Classical Seattle

This week’s featured concerts:

Apr. 29 — A noted expert in modern music, pianist Stephen Drury performs a benefit concert for the Seattle Modern Orchestra. Drury’s recital features virtuosic works for solo piano including John Cage’s Etudes Australes and Charles Ives’ Concord Sonata. More info

May 2 – 4 — The Seattle Symphony pays tribute to the masters of the Classical Era with a program of favorites by Mozart and Haydn, including the latter’s “Little Organ Mass”. French hornist John Cerminaro will join the orchestra for Mozart’s Horn Concerto No. 1 in E-flat major. More info

May 3 — The Oregon Symphony rolls into town for a performance at Benaroya Hall. Our orchestral neighbors from the south will perform a musical potpourri that includes works by Schubert, Ravel, Weill, and Thai composer Narong Prangcharoen. More info

May 3 — Celebrate Bach’s great works for organ in the soaring expanse of St. Mark’s Cathedral. Christa Rakich, chair of the organ department at New England Conservatory, performs an all-Bach program on St. Mark’s stunning Flentrop organ. More info

May 4 – 18 — Full of psychological tension and emotional nuance, Puccini’s Suor Angelica (“Sister Angelica”) and Poulenc’s La Voix Humaine (“The Human Voice”) arrive at Seattle Opera as a double-bill. Often performed together, these short operas share similar themes of loss and redemption. More info

This week’s featured concerts:

Apr. 16 — Local pianist and UW professor Craig Sheppard celebrates the 150th anniversary of Debussy’s birth with a concert of some of the composer’s most famous works for piano. Written at the height of the Impressionist era, Debussy’s Twelve Etudes, Estampes, and Images vividly depict scenes from nature and the 19th century world. More info

Apr. 17 — An institution in the chamber music world since 1969, the Tokyo String Quartet will disband at the end of the 2013 concert season. Now’s your last chance to see this storied ensemble in Seattle. They’ll perform Mozart, Auerbach, and Ravel at the UW’s Meany Hall for the Performing Arts. More info

Apr. 18 — The UW’s Inverted Space Ensemble is a group of graduate student musicians devoted to studying and performing modern and contemporary repertoire. This week’s concert features Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire song cycle as well as the West Coast premiere of a work by Elliott Carter. More info

Apr. 19 – 21 — Pianist Awagadin Pratt joins the Northwest Sinfonietta for a trio of concerts this weekend. Known for his interpretations of Mozart, Pratt will perform the composer’s Piano Concerto No. 23. Also on the program is the world premiere of a work by the ensemble’s Music Director, Christophe Chagnard. More info

Apr. 19 & 21 — Experience chamber music up close and personal with the musicians of Simple Measures. This time, they’re joined by Seattle Symphony concertmaster Alexander Velinzon for an exploration of the musical element of harmony, including a performance of Beethoven’s “Archduke” piano trio. More info

Apr. 20 — Soprano Ellen Hargis teams up with the Seattle Baroque Orchestra for scenes from operas of the Italian Baroque era. Hear three different composers’ interpretations of the mythological story of Orpheus, including excerpts from Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo. More info

This week’s featured concerts:

Mar. 21 – 24 — Pacific Northwest Ballet presents the final weekend of performances of “Modern Masterpieces”, highlighting choreography by George Balanchine, Ulysses Dove, and Twyla Tharp, as well as a new work by PNB’s Paul Gibson. “Modern Masterpieces” features the music of Bach, Mozart, Philip Glass, and Arvo Pärt.

Mar. 23 — Organist Doug Cleveland teams up with the Northwest Chamber Chorus for two major choral works, Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem and Benjamin Britten’s Rejoice in the Lamb.

Mar. 23 — The Seattle Baroque Orchestra presents an evening of sonatas and trios by Haydn, performed by fortepianist Byron Schenkman, violinist Ingrid Matthews, and cellist Nathan Whittaker. This concert marks the debut of a newly restored 1799 English fortepiano by Joseph Kirckman.

Mar. 24 — Composer Terry Riley comes to town for a performance of his famous work In C. The concert is part of a community celebration hosted by the Seattle Art Museum in honor of MIRROR, a new art installation gracing the museum’s façade.

Mar. 24 — The Seattle Chinese Orchestra performs at Cornish College of the Arts. The concert highlights traditional and contemporary works from both sides of the Pacific Ocean.