Here’s a look at 10 classical concerts you shouldn’t miss this season, from Michael Christie’s farewell to the Phoenix Symphony to a night of Nordic music by the Grammy-winning Phoenix Chorale.
Matt Haimovitz: Beyond Bach
This Israeli-born cellist made his stage debut at 13 as a soloist with Zubin Mehta and the Israel Philharmonic. At 17, he made his first recording with James Levine and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. In addition to Bach, he’s been known to perform Jimi Hendrix’s take on “The Star-Spangled Banner” (but on cello, not guitar). This prompted the Minneapolis Star-Tribune to rave, “The world is generously supplied with prodigious cellists. But ask which of them is as comfortable with Jimi Hendrix as with J.S. Bach, and you’re likely to hear just one name: Matt Haimovitz.”
Details: 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 15. MIM Music Theatre, Musical Instrument Museum, 4725 E. Mayo Blvd, Phoenix. $32.50-$42.50. 480-478-6000, themim.org.
Phoenix Symphony, with guest conductor Sarah Hicks
Opening night brings guest conductor Sarah Hicks. The principal conductor for pops and presentations for the Minnesota Orchestra, Hicks has been cited as part of “a new wave of female conductors” by the New York Times. She’s also toured with Sting, Ben Folds and Smokey Robinson. Hicks is scheduled to conduct one of Symphony Magazine’s emerging artists to watch, Elena Urioste, performing Beethoven’s “Violin Concerto in D Major.” The program begins and ends with Leonard Bernstein — Overture to “Candide” and Symphonic Dances from “West Side Story.” Rounding out the program is Brahms’ “Hungarian Dances Nos. 5 & 6.”
Details: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 20; 8 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 22. Symphony Hall, 75 N. Second St., Phoenix. $18-$79. 602-495-1999, phoenixsymphony.org. Also: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 21. Scottsdale Center for the Arts, 7830 E. Second St. $33-$53. 480-499-8587, scottsdaleperformingarts.org.
Virginia G. Piper Concert Series: Murray Perahia
The Grammy-winning pianist will perform Haydn’s “Sonata in D Major, H 24”; Schubert’s “Moments Musicaux, Op. 94”; Beethoven’s “Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp minor” and “Quasi una fantasia, Op. 27, No. 2”; Schumann’s “Faschingschwank aus Wien”; and two Chopin pieces, “Impromptu No. 2 in F-sharp Major, Op. 36” and “Scherzo No. 1 in B minor.” The concert also features Keyboard in the Sky, a video projection above the stage that enables the audience to see the pianist’s hands moving across the keyboard in real time from any seat in the theater.
Details: 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 7. Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts, 7830 E. Second St. $29-$69. 480-499-8587, scottsdaleperformingarts.org.
Nordic Voices
Nordic Voices puts the spotlight on shimmering choral arrangements of songs by composers from Scandinavia as performed by the Grammy-winning Phoenix Chorale. The program features music by Jean Sibelius, Jaako M�ntyj�rvi, Einojuhani Rautavaara, Edvard Grieg, Ola Gjeilo and some vocal jazz arrangements from the famous Swedish ensemble the Real Group. The Chorale and artistic director Charles Bruffy teamed with Norwegian composer Gjeilo on their latest album, “Northern Lights: Choral Works by Ola Gjeilo,” which included five world-premiere recordings and three pieces that were either commissioned, composed or dedicated to the Phoenix Chorale.
Details: 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 20. American Lutheran Church, 17200 Del Webb Blvd., Sun City. 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 20. Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, 100 W. Roosevelt St., Phoenix. 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 21. Christ Church of the Ascension, 4015 E. Lincoln Drive, Paradise Valley. $28 general admission; $23 seniors and military; $12 students. All tickets are $5 more when purchased the day of the concert. However, starting 15 minutes before concert time, anyone 25 years old and younger can purchase rush tickets for just $5. 602-253-2224, phoenixchorale.org.
Ang Li
Ranked among the top 30 pianists in the world by the 2009 Cliburn Competition, this up-and-coming virtuoso made her first appearance on the concert stage at 6, at Beijing Concert Hall. Since then, she’s played with the China National Symphony Orchestra and appeared at Carnegie Hall in New York City, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., and the National Center for the Performing Arts in China. But this is her first time in Arizona, performing selections by Franz Liszt in honor of the 200th anniversary of his birth.
