattan, misstated the date. The concert, as noted in a separate listing of performances of sacred music for the holiday season, was Friday night; there is no performance scheduled for tonight.

A classical music entry in the Listings pages on Friday about the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center misstated the time of the concert it is presenting Sunday at Alice Tully Hall.

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To Fill a Gap in Commercial Radio, Classically Trained Apps G Roald Smeets

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Image representing YouTube as depicted in Crun...

Image via CrunchBase

The New York Philharmonic app, on Android, from InstantEncore. G Roald Smeets

¶ But now, thanks to mobile devices, who needs radio?

¶ Androids or iPhones make good music players, and personalized radio apps like Slacker, Pandora and Last.fm offer passable alternatives to conventional radio, especially if you pay for advertising-free versions of the services.

¶ And with a few good genre-specific apps and a few dollars, classical music aficionados can stay connected to their favorite composers and performances, and discover new ones they might not find elsewhere.

¶ That list includes Classical Music I: Master’s Collection Vol. 1 (on Apple, free for limited version, $5 for full version), Classical Music Radio (free on Apple, and on Android), Classical Music, Listen and Learn ($2 on Apple) and InstantEncore.com (various titles, free on Apple and Android).

¶ For more casual classical music followers, Classical Music I: Master’s Collection Vol. 1 is a good start. It offers 120 performances of many well-known works, like Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor, or Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyries.”

¶ There is no mention of who performed or conducted these performances, other than breathy language suggesting the works were by “the best orchestras and ensembles around the world.”

¶ The performances were good enough to satisfy my untrained ears, though. And for $5, the catalog was deep enough to provide a good sampler of the classical music canon. But the app lacks some basic touches, like the ability to sort the 120 works according to composer or title.

¶ Those who are a little further along in their classical music education can test their skills, and enjoy some nice performances in the process, with Classical Music, Listen and Learn.

¶ Consider it the classical music version of “Name That Tune,” with extras.

¶ Think you can listen to an excerpt and identify the composer of the 1868 work Piano Concerto in A Minor? (If you guessed Grieg, you win the prize.)

¶ The extras come in the “music player” section. There, the app offers 50 compositions, in rich audio quality, with slick graphics; an old-school record player loads the album, then spins the tune. While the music plays, you can look up brief information about the composer and the work.

¶ The app’s developer said a version on the Android platform would come this fall.

¶ More serious classical music consumers will like Classical Music Radio, which streams audio from a collection of radio stations that specialize in the genre.

¶ The experience relies heavily on a good network connection, and there’s no way to fast-forward through a song or even find out what’s playing. (Sorry, music fans: Shazam and SoundHound are still working out the kinks in their classical music identification technology.)

¶ But the app makes it easy to scroll through dozens of radio stations around the world even if, at times, the content veers into news, promotions or other unrelated audio.

¶ If you prefer works from specific orchestras, festivals or artists, look for InstantEncore.com. The company produces mobile software for more than 120 performing arts centers like the New York Philharmonic and the Aspen Music Festival and School, and individual artists like Lera Auerbach and the baritone Thomas Hampson.

¶ They’re very good pieces of mobile software, and not just because they’re free.

¶ In apps like New York Philharmonic or London Philharmonic Orchestra, you can browse recent news from the institutions or search coming events, while in another section, YouTube videos await. Similar listings are available for artist-specific apps.

¶ The big draw, of course, is audio.

¶ For the several InstantEncore apps I tried, the audio quality was very good, even at the default lower-quality setting. When I chose the higher-quality sound option from the settings menu, the app warned me that the playback might buffer more frequently, but since I was on a Wi-Fi connection I noticed no problems.

¶ In most InstantEncore apps, the recordings are generally from recent performances. While the music plays, you can find information on artists and view album art, although in a couple of instances, the photo resolution was poor.

¶ But who needs album art when the music is this good — and when you can repeatedly hear Alec Baldwin introduce performances of the New York Philharmonic?

¶ The one notable weakness of Instant-Encore’s apps is that they will, at times, leave you wanting more.

¶ Apps for some orchestras, like the Houston Symphony and Buffalo Philharmonic, offer only shorter audio excerpts, while the London Philharmonic offers full works at times and brief excerpts at other times.

¶ But some, like the New York Philharmonic and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, offer occasional live video of concerts or full concerts for on-demand audio streaming.

¶ Even if your preferred orchestra offers only excerpts, though, you can leave the app running and it will play a long string of music selections without commercials or other interruptions — that is, if you have a network connection.

¶ But because the music is streamed, you won’t want to rely on InstantEncore apps for evening strolls in foreign cities, where data charges for “Eine kleine Nachtmusik” could break your budget.

¶ Quick Calls

¶ Disney Publishing, which has earned high marks for children’s book apps on Apple, now has an Android title. Winnie the Pooh, What’s a Bear to Do? ($3), includes interactive pages and an option that allows users to record their own narration. … Slice HD ($3), an iPad puzzle game is well reviewed by iTunes users, but bloody. (Best to keep out of reach of children.)

