Composer

Lithuanian conductor Giedrė Šlekytė masterfully bridges the worlds of symphonic music and opera, making this programme a perfect fit for her talents. Schreker’s Nachtstück from Der ferne Klang evokes a haunting allure, with a mysterious sound that ties the protagonist to a lost love. Bartók’s The Miraculous Mandarin brims with tension, its stark opening capturing the harshness of urban life. His Second Violin Concerto, composed amidst the rise of fascism, balances raw power with tender lyricism. Alena Baeva, laureate of the 2005 Queen Elisabeth Violin Competition, brings these emotions to life, and the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra is thrilled to share the stage with her.

Alena Baeva plays Bartók

Queen Elisabeth Hall

Patricia Kopatchinskaja and Christina Landshamer – two global stars, each outstanding in their own unique way. In this concert, the two artists will each have their own stage and will be supported by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and its Chief Conductor Gustavo Gimeno.

EPSG:4326

Toronto Symphony Orchestra / Patricia Kopatchinskaja / Gustavo Gimeno

Elbphilharmonie Hamburg

Following two triumphant Benaroya Hall appearances, internationally lauded British cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason returns with two other members of his remarkable musical family: sister Isata on piano and brother Braimah on violin. Don’t miss these three sensational musicians’ rendition of Beethoven’s unique and vibrant Triple Concerto, the composer’s only concerto for multiple soloists. Kahchun Wong also returns to our stage, conducting British composer Malcolm Arnold’s emotional Peterloo Overture, which commemorated Manchester radicals who were killed while protesting for parliamentary reform in 1819. The evening finishes with Bartók’s cherished Concerto for Orchestra, an adventurous melding of folk themes and unorthodox tonality that highlights each section of the orchestra.

The Kanneh-Masons Play Beethoven Triple Concerto

Benaroya Hall

Sleigh bells and sweet melodies tumble out from Mahler’s Fourth Symphony, painting a scene the composer compared to “a dewdrop on a flower that suddenly illuminated by the sun, bursts into a thousand lights and colors.” Former Dudamel Fellow Elim Chan leads the Los Angeles Philharmonic as they traverse a shifting atmosphere of mellow woodwinds, menacing trumpet calls, and eager timpani wallops, before approaching the gates of heaven.

Mahler, Bartók & Ravel

Walt Disney Concert Hall

Finally, world star Vilde Frang is back on stage in Olavshallen with us in TSO and with Adam Hickox on the podium. This time to delight the audience with one of the great violin concertos of the 20th century.

Vilde Frang plays Bartók

Olavskvartalet

Embark on a musical odyssey with renowned Finnish conductor Osmo Vänskä. The evening begins with Missy Mazzoli’s Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres), a swirling, celestial work inspired by planetary motion and the roiling drone of the medieval stringed instrument, the hurdy-gurdy. Henry Dorn’s powerful Transitions follows, a deeply personal tone poem reflecting on loss, transformation, and resilience.

Osmo Conducts Bartók

Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts

Bluebeard’s Castle by Béla Bartók sits somewhere between a gothic tale of horror and a psychological dissection of a twisted relationship. Alone in a castle, Judith follows a trail of ever more compelling and grisly clues to unlock the truth about her new husband, horror by horror, door by door.

Bluebeard’s Castle

The Bridgewater Hall

Seven doors, and behind each one, a crucial piece of a gruesome puzzle…
Bluebeard’s Castle by Béla Bartók sits somewhere between a gothic tale of horror and a psychological dissection of a twisted relationship. Alone in a castle, Judith follows a trail of ever more compelling and grisly clues to unlock the truth about her new husband, horror by horror, door by door.

BBC Philharmonic - Bluebeard’s Castle

BNY Classics showcases unforgettable performances by your Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, featuring timeless masterpieces, thrilling premieres, and renowned guest artists.