Details: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 7. ASU Kerr Cultural Center, 6110 N. Scottsdale Road. $18; $15 seniors; $10 students. 480-596-2660, asukerr.com.
Phoenix Boys Choir Classical Vault
The acclaimed Phoenix Boys Choir celebrates the 200th birthday of two of the most influential 19th-century Romantic opera composers — Richard Wagner (of whom Gustav Mahler was moved to remark, “There was only Beethoven and Richard (Wagner) — and after them, nobody”) and Giuseppe Verdi. The choir, whose singers are between the ages of 7 and 14, will also acknowledge the 100th birthday of English composer Benjamin Britten, a leading modern classical music and opera composer.
Details: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 22, and Saturday, Feb. 23. Steele Indian School Park Memorial Hall, 300 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix. $27 main floor; $22 balcony in advance. $25 at the door. 602-264-5328, boyschoir.org.
Tragedy & Triumph: ‘The Soldier’s Tale’ & ‘Headcase’
This is part of Arizona MusicFest 2013, which features everything from classical and chamber music to show tunes, jazz, pops and country. This particular performance features Igor Stravinsky’s “The Soldier’s Tale” and the Arizona premiere of Brent William Dietz’s “Headcase,” performed by the Arizona Musicfest Chamber Players (members of the all-star Arizona Musicfest Orchestra). Stravinsky’s “Soldier’s Tale” has been labeled a “modern Faust” while Dietz’s “Headcase” is a moving work inspired by the composer’s recovery from a stroke at the age of 29.
Details: 4 and 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 16. MIM Music Theatre, Musical Instrument Museum, 4725 E. Mayo Blvd, Phoenix. $32.50-$42.50. 480-478-6000, themim.org.
Midori
Born in Osaka, Japan, Midori was 14 and still studying at Juilliard when she captured the imagination of classical music fans by breaking two strings on two violins while playing Leonard Bernstein’s “Serenade” and finishing the piece on a third violin in a concert at Tanglewood in Boston. The New York Times responded with a front-page story headlined “Girl, 14, Conquers Tanglewood with 3 Violins.” She’s 40 now but still dazzling crowds. Midori was selected as a U.N. Ambassador for Peace in 2007; her performance, part of the Phoenix Chamber Music Society’s new season, is set to feature Bach sonatas.
Details: 8 p.m. Thursday, March 15. Camelback Bible Church, 3900 E. Stanford Drive, Paradise Valley. $35. 602-252-0095, phoenixchambermusicsociety.org.
Lang Lang
Named to Time magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2009, this Chinese classical pianist sold out his previous Mesa Arts Center engagement in 2011. When Lang Lang appeared at the opening ceremony for the XXIX Olympiad in Beijing in 2008, his performance was said to have inspired more than 40 million Chinese children to take up classical piano. In a review of a recent performance at Carnegie Hall, the New York Times wrote, “With his charismatic stage presence, passionate playing and astounding technique, it was easy to see why he has garnered a large following.”
Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, April 27. Mesa Arts Center, 1 E. Main St. $50-$95. 480-644-6500, mesaartscenter.
Michael Christie’s Farewell Concert
The Phoenix Symphony is promising a “bittersweet yet triumphant” farewell as Michael Christie says goodbye to Phoenix in his final performance with the symphony after eight years as Virginia G. Piper music director. As befits the occasion, the choice of material was driven by the departing conductor’s own “artistic insights,” as symphony CEO Jim Ward puts it. The program features Dvorák’s “Scherzo Capriccioso,” a celebration reflecting nature and the vibrancy of a village festival; Mozart’s “Symphony No. 38,” also known as the Prague Symphony; and Witold Lutoslawski’s “Concerto for Orchestra.” These concerts are sure to be the emotional highlight of the coming season.
Details: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 9; 11 a.m. Friday, May 10, and 8 p.m. Saturday, May 11. Symphony Hall, 75 N. Second St., Phoenix. $18-$79. 602-495-1999, phoenixsymphony.org. Also: 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 10. Scottsdale Center for the Arts, 7830 E. Second St. $33-$53. 480-499-8587, scottsdaleperformingarts.org.
Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/ae/articles/2012/08/17/20120817fall-arts-2012-classical-concerts-phoenix-arizona.html#ixzz26OfvIs00