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Classical Music/Opera Listings for Jan. 27-Feb. 2 G Roald Smeets

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Metropolitan Opera (Lincoln Center), auditorium

Metropolitan Opera (Lincoln Center), auditorium (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

G Roald Smeets  Opera

★ ‘Anna Bolena’ (Wednesday) The Metropolitan Opera’s new production of this great, overlooked Donizetti opera returns for two final performances this season, starring the charismatic soprano for whom it was conceived, Anna Netrebko. David McVicar’s disappointing production is tamely traditional, and the impact of Donizetti’s score was muted on opening night by the routine, listless conducting of Marco Armiliato. The appealing cast includes Ekaterina Gubanova as Giovanna, Ildar Abdrazakov as Enrico, and Stephen Costello as Riccardo. At 7:30 p.m., Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, (212) 362-6000, metoperafamily.org; $104 to $490 remaining. (Anthony Tommasini)

★ ‘The Enchanted Island’ (Saturday and Monday) There are two more performances of this modern-day Baroque pastiche, a surprising delight. The librettist Jeremy Sams has devised a wonderfully convoluted and involving story that conflates two Shakespeare plays, “The Tempest” and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” His original libretto, complete with witty recitative, is set to music lifted from operas and other works by Handel, Vivaldi, Rameau and other Baroque composers. Phelim McDermott’s imaginative production blends old-fashioned stagecraft with sophisticated videos and animation. The cast could not be better, with David Daniels as Prospero, Danielle de Niese as Ariel, Joyce DiDonato as Sycorax, Luca Pisaroni as Caliban, Lisette Oropesa as Miranda and, in a short but crucial star turn, Plácido Domingo as Neptune. (David Daniels will not appear Saturday night because of illness. Anthony Roth Costanzo will sing Prospero.) William Christie, an acclaimed exponent of Baroque opera, conducts. Saturday at 8 p.m. and Monday at 7:30 p.m., Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, (212) 362-6000, metoperafamily.org; $25 to $460. (Tommasini)

★ ‘Götterdämmerung’ (Friday and Tuesday) You cannot fairly judge a production of Wagner’s “Ring” until you see the entire four-opera cycle. The final installment of Robert Lepage’s production for the Met, “Götterdämmerung,” opens on Friday. Much is expected of the Siegfried of the tenor Jay Hunter Morris, who made a strong impression in the near-impossible title role of “Siegfried.” (The tenor Stephen Gould sings the second performance on Tuesday.) Deborah Voigt completes her first complete “Ring,” singing Brünnhilde. Eric Owens returns as Alberich. And in a bit of luxury casting, the soprano Waltraud Meier sings Waltraute. Fabio Luisi conducts. At 6 p.m., Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, (212) 362-6000, metoperafamily.org; $104 to $490 remaining. (Tommasini)

★ ‘Rienzi’ (Sunday) Wagner’s unabashedly grand third opera provided a big success for Eve Queler and her enterprising, invaluable Opera Orchestra of New York in 1980 and 1982. Now, a year after Ms. Queler stepped down as the company’s music director, she returns to the podium to conduct it with a cast that includes the tenor Ian Storey as the medieval Italian populist leader Cola di Rienzi and the soprano Elisabete Matos as his sister, Irene. At 2 p.m., Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 906-9137, operaorchestrany.org; $35 to $165. (Zachary Woolfe)

★ ‘Tosca’ (Saturday) The straightforward but heartfelt soprano Patricia Racette has long been underrated, but her performance in a Met revival of Luc Bondy’s production of “Tosca” in 2010 brought her the most notice she’d gotten in years. She ends her return to the title role alongside the tenor Marcelo Álvarez and the bass-baritone James Morris. This run offers the house debut of the young Finnish conductor Mikko Franck; Saturday marks the final Met performance of the veteran bass Paul Plishka, retiring after a 45-year career with the company. At 1 p.m., Metropolitan Opera, Lincoln Center, (212) 362-6000, metoperafamily.org; $111 to $470 remaining. (Woolfe)

Classical Music

★ American Composers Orchestra (Tuesday) This concert marking the 75th birthday of Philip Glass features the American premiere of his Ninth Symphony. (Fear not, superstitious types; Mr. Glass already has a 10th in the drawer.) Completing the program is Arvo Pärt’s stirring “Lamentate,” featuring the pianist Maki Namekawa. At 8 p.m., Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $29 to $82, with limited availability. (Steve Smith)

Eve Beglarian’s RiverProject (Friday and Saturday) Prompted by the 2008 election to get back in touch with America, the composer and singer Ms. Beglarian kayaked and bicycled the length of the Mississippi River; since her return she has translated her findings into music of sophisticated rusticity. On Friday the agit-prop new-music ensemble Newspeak presents the New York premiere of “Waiting for Billy Floyd”; on Saturday Ms. Beglarian performs with the violinist Mary Rowell, the guitarist Taylor Levine and the singer Malcolm J. Merriweather. At 8 p.m., Abrons Arts Center, 466 Grand Street, at Pitt Street, Lower East Side, (866) 811-4111, abronsartscenter.org; $25, or $15 for students and seniors. (Smith)

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (Sunday and Tuesday) This program celebrates music for clarinet and cello. The clarinetist David Shifrin joins the society’s artistic directors, the cellist David Finckel and the pianist Wu Han, for Beethoven’s Trio in B flat for Clarinet, Cello and Piano; selections from Bruch’s Eight Pieces for Clarinet, Cello and Piano; and Brahms’s Trio in A minor for Clarinet, Cello and Piano. At 5 p.m. on Sunday and 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 875-5788, chambermusicsociety.org; Sunday sold out; Tuesday, $27 to $56. (Vivien Schweitzer)

Simone Dinnerstein (Thursday) This fine pianist juxtaposes Bach’s Partitas Nos. 1 and 2, Schubert’s Four Impromptus (Op. 90) and Chopin’s Nocturne for Piano No. 8 with a contemporary work: Daniel Felsenfeld’s “Cohen Variations.” At 8 p.m., Miller Theater, Broadway at 116th Street, Morningside Heights, (212) 854-7799, millertheater.org; $35. (Schweitzer)

Europa Galante (Thursday) The soprano Vivica Genaux joins Fabio Biondi and his period-instrument band in a program devoted mostly to concertos and arias by Vivaldi, Nardini and Locatelli. At 7:30 p.m., Zankel Hall, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $54 to $64. (Allan Kozinn)