Špaček Plays Dvořák

Heinz Hall for the Performing Arts

This special performance by the BBC Philharmonic is a rare opportunity to hear Bartók’s gripping one-act opera, Bluebeard’s Castle, in an atmospheric concert hall staging with theatrical lighting. An impulsive young bride has turned her back on her family, only to uncover the gruesome truth about her new husband lurking behind every locked door of his imposing citadel. With sinister strings, strident winds and commanding brass, it’s both a compelling psychological drama and a masterpiece of orchestral scene painting. The spectacular opening of the fifth door, revealing both the vast expanse of Bluebeard’s realm and his overbearing power, remains one of the most spine-tingling moments in all music.

BBC Philharmonic Orchestra: Bluebeard's Castle

Royal Concert Hall Nottingham

The cimbalom is a true chameleon: Like only the piano, the Hungarian dulcimer feels at home in all genres and styles. And so does Áron Horváth, who, as the European Concert Hall Organization's "Rising Star," tours the continent's major concert halls. With his World Music Quartet, the young cimbalom virtuoso will explore jazz and folk music from Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria at the Elbphilharmonie.

Áron Horváth, Cimbalom

Canadian piano superstar, Meagan Milatz joins us to blow the roof off of the Winspear with Robert Schumann’s incredible piano quintet. This perennial favourite is virtuosic, joyful and thrilling for performer and audience alike. The first half of this concert includes Clara Schumann’s Soirées Musicales and the riveting sixth string quartet of Béla Bartok.

Meet the Schumanns

Winspear Centre

Bach's works are of such grandeur and fascination that the choice of instruments on which they are played quickly becomes irrelevant. This is especially true given that Bach himself wrote many pieces for a variety of instruments. The Finnish accordion virtuoso Janne Rättyä was therefore inspired to create unusual Bach arrangements. He also tackled the wonderful piano Petitesses of Henri Dutilleux, as well as Bartók's Romanian Folk Dances, which perfectly complement the Hungarian-inspired finale in Brahms's masterful String Quintet.

Bach Re-experienced

Das MuTh

Kaleidoscope

Wallraf-Richartz Museum

The British cellist Raphael Wallfisch, son of Holocaust survivor and cellist Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, performs with pianist Simon Callaghan in major works by composers of diverse musical backgrounds and approaches who were caught up in the suffering and upheaval of the Second World War.

Raphael Wallfisch: Composers in Exile

Southbank Centre

Local dance students perform to waltzes, tangos, and other traditional dance pieces played by The Syracuse Orchestra.

Kids Dance!

Inspiration Hall

With velvety-soft plucked notes in harp and low strings, Bartók lures you into the magical world of his Second Violin Concerto. The solo violin unleashes a melody that dances before you like a butterfly, and suddenly you're in a magical hall of mirrors where you'd love to stay forever—especially when Vilde Frang is the soloist. Finally, the jubilant final chord breaks the spell. But then another such wonder follows: Dvořák's Eighth.

Dvořák and Bartók

De Doelen

Ludwig van Beethoven's only opera, Fidelio, tells of a woman's courageous fight for freedom and justice: Leonore disguises herself as Fidelio in order to free her husband from the unjustly imprisoned dungeon. Her path to the story's happy ending is as arduous as Beethoven's compositional process. He revised the entire work four times, writing a separate overture for each new version. While the first three overtures incorporate musical material from the opera, thus anticipating parts of the plot, Beethoven dispensed with direct quotations in the final Fidelio overture. Using two rhythmically distinct motifs, he created contrast and dynamic energy that provide the atmospheric foundation for this moving opera.

5th Symphony Concert

Staatstheater Mainz

International splendor in the newly renovated Beethoven Hall: The Beethoven Orchestra meets Danish conductor Thomas Dausgaard, who conducts at all the major venues worldwide, and world-class violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja, a creative free spirit who repeatedly shakes the foundations of the "classical music business" and seeks to break down rigid structures. For his debut with the Beethoven Orchestra, Thomas Dausgaard has chosen Johannes Brahms's dark Fourth Symphony: a yearning work that simultaneously pays homage to the musical past – especially Johann Sebastian Bach – and looks far into the future.