★ Focus! 2012 Festival (Friday, and Monday through Thursday) The Juilliard School provides a gift to the city in this year’s installment of its venerable annual new-music festival: six concerts celebrating the 100th anniversary of the birth of John Cage. It’s a rich selection of nearly 40 works drawn from every period of Cage’s pathbreaking career, from vocal music to compositions for percussion ensemble. That the shows are all free is the icing on the cake. (The finale concert is next Friday.) Friday, and Monday through Thursday at 8 p.m., the Juilliard School, Lincoln Center, (212) 769-7406, juilliard.edu; free tickets required. (Woolfe)

Gaudeamus Muziekweek New York (Friday and Saturday) A series mounted by the prestigious Dutch new-music festival Gaudeamus Muziekweek ends with two concerts featuring Ensemble MAE, the successor to the trailblazing Maarten Altena Ensemble. On Friday the International Contemporary Ensemble pitches in for works by Yannis Kyriakides; on Saturday, Iktus Percussion shares a program that includes pieces by Ligeti, Robert Ashley, Michel van der Aa and others. At 7:30 p.m., Issue Project Room, 110 Livingston Street, downtown Brooklyn, (718) 330-0313, issueprojectroom.org; $20. (Smith)

★ Susan Graham (Wednesday) There is no more satisfying singer than this eminent mezzo-soprano, with her rich, even voice, exquisite musicianship and warm presence. Her solo recital debut at Carnegie Hall in 2003 was widely acclaimed and resulted in a classic recording; she returned in 2007 with a program of French songs. This time, joined by the pianist Malcolm Martineau, her longtime collaborator, she focuses on musical versions of tragic female characters from history and literature, from Ophelia (Berlioz’s “Mort d’Ophélie”) to treatments of Goethe’s Mignon by Schubert, Schumann, Liszt, Duparc and Wolf. At 8 p.m., Isaac Stern Auditorium, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $15 to $85. (Woolfe)

★ David Lang (Friday) A founder of Bang on a Can, with Julia Wolfe and Michael Gordon, Mr. Lang writes in a colorfully accessible, energetic style. His “Little Match Girl Passion,” a wrenching setting of the Hans Christian Andersen story, won the Pulitzer Prize in 2008 and is the centerpiece of this Making Music program, which also includes the New York premiere of Mr. Lang’s “Death Speaks.” The starry cast includes Theater of Voices; Bryce Dessner and Shara Worden on guitars and vocals; the composer Nico Muhly on keyboards; and Owen Pallett on violin and vocals. At 6 p.m., Zankel Hall, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $30, with limited availability. (Kozinn)

★ London Handel Players (Sunday) The music room at the Frick Collection is a superb place to hear period instruments, and this fine British ensemble offers a program in which the clarity of texture that the room’s acoustic promote is paramount. Included are a Flute Sonata by Quantz, the greatest flute virtuoso of his time, and a piece by Frederick the Great, the Prussian king and talented amateur flutist. Also on the program: a sonata from Bach’s “Musical Offering,” a Trio Sonata by C. P. E. Bach and a Benda Violin Sonata. At 5 p.m., Frick Collection, 1 East 70th Street, Manhattan, (212) 547-0715, frick.org; sold out, but returned tickets may be available at the box office. (Kozinn)

Denis Matsuev (Friday) This gifted Russian pianist, first prize laureate of the International Tchaikovsky Competition, returns to Carnegie Hall with a program featuring Schubert’s Sonata in A minor (D. 784), Beethoven’s “Appassionata” sonata, Grieg’s Piano Sonata in E minor and selections from Stravinsky’s “Petrushka.” At 8 p.m., Isaac Stern Auditorium, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; $37 to $150. (Schweitzer)

Mimesis Ensemble (Saturday) This new-music group offers an appealing program of 20th- and 21st-century works, including Takemitsu’s “Entre-Temps,” Mohammed Fairouz’s “Furia,” Ned Rorem’s “Unquestioned Answer” and Kaija Saariaho’s “Terra Memoria.” At 8 p.m., Merkin Concert Hall, 129 West 67th Street, Manhattan, (212) 501-3330, kaufman-center.org; $20 in advance; $25 at the door; $15 for students and 65+. (Schweitzer)

New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, with Renée Fleming (Sunday) The soprano Renée Fleming spends an afternoon of alluring music, including Ravel’s sultry “Shéhérazade” and selections from “La Bohème,” “Tosca,” “Rusalka,” “Faust” and “The Merry Widow.” Jacques Lacombe conducts the performance, which includes a complementary clutch of overtures and showpieces. At 3 p.m., New Jersey Performing Arts Center, 1 Center Street, Newark, (800) 255-3476, njsymphony.org; $29 to $125. (Smith)

★ New York Philharmonic (Friday and Saturday) Before going on a European tour, Alan Gilbert and the New York Philharmonic play two more performances of a program featuring the German violinist Frank Peter Zimmermann. Though the programs he has planned for his tenure as artist in residence are rather conventional, Mr. Zimmermann is an exciting and probing violinist. He plays the Beethoven Violin Concerto on this program which includes Stravinsky’s Symphony in Three Movements and Ravel’s “Daphnis et Chloé” Suite No. 2. At 8 p.m., Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 875-5656, nyphil.org; $33 to $127. (Tommasini)

★ Peter Orth (Sunday) The essential Peoples’ Symphony Concerts, which bring great artists to audiences at affordable prices, present Mr. Orth, the acclaimed pianist whose playing combines comprehensive technique and probing musicianship. He will perform works by Ravel, Stravinsky and Liszt. At 2 p.m., Town Hall, 123 West 43rd Street, Manhattan, (212) 586-4680, the-townhall-nyc.org; $13 and $16. (Tommasini)

★ Tragicomedia (Friday) The Boston Early Music Festival is presenting Tragicomedia, a period-instrument group directed by Stephen Stubbs, in a program devoted mostly to early Handel cantatas as well as works by Strozzi, Guerau, Steffani and Arrigoni. The singers are the soprano Shannon Mercer and the bass-baritone Douglas Williams, and the ensemble includes Mr. Stubbs and his co-director at the Boston Early Music Festival, Paul O’Dette, on Baroque guitars and theorbo; Erin Headley on viola da gamba; and Kristian Bezuidenhout on harpsichord. At 7:30 p.m. (with a preconcert talk at 7), Morgan Library & Museum, 225 Madison Avenue, at 36th Street, (212) 685-0008, Ext. 560, themorgan.org; $45. (Kozinn)

Trio di Clarone (Saturday) This clarinet trio, whose members are Sabine Meyer, Wolfgang Meyer (her brother) and Reiner Wehle (her husband), offers works by Mozart, Poulenc, Stravinsky, J. S. Bach and C. P. E. Bach. At 8 p.m., 92nd Street Y, 1395 Lexington Avenue, (212) 415-5500, 92y.org; $40 and $58, or $25 for under age 35. (Schweitzer)

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G Roald Smeets Classical Music and Opera Listings for June 1 — 7

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American Composers Orchestra (Friday and Saturday) The music director George Manahan presides over this year’s Underwood New Music Readings, in which six young composers — Ryan Chase, Peter Fahey, Michael-Thomas Foumai, Paul Kerekes, Pin Hsin Lin and Benjamin Taylor — will have pieces played during a Friday morning open rehearsal and a Saturday evening run-through. Each will receive expert feedback from a panel of composers; one will come away with a $15,000 commission, and a People’s Choice prize will also be awarded. Friday at 10 a.m. and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., DiMenna Center for Classical Music, 450 West 37th Street, Manhattan, americancomposers.org; free, but reservations are recommended. (Steve Smith)

Bargemusic (Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Wednesday) This week brings characteristic variety to the barge. Friday is the latest installment in the Here and Now series, featuring works by modern masters like Takemitsu and Carter alongside the contemporary composers Scott Wheeler and Caroline Mallonée. The weekend brings works for violin and piano by Brahms, Beethoven, Schubert and Sarasate, and Wednesday features string arrangements of Bach, Rachmaninoff and De Falla by Steve Cohen as well as the premieres of Mr. Cohen’s “Song for Strings” and Dina Pruzhansky’s “Song of Songs.” At 8 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Wednesday and 2 p.m. on Sunday, Bargemusic, Fulton Ferry Landing next to the Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn, (718) 624-2083, bargemusic.org; Friday, Saturday and Sunday, $35, or $30 for 65+; $15 for students; Wednesday, $40, or $35 for 65+, $20 for students. (Zachary Woolfe)

★ Darmstadt 2012 (Friday and Saturday) For an immersion in avant-gardes past and present, head to Issue Project Room for Nick Hallett and Zach Layton’s stimulating annual festival. The first weekend features a celebration of the composer Pauline Oliveros’s 80th birthday and a concert pairing the Mivos Quartet and the Wet Ink Ensemble in works by Sam Pluta, Alex Mincek and Kate Soper. At 8 p.m., Issue Project Room, 22 Boerum Place, downtown Brooklyn, (718) 330-0313, issueprojectroom.org; $15. (Woolfe)

Dorian Baroque Orchestra (Saturday) This recently formed ensemble makes its debut with the program “A German Feast,” celebrating the banquet tradition of aristocratic 17th- and 18th-century German households. The program includes selections by Graupner, Biber, Schmelzer, Schein and Telemann. At 8 p.m., Church of the Epiphany, 1393 York Avenue, Manhattan, dorianbaroque.org; $10 (cash only at the door; no advance tickets). (Vivien Schweitzer)

Ensemble ACJW Neighborhood Concert (Sunday) One of the most admirable ventures of the Ensemble ACJW is its series of free neighborhood concerts. The players are all exceptional postgraduate student musicians participating in a two-year fellowship program run by the Juilliard School, Carnegie Hall and the Weill Music Institute. For this program at Our Saviour’s Atonement Church in Upper Manhattan, the musicians perform pieces by Martinu, Ravel and Schoenberg (the composer’s landmark work for vocalist and chamber ensemble “Pierrot Lunaire”). At 5 p.m., Our Saviour’s Atonement Lutheran Church, 178 Bennett Avenue, at 189th Street, Washington Heights, (212) 923-5757, carnegiehall.org; free. (Anthony Tommasini)

Christopher Houlihan (Saturday) This young organist begins a six-city tour in honor of the 75th anniversary of the death of the French composer and organist Louis Vierne, who died at 66 while performing at the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. Mr. Houlihan will play all six of Vierne’s colorful works for solo organ in two concerts on the French-built Manton Memorial Organ. At 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Church of the Ascension, 36 Fifth Avenue, at 10th Street, Greenwich Village, (212) 358-7060; voicesofascension.org; $10 to $35 (includes admission to both concerts). (Vivien Schweitzer)

The Knights and Friends (Sunday) Precisely what this feisty, inventive Brooklyn indie-classical orchestra has planned for these two sets celebrating John Cage’s 100th birthday is a mystery. But the ensemble is full of bright players and has clever friends, so whatever transpires is bound to be fascinating. At 8 and 10 p.m., the Stone, Avenue C and Second Street, East Village, thestonenyc.com; each set $10. (Smith)