Past and Future

Beethoven Hall

Following a breathtaking collaboration in 2024, Philadelphia’s premier contemporary ballet company, BalletX, returns to PCMS alongside the “audacious… liberating… illuminating” ensemble132 (Blogcritics) for an imaginative program. The first half features miniatures by Wiancko and Bartók culminating in the turbulent and emotionally charged Mozart Piano Quartet in G Minor. These works explore themes and styles that set the stage for the second half: BalletX Resident Choreographer Amy Hall Garner’s reimagining of Petrouchka, a magical ballet that delves into innocence, coming of age, folk traditions, and hot-blooded passion.

BalletX ensemble132

In the Mirror: This is our series for curious music fans, for those who think outside the box, for those for whom classical music is a part of our present, a reflection of our lives. The Spiegel concerts will take place on Thursday evenings for the first time this season. At the first concert in the series, our presenter Bettina Böttinger will meet the exceptional musician Patricia Kopatchinskaja and the top conductor Thomas Dausgaard – the latter our first guest conductor in the Beethoven Hall since the reopening celebrations.  The focus of the evening will be the Second Violin Concerto by Hungary's national composer, Béla Bartók.

Hungarian

In Béla Bartók's only opera, Judith leaves her family and fiancé to become Bluebeard's wife. He welcomes her to a dark and solitary castle, a reflection of his own private life. Judith wants to bring light into the castle and forces him to open, one by one, the seven tightly locked interior doors, behind which lie repressed desires and traumatic memories. In this early 20th-century masterpiece , Bartók conveys the full force of the couple's violence and sensuality through music of great evocative power.

Bluebeard's Castle

Lille Opera

Experience an enchanting Sunday morning with Tito Muñoz and the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra. In Bartók’s The Wooden Prince, a prince’s attempt to win his princess with a wooden replica leads to unexpected magic in a dark forest. Originally composed as a ballet, the suite remains captivating in the concert hall. Stravinsky’s Symphonies d’instruments à vent, composed as a tribute to Debussy, features only wind instruments in a unique, mosaic-like structure. With unusual harmonies and rich timbres, Stravinsky offers a completely new listening experience.

Stravinsky and Bartók on Sunday morning

Prepare for a feast for the senses with this captivating programme. Star percussionist Alexej Gerassimez takes centre stage in Corigliano’s thrilling Concerto ‘Conjurer’, showcasing his artistry on a myriad of instruments, from marimba to cymbals. Each composer offers a unique orchestral palette: Corigliano highlights percussion, Stravinsky focuses on winds, and Bartók blends the full symphonic forces. United by the elemental sounds of wood, metal, skin, and wind, the music feels almost tangible. Under the dynamic baton of Tito Muñoz, the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra delivers a performance that will leave you spellbound.

Concerto for percussion

John Adams doesn't just like to think big, he sometimes dreams big too. For example, of a supertanker rising from the sea like a gigantic rocket. Dream images like this inspired his large-scale orchestral work "Harmonielehre" (Theory of Harmony) as well as the whimsical scenery of his "Chairman Dances." The composer from Massachusetts is—somewhat against his will—considered part of the broader field of Minimal Music. His breathtakingly expansive "Harmonielehre," with its impressive percussion section, is both late-Romantic and expressive, as well as richly sensuous in its sound. But of course, it is also rhythmically captivating, even hypnotic—a typical Adams. It premiered exactly 40 years ago and has since been considered a touchstone for every orchestra, and the American conductor David Robertson, making his debut with the hr-Sinfonieorchester (Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra), is regarded as a specialist in its interpretation. The percussion section also takes center stage in Bartók's work, acting as the third soloist in the Concerto for Two Pianos, Percussion, and Orchestra. Timpani and xylophone become melodic instruments, while the Jussen brothers are given free rein to unleash their percussive fury at the pianos. Indeed, the world is turned somewhat upside down in this program – and particularly grotesquely so in the exuberant revue number "The Chairman Dances" by John Adams: Mao Zedong, the Chairman of the Communist Party of China, dances a foxtrot, accompanied by a US president on a bar piano – this is the bizarrely ironic setting of this effective orchestral piece.

Harmony theory

Alte Oper

Concert in the Wiener Konzerthaus

Wiener Konzerthaus

Concert of the Society of Friends of Music in Vienna

Musikverein Wien

Artists in Residence Lucas & Arthur Jussen will be performing chamber music, presenting captivating works for two pianos or pianists. The program ranges from the vibrant and moving Schubert movements to the rhythmic fire of Béla Bartók and the Romanticism of Robert Schumann. Bartók impressively showcased the secret affinity between the sound of two pianos and percussion in his famous sonata. For piano four-hands, however, the early Romantic Schubert left behind more than any other great composer: among other things, the most monumental sonata movement for piano four-hands we know: a stormily beginning, almost grim Allegro, which later inspired the publisher to title it "Life's Storms." Yet here, too, the heavens open – with one of those harmonic turns with which the late Schubert repeatedly transports his listeners to another world. The same is true of his single Adagio Trio movement, in which time seems to stand still.

Life's storms

Hessischer Rundfunk

Making his debut, this astounding French accordionist has been described by Le Monde as having “a masterly technique and an inexhaustible wealth of phrasing.” Offering a tango-inspired program, Ould evinces his instrument’s rightful place in the classical repertory.

Théo Ould, accordion Union College

Union College

3rd Subscription Concert

Vienna Music Society

A concert in two halves with an intermission – and it will be a very athletic affair on an exciting playing field with numerous musical passes: Under the commands of Elim Chan, we will form an orchestral team for compositions that demand teamwork and coordination. But first, we will musically prepare the stage for the match – with a work "written with great pleasure" by Sofia Gubaidulina: It dates from 1971 and is a delightful story about a small piece of chalk. For Dvořák's Violin Concerto, first performed in 1883, we welcome the acclaimed violinist Augustin Hadelich as the driving star striker: For although the original composition is based on the idea of ​​the symphonic concerto, there is ample room for the soloist to showcase their talent – ​​especially in the fiery finale, which is based on the Bohemian folk dance "Furiant," meaning "the intoxicating one" or "the frenzied one." In the second half, our task remains the same: to move the musical ball back and forth between the different instrumental sections with great precision and unerring technique – in Bartók's popular Concerto for Orchestra from 1943, which, while essentially a disguised symphony, offers ample solo opportunities for individual members of our ensemble.

Elim Chan, Augustin Hadelich

Bamberger Symphoniker

Trombone Quartet Recital

University of Wisconsin-Madison

Tonight, our string section takes centre stage. Written in 1939 as Europe teetered on the brink of war, Bartók’s Divertimento fuses Hungarian folk-rhythms with his signature spiky harmonies and driving momentum. This is furiously virtuosic music; technically demanding and intense, pulsing with energy.

Serenade for Strings

RNCM (Royal Northern College of Music)

Welcome to Masterpieces #3 and to an evening where we delve into the symphony orchestra's fascinating universe of timbres, roles and dynamic characters. Here we will experience well-known and popular classical highlights, ranging from the most delicate notes to the most dramatic climaxes, from the effervescent to the heartbreaking – making the symphony orchestra pulsate as if it were a living organism. The program includes captivating ear-hangers by Mozart and Rossini, gripping descriptions of love by Mahler and Wagner, and folk musical intricacies by Grieg, Bartok and Tchaikovsky.

Masterpieces #3

The Conservatory Concert Hall

Haslev-Halls

Stenhus Gymnasium

Ringsted Kongrescenter

Exiled in the United States, Bartók and Korngold poured their longing for home into their concertos—one steeped in Hungarian traditions, the other blending Viennese charm with Hollywood melodies. Showcasing the brilliant Simone Lamsma, this concert promises an enchanting journey full of emotion, cinematic splendour, and symphonic brilliance. A magical evening where mesmerizing melodies will allow you to discover a rich cultural heritage.