The Mannes Beethoven Institute Faculty Concert (Tuesday) The Mannes College Beethoven Institute, a weeklong annual event that explores Beethoven’s works and relevant themes in panels, workshops and concerts, presents a faculty concert featuring Colin Carr, Thomas Sauer, Ignat Solzhenitsyn and Soovin Kim. The program includes Beethoven’s “Ghost” Piano Trio and the “Kreutzer” Sonata for Piano and Violin. At 8 p.m., Mannes College the New School for Music, 150 West 85th Street, Manhattan, (212) 580-0210, Ext. 4879, mannes.edu; $20. (Schweitzer)

Musica Nuova (Sunday) This early-music ensemble likes to highlight the intrinsically dramatic elements of Baroque music through staging, story-telling and inventive rethinking of works. Here, under the artistic direction of Amanda Keil, it promises to give a modern gloss to Monteverdi’s 1608 work “Il Ballo delle Ingrate” (The Dance of the Ungrateful Woman). The production combines singing, dance, staging and English dialogue. At 7:30 p.m., Le Poisson Rouge, 158 Bleecker Street, near Thompson Street, Greenwich Village, (212) 505-3474, musicanuova.org or lepoissonrouge.com; $20. (Tommasini)

New Jersey Symphony Orchestra (Thursday) This admirable, ambitious orchestra concludes its season with Mahler’s transcendent Symphony No. 9, conducted by its music director, Jacques Lacombe. (The program repeats in Morristown, N.J., on June 9 and then returns to Newark June 10.) At 1:30 p.m., Prudential Hall, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, 1 Center Street, Newark, (800) 255-3476, njsymphony.org; $20 to $85. (Smith)

New York Virtuoso Singers (Wednesday) The composer C. Edward Hupton’s work has taken him into classical, jazz, folk and world music styles. In 2010 his “Requiem for Victims of Genocide” had its premiere, a large-scale work for chorus and orchestra, described by the composer as a multiethnic tribute to those who suffered and died in Cambodia, Rwanda, the Russian gulags and other atrocities. The excellent New York Virtuoso Singers, conducted by its founding director, Harold Rosenbaum, will perform the work with the Salome Chamber Orchestra, joined by the SilverCloud Native American Singers. At 8 p.m., St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, 145 West 46th Street, Manhattan, nyvirtuoso.org; $20. (Tommasini)

★ Orchestra of the League of Composers (Monday) In 1923, the League of Composers was founded as an organization to foster contemporary music. In 1954 it became the United States chapter of the International Society of Contemporary Music. But what should matter to curious concertgoers is that the ensemble that performs today under the name Orchestra of the League of Composers is technically topnotch and continually adventurous. The orchestra’s next concert presents works by Copland and Ursula Mamlok (Concerto for Oboe and Chamber Orchestra), a premiere by Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez, and New York premieres by Anthony Cheung and Pierre Jalbert. James Baker conducts; John Schaefer of WNYC radio hosts. At 8 p.m., Miller Theater of Columbia University, Broadway at 116th Street, leagueofcomposers.org; $20. (Tommasini)

★ Riverside Symphony (Wednesday) For its season-finale concert, the Riverside Symphony offers another typically imaginative program, “Poetry in Motion,” conducted by George Rothman. The actress Cynthia Nixon is the narrator for Poulenc’s adaptation of “The Story of Babar, the Little Elephant.” This work is followed by a musical reflection on children’s literature inspired by a French picture book, the composer Evan Hause’s “Tree Without End,” a remiere commissioned by the orchestra. To conclude, the thoughtful pianist Shai Wosner will be the soloist in Beethoven’s Fourth Piano Concerto. At 7:30 p.m., Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 721-6500, riversidesymphony.org; $24 to $55. (Tommasini)

John Scott (Saturday) This prominent organist performs Bach’s German Organ Mass, a collection of compositions Bach published in 1739 that feature some of his most complex and technically demanding work for the instrument. This will be Mr. Scott’s first performance of the complete work in one sitting. At 4 p.m., St. Thomas Church, Fifth Avenue and 53rd Street, (212) 664-9360, saintthomaschurch.org; free, with $20 suggested donation. (Vivien Schweitzer)

★ Margaret Leng Tan (Wednesday) In a program called “SATIEfaction,” this magisterial modern-music pianist plays works by Satie (including a very rare live performance of his “Extended Lullaby”) and those inspired by him in a multimedia performance featuring projections, film and readings of texts by Satie and John Cage. At 8 p.m., Roulette, 509 Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn, (917) 267-0363, roulette.org; $15, or $10 for students and 65+. (Woolfe)

Kent Tritle (Wednesday) This beloved chorus master takes the solo stage at the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola, where he was once head of music, for a program of organ music by Bach, De Grigny, Franck and Daniel Pinkham under the auspices of the Sacred Music in a Sacred Space program. At 7:30 p.m., Church of St. Ignatius Loyola, 980 Park Avenue at 84th Street, Manhattan, (212) 288-2520, smssconcerts.org; $20, $15 for students and 65+. (Woolfe)

Tribeca New Music Festival (Friday and Monday) Nomadic despite its name, this worthy grass-roots series concludes with two concerts in downtown Brooklyn. For the first, on Friday evening, the composer Eve Belgarian reprises material from her “River Project,” inspired by a rafting trek down the Mississippi; on Monday, the violinist Mary Rowell and the pianists Geoffrey Burleson and Kathleen Supové offer premieres by Mohammed Fairouz, Preston Stahly, Randall Woolf, David Rakowski and Gary Philo. At 8 p.m., Roulette, 509 Atlantic Avenue, Boerum Hill, Brooklyn, (917) 267-0363, roulette.org; $20, or $10 for students and 65+. (Smith)

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:

Correction: June 2, 2012

A classical music entry in the Listings pages on Friday about Darmstadt 2012, at Issue Project Room at 22 Boerum Place in Brooklyn, misidentified the area of the borough where Issue Project Room is situated. It is in downtown Brooklyn, not Gowanus.