Echoes of Europe in Hollywood

Place des Arts

Discover the Happy Symphonic Hour version of our December 3 program and be swept away by nostalgic European sounds and iconic Hollywood melodies. This 60-minute concert also offers a chance to meet comedian Philippe-Audrey Larrue-St-Jacques, who will be hosting the evening. Plus, you’ll have the opportunity to discover—or rediscover—the incredible violinist Simone Lamsma, acclaimed for her outstanding performance in 2024.

From Europe to the Movies

The DACAMERA audience favorites perform a characteristically intriguing and varied program. Haydn’s inventive classical works are daringly contrasted with 20th and 21st century quartets, including a recent work by award-winning composer/pianist Timo Andres.

Brentano String Quartet

The Menil Collection

CARION is a Danish/Swedish/Latvian wind quintet, which is both well-founded in the traditional classical wind quintet repertoire, but has also achieved enthusiastic reviews for their performances of lesser-known and newer repertoire within the wind quintet genre in many places in Europe, the USA, and Brazil. The quintet has collaborated with contemporary composers such as Jeppe Just, Renate Stivrina, Andris Szenitis, Britta Byström and Anders Nordentoft.

CARION Wind Quintet

MantziusLive

“To hear Cho breathe tenderness and freedom into this music while giving it a sturdy rhythmic profile was a striking thing.” (San Francisco Chronicle)

“Cho’s mix of imagination, pacing, balance and control produced moments of spellbinding sonic art.” (The Artsdesk)

Korean pianist Seong-Jin Cho was brought to the world’s attention in 2015 when he won the First Prze at the Chopin International Competition in Warsaw. This “Chopin Competition winner can stand proud next to the likes of such illustrious past winners as Pollini, Argerich, and Zimerman,” said the Pianist. 

Seong-Jin Cho, piano

The Royal Conservatory of Music

Join in the festivities as the SLSO presents Beethoven’s personal favorite—his blazing, boisterous Seventh Symphony. Pianist Joyce Yang’s interpretation of Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini is sure to ignite sparks of energy across Powell Hall in this spirited Thanksgiving weekend event, which also features conductor Kevin John Edusei’s SLSO debut. Yang has impressed audiences all over the globe, with reviewers applauding her “tremendous power” (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) and “impeccable technique” (TheaterJones).

Beethoven’s Seventh

Powell Hall

Drawing inspiration from a childhood obsession listening to the improvisations of legendary clarinettist Benny Goodman, Nigel Westlake’s Rare Sugar unleashes the clarinet’s joyful quality, with whimsical character, surprising virtuosity and a delightful blend of classical and jazz influences.

Omega Ensemble: Rare Sugar

ACO On The Pier

Opera and drama are rarely the focus of Thuringia's largest concert orchestra, which makes the program, which combines two stage works, all the more remarkable. Opening with Gabriel Fauré's incidental music for "Pelléas et Mélisande," the delicacy and tragedy of Maeterlinck's symbolic drama come alive in impressionistic soundscapes. The centerpiece of the evening is Béla Bartók's opera "Duke Bluebeard's Castle": an intense psychological drama in which Judith opens the locked doors of the castle and simultaneously uncovers her husband's secrets. 

Friday Concert No. 2

Volkshaus Jena

Great things come in small packages – it only takes four musicians to form a string quartet, but the emotions they can create are infinite. Eighteenth century eloquence and wit, untamed passions from the Hungarian countryside, and a Scottish seascape from the extraordinary imagination of Fergus Hall: anything’s possible when the Fibonacci Quartet returns to the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.

Fibonacci Quartet

Bute Park

The musicians of the Orchestre de Paris put their talent at the service of an ad hoc quartet, which takes on the most seductive ‘miniatures’ by Bartók and Prokofiev. 