Saturday Market in Mainz

Saturday Market in Mainz (Photo credit: szeke)

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A New Latin Voice in the World of Pop

Posted by groaldsmeets on

Latin

Latin (Photo credit: Nia [So let’s go!])

Ostensibly it was a trade conference, but given the nature of the industry involved, it couldn’t help turning into a huge party as well.

From the ample Jackie Gleason Theater in Miami Beach to back-street clubs in the the region’s sprawling Cuban neighborhoods, Latin and Caribbean musicians from across the hemisphere converged here last week in a mood of artistic and economic euphoria.

At the Gleason Theater, the Colombian heartthrob and former soap opera star Carlos Vives wedded the country rhythms, wood flute and accordion of the raucus vallenata style with international pop.

At a party at Vizcaya, the waterside Italianate mansion, Chichi Peralta and Son Familia, from the Dominican Republic, mixed salsa, South African music, classical music, folk music, merengue and half a dozen other forms.

Control Machete, a new rap band from Monterrey, Mexico, that is one of the week’s most talked-about groups, absorbed rap and skateboard cultures, and brought them together with the fluorescence of Mexican slang.

The occasion was the first Latin and Caribbean music conference sponsored by a French company called Midem, which sponsors commercial music trade events around the world. The gathering, known as Midem Music Mart ’97, attracted 151 acts from 25 countries, filling the Miami Beach Convention Center with hundreds of booths from record companies, CD manufacturers, radio stations and concert promoters.

Past Midem Music Marts have taken place in Cannes, France, and Hong Kong. This was the first devoted to Latin music, and it came at a felicitous time. The Recording Industry Association of America recently reported that sales of Latin music were growing robustly while sales in other music segments were flat or slumping.

At the conference, the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the organization that presents the Grammy Awards, announced that a parallel organization it had set up for Latin music would put on its own awards ceremony within 18 months.

Julio Iglesias, who gave a short speech at the conference, said he marveled at the growth of what had traditionally been a marginalized music niche. ”I’m really proud of all the attention music in Spanish is finally getting,” he said. ”And it’s been hard to get it, too. We’ve all worked hard to take the music around the world.”

The one politically touchy note was a resolution by the Dade County government that restricts the county from doing business with companies involved in commerce with Cuba. The resolution nearly led to the cancellation of the conference, and some of the conference’s promoters said it threatened its return. No music sponsored by Cuban companies was sold or performed at the conference.

The musical message of the week was evident in the syntheses of music across Latin cultures and countries.

Sometime early Wednesday morning, as night was pushing into dawn, Machel Montano from Trinidad hit the stage in Miami Beach with a mix of soca with reggae and hip-hop. The musicians take their cues from MTV.

For Control Machete, the Mexican rap group, hip-hop appropriations were ample, but the musical fusion was clearly Mexican; the form was borrowed, but the sensibility, the color of the music, was indigenous.

”We’ve heard hip-hop all our lives,” said Fermin IV, one of the group’s rappers. ”Two Live Crew, House of Pain, everything. So we use hip-hop beats, but it’s with our experience and we feel that its very, very Mexican.”

The name that was perhaps mentioned most often was Ricky Martin. Mr. Martin, from Puerto Rico, was in the group Menudo and has acted on Broadway. He has had a major string of hits in Europe over the last year, from Spain to Finland. There was a sense here that Europe and the United States were primed for a portion of all the new experiments coming from Latin America and the Caribbean.

Wendy-Ann Garcia of the Trinidad and Tobago Tourism and Industrial Development Department, which sent 34 acts, said she thought her government’s investment made sense.

”We feel that the world market right now is really receptive to Caribbean music,” she said. ”It’s happy music, and there’s so much going on now, from steel band orchestras to chutney music, which is a mixture of soca and eastern Indian music, that it is vibrant. Also, soca hasn’t really broken out in Europe or in the United States. It still sounds new and fresh.”

A Dutch businessman who started his record company Caiman a few years ago in the Caiman Islands, and who records Mr. Peralta, the Dominican band leader, invested nearly $50,000 in the trip.

He said he thought the conference was catching Latin music at a ripe time. ”In Holland, salsa and merengue are very big,” he said. ”Every town has a salsa dance class or a club. The average person no longer wants to just be a Dutch housewife or a banker. They want something better, something more social, and this music is a way to get into a different way of living.”

None of this made too much difference to the musicians, who went on doing what they do: playing and hanging out.

Disk jockeys playing international and Latin mixes worked with Spanish-language rappers. Reggae, one of the most influential forms across Latin America, was in evidence all over. Puerto Rican salsa bands were joined by Puerto Rican rock bands, as well as rock bands from Argentina and some from the United States who sang in Spanish.

”There’s so much going on now, it’s hard to make a case that any one music sums up the whole,” said Xavier Roy, Midem’s chief executive. ”It’s rich, both culturally and financially.”