Miniatures

Cité de la Musique

The philharmonic concerts of the Hamburg State Orchestra become ZeitSpiele and transcend the boundaries of the ordinary: In this concert, Ella Milch-Sheriff's musical interpretation of the texts from Des Knaben Wunderhorn will be heard - as some of Mahler's songs are replaced by new compositions from her hand, inspired by the original. Mahler meets us today as a mirror of the past and at the same time, through Milch-Sheriff, as part of the here and now! This musical game without fear of contact opens up new perspectives on our musical culture, our way of thinking and being, on our way of receiving music.

3rd Philharmonic Concert MAHLER / MILCH-­SHERIFF

Elbphilharmonie

The Hamburg State Orchestra's Philharmonic Concerts become contemporary plays, transcending the boundaries of the ordinary. This concert features Ella Milch-Sheriff's musical interpretation of the texts from "Des Knaben Wunderhorn" – some of Mahler's songs are replaced by new compositions by her, inspired by the original. Mahler confronts us today as a mirror of the past and, through Milch-Sheriff, as a part of the here and now. This unabashedly engaging musical play opens new perspectives on our musical culture, our thinking and being, and our way of receiving music.

Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra / Annika Schlicht / Benjamin Appl / Adam Fischer

Violinist Benjamin Beilman has built an international audience of listeners enthralled by his golden tone, impeccable technique, and magnetic musicianship. Truly a violinist’s violinist, Beilman excels at whatever he plays, from classic to contemporary, with equal appeal. Partnering with Beilman for this special concert is pianist Gloria Chien, a long-time presence at CMS and one of today’s most sought-after collaborators.

An Evening with Benjamin Beilman and Gloria Chien

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts

Step into the haunting world of Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle, where suspense and drama unfold in the beautiful score. Led by Principal Conductor Ari Pelto, this darkly mesmerizing opera will transport you to a realm of mystery and psychological depth. Experience the intense power of Bartók’s music, live on stage.

The Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera 2024-2025 Season and Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor Ari Pelto are generously underwritten by the Nancy and Hank Fisher Family Fund.

Opera! Bluebeard’s Castle

Safe Credit Union Performing Arts Center

On the 21 November 1975, a group of pioneering musicians walked out onto the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall stage and the Australian Chamber Orchestra was born. Founded by the legendary Australian cellist John Painter, these musicians were driven by a shared mission to take control of their musical destinies: to become the country’s first truly national orchestra with an uncompromising commitment to elite performance, to represent Australia on the world stage, and provide opportunities to the country’s brightest young string players.

Celebrating the Australian Chamber Orchestra

Sydney Opera House

When Yuja Wang and Teddy Abrams last shared the stage in Louisville, it led to a Grammy win. Now, the longtime collaborators reunite for a night of electrifying virtuosity, diving into the bold sounds of Hungary.

Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 kicks things off with a whirlwind of fire and flair, followed by Ligeti’s Piano Concerto, a dazzling, shape-shifting masterwork that Wang navigates with “sly, jazzy exuberance” (Gramophone). Closing the program is Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra, a tour-de-force that spotlights every section of the orchestra in a vibrant, folk-infused celebration.

Yuja Wang & Teddy Abrams Return

The Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts

For more than ten years, the Montpellier Occitanie National Orchestra has been developing a close partnership with the Cité des Arts – Regional Conservatory of Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole.

Tuba in light

La Cité des Arts

Opéra Comédie

A modern player with a signature sound and distinctive style, American cellist Mark Kosower embodies the international concept of the complete musician. He was a top prize winner in both the Rostropovich and Pablo Casals International Cello competitions. He has established a distinguished career as concerto soloist with symphony orchestras, in solo recitals, as an admired and sought-after chamber musician, and as a respected scholar and teacher. Formerly solo cellist of the Bamberg Symphony in Germany, he is now Principal Cello of The Cleveland Orchestra. His cello master classes at Hidden Valley Music Seminars in Carmel, California each summer draw professional-level participants from across the continent.

Mark Kosower & Tatiana Lokhina

Sunset Center

Experience an unforgettable evening of music with Regina’s own rising star, violinist Amy Hillis! This thoughtfully crafted program offers a unique and personal connection to the soloist, as Hillis curates the entire first half – a heartfelt musical playlist she’s chosen to share with her hometown.

Hillis Homecoming

Darke Hall

Hero's Journey - Symphony Orchestra

ISU Center for the Performing Arts

First United Methodist Church, Springfield

Join us for a concert celebrating the sesquicentennial of Maurice Ravel's birth! Violinist Gabriel Richard and cellist Jesús Castro-Balbi present an inventive program that traces his far-reaching influence on chamber music from the early 20th century to today. At its heart is Ravel's Sonata for Violin and Cello, a work of radical clarity and contrapuntal innovation, composed in memory of Claude Debussy.

Violinist Gabriel Richard and cellist Jesús Castro-Balbi pair Ravel's masterwork with music by Béla Bartók, Jean Martinon, Augusta Read Thomas, and Alice Hong, each reflecting a different facet of the evolving modernist and postmodern chamber idiom.

Gabriel Richard and Jesús Castro-Balbi: “Tribute to Ravel” Recital

Duke University

Music carries our stories. It holds memory, culture, and emotion, linking us to those who came before and those yet to come. Tian’s A Thousand Years of Good Prayers opens the evening with a piece that reflects on history and tradition, full of quiet strength and deep feeling. Then, violinist Ray Chen takes us into the rich, romantic world of Bruch’s Violin Concerto—a piece that feels both deeply personal and universally moving. Finally, Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra shines a light on every part of the ensemble, proving that music, like history, is built on many voices working together.

Ray Chen Plays Bruch

Wharton Center for Performing Arts

Nikolai Medtner’s rarely performed Elegies, Op 59 are bookended by Bartók’s daring Three Studies, Op 18 and Ravel’s much-loved Gaspard de la nuit.

Katya Grabova

Wigmore Hall

The evening's program is framed by two works for the ensemble of piano, viola and clarinet, an ensemble for which Mozart was the first to write a work back in 1786, which was to have a significant impact on the spread of the clarinet as a classical instrument. It was a fairly new instrument in Mozart's time, but quickly found its place as a fully integrated and widely used instrument in both orchestral and chamber music.

Sabine Meyer, Nils Mönkemeyer & William Youn

Mogens Dahl Koncertsal

Dvořák features in our Symphonic Series this week and also here in our Chamber Series with his gorgeous Terzetto — a rich and complex trio famously composed in just one week. We pair it with a lively string quartet by Bartók. One of his first published pieces, the quartet pulses with rhythmic energy and momentum.

From Antonín Dvořák to Béla Bartók

Due to the renovation of the Frankfurt Concert Hall, we are moving part of our chamber music series to the event hall of the Frankfurt Kleist Museum this season. This is a fitting opportunity for this Sunday matinee, as this museum will be opening the exhibition "Kleist and Music" in the fall of 2025. With this matinee, we are providing a piece of accompanying music to this show and to Kleist's era. The poet Heinrich von Kleist not only played the clarinet himself, but with Johann Baptist Vanhal and Iwan Müller, we have two of his contemporaries in the program. In Müller, we also have a clarinetist and composer who, as an instrument maker, made significant contributions to the further development of the clarinet.

2. Sunday Matinee

Kleist Museum

It is probably the country that currently poses the most difficult puzzles for all friends of a united Europe, but at least culturally it is one of the most exciting in the East: Hungary exerted a considerable influence on Central European musical history in the 19th and 20th centuries. Yet far from the much-performed Brahms dances, the program features three, partly relatively unknown, Hungarian composers, all born around the turn of the century.
Béla Bartók's "Pictures" of his homeland, which the Swiss conductor Simon Gaudenz introduces at the beginning, are still somewhat familiar.