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Classical Music and Opera Listings for June 22-29 G Roald Smeets

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Saturday on Sunday

Saturday on Sunday (Photo credit: Willamor Media)

¶ Opera

¶ ★ ‘The Most Happy Fella’ (Friday through July 8) In March the Dicapo Opera Theater had a big success with its sensitive, lively and finely cast production of Frank Loesser’s ambitious and charming musical. The production, directed by Michael Capasso, is now back by popular demand for a three-week run with the same performers in the leading roles. The appealing baritone Michael Corvino is Tony, a lonely middle-aged vineyard owner who falls for a young mail-order bride whom he calls his Rosa Bella, played by the luminous, lovely soprano Molly Mustonen. Pacien Mazzagatti conducts. Friday, Saturday and Thursday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 4 p.m., Wednesday at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m., Dicapo Opera Theater, 184 East 76th Street, between Lexington and Third Avenues, (212) 288-9438, (212) 868-4444, mosthappyfella.com; $35 to $100. (Anthony Tommasini)

¶ ★ ‘Oceanic Verses’ (Monday) Paola Prestini’s wistful dreamlike multimedia “folk opera,” concerning lost songs, ghosts and memory, has been glimpsed in workshop performances around the city in recent years. Now the completed work has its stage debut, mounted by Beth Morrison Projects with VisionIntoArt, and presented under the banner of the River to River Festival. Kevin Newbury directs; Julian Wachner conducts performers from Trinity Wall Street, the Washington Chorus and the Brooklyn Youth Chorus Academy. At 7:30 p.m., Michael Schimmel Center for the Arts, Pace University, 3 Spruce Street, Lower Manhattan, (212) 219-9401, rivertorivernyc.com; free. (Steve Smith)

¶ ★ Princeton Festival (Saturday) This double bill of operatic one-acts mixes a classic — Puccini’s comic “Gianni Schicchi” — with Rachmaninoff’s far less well known “Francesca da Rimini,” inspired by Dante. At 8 p.m., McCarter Theater Center for the Performing Arts, 91 University Place, Princeton, N.J., (609) 258-2787, princetonfestival.org; $30 to $125. (Zachary Woolfe)

¶ ‘Tosca’ (Wednesday) Vincent La Selva and his indefatigable New York Grand Opera have long brought free performances to Central Park, and this summer’s first offering is Puccini’s classic melodrama, conducted by Mr. La Selva and starring Claire Stadtmueller, Alejandro Olmedo and Raemond Martin. At 7:30 p.m., Naumberg Bandshell, Central Park, Manhattan, (212) 245-8837, vincentlaselva.com/pages/nygohome.aspx; free. (Woolfe)

¶ Classical Music

¶ Aston Magna Festival (Friday and Saturday) This festival, devoted to the performance of early music on period instruments, is celebrating its 40th anniversary. Friday’s program features repertory by Mozart and Franz Krommer for winds, strings and fortepiano; it is repeated on Saturday. Friday at 8 p.m., Olin Hall, Bard College, 30 Campus Road, Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y.; $35, $25 for 62+, tickets can only be purchased at (845) 758-7425. Saturday at 6 p.m., Daniel Arts Center, Bard College at Simon’s Rock, 84 Alford Road, Great Barrington, Mass.; $35, $25 for 62+, (413) 528-3595, astonmagna.org. (Vivien Schweitzer )

¶ ★ Bargemusic (Saturday and Sunday) Mark Peskanov, the violinist who now runs this floating concert hall on the East River, will be joined by the cellist Edward Arron and the pianist Jeewon Park for a program of rich-hued piano trios — Saint-Saëns’s Trio No. 2, Beethoven’s “Ghost” Trio and Ravel’s sole work for this combination. Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 2 p.m., Bargemusic, Fulton Ferry Landing next to the Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn, (718) 624-2083, bargemusic.org; $35, $30 for 65+; $15 for students. (Allan Kozinn)

¶ Caramoor International Music Festival (Saturday and Sunday) This vibrant festival opens its last season under the artistic direction of Michael Barrett, who has appreciably enlivened its offerings. For Saturday’s opening gala, Roberto Abbado conducts the Orchestra of St. Luke’s and members of the Bel Canto at Caramoor Young Artist and Apprentice Program in a Mendelssohn evening, with Gil Shaham as the soloist in the Violin Concerto in E minor and Bebe Neuwirth narrating “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” On Sunday the guitarist Jason Vieaux plays an intimate recital. Saturday at 8:30 p.m., Sunday at 4:30 p.m., Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, 149 Girdle Ridge Road, Katonah, N.Y., (914) 232-1252, caramoor.org; $15 to $85 on Saturday, $15 and $30 on Sunday. (Smith)

¶ ★ Chelsea Music Festival (Friday and Saturday) This enterprising festival, now in its third year, is focusing on Debussy’s 150th anniversary, looking especially at his interest in Japan, a fascination he shared with many artists in late 19th-century France. The festival draws to a close with a program on Friday titled “Violin Daybreak,” featuring works by Debussy, Takemitsu, Chausson and Ysaye, and the violinists Augustin Hadelich and Fanny Clamagirand. And the finale on Saturday, “Cherry Blossom Road,” will feature the Adam Birnbaum Trio and others. Friday at 7 p.m., Rubin Museum of Art, 150 West 17th Street, Chelsea, $40, $30 for students with ID and 65+. Saturday at 7:30 p.m., Eyebeam Art + Technology Center, 540 West 21st Street, Chelsea, $65, $55 for students with ID and 65+. A complete lineup and other festival information is at chelseamusicfestival.org. (Tommasini)

¶ Darmstadt Institute 2012 (Friday and Saturday) This lively, casual series devotes welcome attention to important works by avant-garde composers, both established and up-and-coming. On Friday the long-running ensemble Gamelan Son of Lion showcases the “braid” compositions of one of its founders, Barbara Benary, alongside pieces by David Demnitz, Philip Corner and Daniel Goode. Saturday’s concert splits the bill between two vital outfits: Either/Or, playing works by the Australian composers Chris Mann, Andrew Byrne and Thomas Meadowcroft; and Object Collection, presenting the conceptual multimedia piece “New York Girls.” At 8 p.m., Issue Project Room, 22 Boerum Place, at Livingston Street, downtown Brooklyn, (718) 330-0313, issueprojectroom.org; $15. (Smith)