Fire

Stadthalle Göttingen

Brace yourself for Mahler’s “Titan” Symphony—a whirlwind of nature’s awakening, a wedding procession, a funeral march, and a finale that could move mountains. With its vivid orchestration and emotional punches, this symphony stands as a testament to Mahler’s genius, blending folk influences with grandeur that will leave you breathless.

Markus Poschner conducts Mahler's "Titan" Symphony

Salt Palace Convention Center

A radiant force in the new generation of pianists, Avery Gagliano brings insight, imagination, and a bold interpretive voice to the stage. Hailing from Washington, D.C., Gagliano is a recent graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music and a mentee of Sir András Schiff at the Kronberg Academy in Germany. Lauded by The Philadelphia Inquirer as “a pianist who conveys a vivid musical personality and bold imagination,” Gagliano is a familiar and beloved presence on Washington Performing Arts stages. Her program traverses Romantic fervor, American lyricism, Hungarian fire, and the introspective intensity of late-Romantic Russian works—each piece a canvas for her expressive brilliance.

Avery Gagliano, piano

Washington Performing Arts

Honorary conductor Jukka-Pekka Saraste conducts Gustav Mahler's contrast-filled Symphony no. 5 , which begins with a mourning march and ends in a jubilant ending. Tabea Zimmermann is a soloist in Béla Bartók's Brass Concerto , which the composer wrote entirely on the stamp of life.

Jukka-Pekka Saraste Tabea Zimmermann

Oslo Concert Hall

Orchestra della Svizzera italiana

LAC Lugano Arte e Cultura

This year, the series of impressive orchestral concerts conducted by Ion Marin continues at the Haus für Mozart. On October 21, the maestro will perform two important and well-known works of orchestral literature with the Junior Symphony Orchestra of the Mozarteum University Salzburg. On October 22, the program will be heard in the Max Schlereth Hall under the direction of conducting students.

Symphony orchestra concert with conducting students

Mozarteum University Salzburg

Symphony orchestra concert with Ion Marin at the Haus für Mozart

House for Mozart

Concerto, Concerto

Jackson Theater, Sonoma Country Day School

Vilde Frang with ANPO

Aram Khachaturian Concert Hall

Ravel called his 1912 ballet Daphnis et Chloé a “choreographic symphony.” “My intention,” he wrote, “was to compose a vast musical fresco in which I was less concerned with archaism than with reproducing faithfully the Greece of my dreams.” The sumptuous, dreamlike music, conducted here by Jun Märkl in his SF Symphony debut, enchanted listeners from the start. Violinist Leonidas Kavakos joins the Symphony for a passionate performance of Bartók’s Violin Concerto No. 2, an exercise in radical simplicity. Bartók’s endlessly fertile five-note figure spawns hook after hook, each more captivating than the last.

Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloé

Davies Symphony Hall

The first in a series of three concerts featuring the two-time Grammy® Award-winning Attacca Quartet, a true quartet for modern times. Gliding through traditional classical repertoire to electronica, video game music, and a who’s who of contemporary collaborations, they are one of the world’s most innovative and respected ensembles.

Composer

Béla Bartók

Events

Upcoming events

Sep 16, 2025 - Jun 16, 2026

NDR Chamber Concert · Elbphilharmonie

Feb 7, 2026

LPO Showcase: Foyle Future Firsts and the Royal Academy of Music · London Philharmonic Orchestra

Feb 7, 2026

The Wooden Prince · London Philharmonic Orchestra

Feb 8, 2026

London Symphony Orchestra/Elim Chan · Barbican Centre

Feb 13, 2026

Music for strings, percussion and celesta - Chamayou / Viotti · Orchestre National de France

Past events

Feb 6, 2026

Alena Baeva plays Bartók · Antwerp Symphony Orchestra

Feb 5, 2026

Toronto Symphony Orchestra / Patricia Kopatchinskaja / Gustavo Gimeno · Elbphilharmonie

About

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