¶ Music Mountain (Sunday) This long-running festival continues with the Arianna String Quartet performing Mendelssohn’s Andante and Scherzo for String Quartet and Tchaikovsky’s String Quartet No. 3 in E flat minor. The ensemble will be joined by the pianist Tanya Bannister for Franck’s Piano Quintet in F minor. Nicholas Gordon, president of Music Mountain, offers a post concert discussion titled “The String Quartet Literature Through the Lens of the Music Mountain Repertory.” At 3 p.m., Music Mountain, Falls Village, Conn., (860) 824-7126, musicmountain.org; $30 in advance, $35 at the door. (Schweitzer)

¶ ★ New York Guitar Seminar at Mannes (Friday and Saturday) This annual guitar festival — a week of concerts and master classes by some of the guitar world’s stars — ends its 12th season with a pair of inviting recitals. First, Jason Vieaux gives a Friday night concert that begins with favorites by Giuliani, Bach and Albéniz, takes a jazzy detour by way of Pat Metheny, and veers back toward modern classicism in works by Dan Visconti and Leo Brouwer. The Saturday evening program by the Amadeus Guitar Duo — Dale Kavanagh and Thomas Kirchhoff — includes music by Handel, Telemann, Jolivet, Mario Gangi and Mr. Kavanagh. At 7:30 p.m., Mannes Concert Hall, Mannes College the New School for Music, 150 West 85th Street, Manhattan, (212) 580-0210, Ext. 4883, newschool.edu; $25. (Kozinn)

¶ ★ New York Philharmonic (Friday, Saturday and Tuesday) On Friday and Saturday, Alan Gilbert conducts the season’s last subscription program, pairing Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 22 (with Emanuel Ax as the soloist) and “Great” Mass in C. Then on Tuesday the orchestra salutes the distinguished French composer Henri Dutilleux, the winner of its first Marie-Josée Kravis Prize for New Music, and presents three key works: “Métaboles”; the cello concerto “Tout un Monde Lointain” (with Yo-Yo Ma as the soloist); and “Ainsi la Nuit,” played by the Miró Quartet. Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center, (212) 875-5656, nyphil.org; $45 to $132 on Friday and Saturday; $45 to $125 on Tuesday. (Smith)

¶ Orchestra of the League of Composers (Saturday) This adventurous ensemble, an outgrowth of the League, a cherished advocate for new music, performs works by Ben Weber, Dorothy Rudd Moore and other unsung American composers as a celebration of the 75th anniversary of the American Composers Alliance. The cellist Fred Sherry is among the soloists. At 8 p.m., Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway, at 95th Street, (212) 864-5400, symphonyspace.org; $25 in advance, $30 day of show. (Woolfe)

¶ Rhythms of One World (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday) This international choral festival highlights a diverse range of musical traditions, beginning with four programs at Merkin Concert Hall. On Monday the Norwegian Girls Choir will sing music from Norway, including selections by Grieg and contemporary composers. On Tuesday the program features the Kearsney College Choir from South Africa. On Wednesday the lineup features the Voices International from Luxembourg, at 6 p.m., and the University of Newcastle Chamber Choir from Australia, at 8 p.m. On Thursday seven international ensembles join forces at Avery Fisher Hall. Monday at 6 p.m., Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., and Wednesday at 6 and 8 p.m., Merkin Concert Hall, 129 West 67th Street, Manhattan, (212) 501- 3330, kaufman-center.org; $20, $12 for students and $65+. At 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Avery Fisher Hall, lincolncenter.org, (212) 721-6500; $25. (Schweitzer)

¶ Tanglewood (Friday and Sunday) The 75th anniversary season of this venerable festival, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, opens with a favorite performer, Yo-Yo Ma, and his multicultural, genre-pushing Silk Road Ensemble. At 8 p.m., Seiji Ozawa Hall, Tanglewood Music Center, 297 West Street, Lenox, Mass., (888) 266-1200, bso.org; $20 to $99. (Woolfe) G Roald Smeets posting

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G Roald Smeets RECORDINGS; KID CREOLE BRINGS THE REAL WORLD TO POP MUSIC

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KID CREOLE

KID CREOLE (Photo credit: Pryere)

G Roald Smeets – AHEAD OF THE TIMES IS no picnic. Ask August Darnell, whose band, Kid Creole and the Coconuts, forecast late-1980’s urban pop back in 1980, when Mr. Darnell became Kid Creole full time. The band Mr. Darnell and the songwriter-arranger Andy (Coati Mundi) Hernandez formed from the remnants of Dr. Buzzard’s Original Savannah Band set out to make real New York pop the way they heard it – all the sounds of the city from Broadway to the Bronx, from Tin Pan Alley to the Caribbean enclaves of Brooklyn and Queens. The sixth Kid Creole album, ”I, Too, Have Seen the Woods” (Sire 25579-1, album and cassette), sounds thoroughly contemporary – but then again, so does their 1980 debut LP, ”Off the Coast of Me.”

Rock, funk, salsa, reggae, big-band jazz, rap, calypso, Haitian compas, Dominican merengue, doo-wop – Kid Creole dipped into all of them. American radio stations didn’t know what category to put the music in, and all but ignored it; meanwhile, Kid Creole and the Coconuts amassed hits in South America and in Europe, where they toured with elaborate stage shows like latter-day Cotton Club revues. Now, as rock tours turn into song-and-dance spectaculars and Latin-funk hybrids draw high ratings on urban radio stations – even Madonna drops Spanish phrases into her latest singles – Kid Creole can claim to have been prophetic.

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