Ludwig van Toronto’s weekly Critic’s Picks are a fully curated list of some of the best concerts happening now through the end of the week. This is not to say we are the provocateurs of taste, but simply seek to provide a good weekly summary. For a look at the full breadth of what’s available in and around Toronto, check out our curated concert listings here.
Critic’s Picks (October 1 – 7)
Tuesday 2
Canadian Opera Company | Vocal Series: Russian Songs and Romances. 12 p.m., Richard Bradshaw Amphitheatre. Free. Limited Seating.
After his successful debut as the Emperor in Stravinsky’s Nightingale and Other Short Fables last spring, Moldovan bass Oleg Tsibulko returns to the COC as Prince Gremin in Eugene Onegin. In this recital, he sings songs by Georgy Sviridov set to text by Robert Burns. Stéphane Mayer is the pianist. | DETAILS
Royal Conservatory of Music | Koerner Hall 10th Anniversary Gala: Kathleen Battle. 8 p.m. Koerner Hall, 273 Bloor St. W. $100-$250.
American soprano Kathleen Battle returns to Toronto for this gala fund-raiser celebrating the Tenth Anniversary of Koerner Hall. Joining her is pianist/producer/composer/arranger Joel A. Martin. On the program are songs by Purcell, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Liszt, Rachmaninov, as well as selections from American musical theatre and spirituals. | LISTING
Music Toronto | Marc-Andre Hamelin.8 p.m. Jane Mallett Theatre, St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts, 27 Front St. E. $47.50-$52/$10(st) Age 18-35 (pay your age)
The great Canadian pianist Marc-Andre Hamelin makes a welcome return to Music Toronto, in this recital of works by Bach/Busoni, Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Chopin, Samuel Feinberg and Alexis Weissenberg.| LISTING
Wednesday 3
Tafelmusik | Close Encounters Chamber Series: Quintessential Boccherini. 12 p.m. Church of the Holy Trinity. $42. Repeats Sat. Oct. 6 2 p.m., Temerty Theatre, Telus Centre.
Tafelmusik under the direction of violinist Elisa Citterio presents a program of Boccherini string quartets. Soloists include Citterio, plus violinist Cristina Zacharias, violist Brandon Chui, and cellists Christina Mahler and Allen Whear. | LISTING
Toronto Symphony Orchestra | Mahler Symphony No. 5. 8 p.m. Roy Thomson Hall. Repeats Oct. 4, 8 p.m. $35.50-$131.75.
Conductor Han-Na Chang leads the TS forces in Mahler Symphony No. 5, with the famous Adagietto. Also on the program is Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G, featuring pianist Javier Perianes. | LISTING
Royal Conservatory of Music | The Academy of St. Martin in the Fields Chamber Ensemble 8 p.m. Koerner Hall. $40-$100.
A subset of the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, the eight-musician Chamber Ensemble is in town to perform a program of works by Carl Nielsen, Jean Françaix, and Beethoven. | LISTING
Thursday 4
Women’s Musical Club of Toronto | Poulenc Trio. 1:30 p.m. Walter Hall, University of Toronto. $45.
WMCT opens its season with the Poulenc Trio (James Austin Smith, oboe; Irina Kaplan Lande, piano; Bryan Young, bassoon) in a program of works by Alfred Schnittke, Viet Cuong, and Dmitri Shostakovich. | LISTING
Canadian Opera Company | Eugene Onegin 7:30 p.m. Four Seasons Centre, 145 Queen St. W. $45-$350. Six more performances to Nov. 3. Start times vary.
The COC opened its season last Sunday with the most popular Tchaikovsky opera, Eugene Onegin, in a production by Canadian director Robert Carsen, originally staged at the Metropolitan Opera. It features a superb cast led by bass-baritone Gordon Bintner in the title role, and soprano Joyce El-Khoury as Tatiana. Johannes Debus conducts. | LISTING
Friday 5
Royal Conservatory of Music | Yannick Nézet-Séguin and the Orchestre Metropolitain. 8 p.m. Koerner Hall, 273 Bloor St. W. $75-$150.
Canadian conductor Yannick Nezet-Seguin, now music director of the Metropolitan Opera, returns to his roots as conductor of the Orchestre Metropolitain in this concert of Sibelius Symphony No. 1 in E Minor, op. 39, and Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 4, with pianist Nicolas Angelich. Also featured is the Ontario premiere of Avril by Nicolas Gilbert. | LISTING
Saturday 6
Met Opera Live in HD | Aïda. 12:55 p.m. Selected Cineplex Cinemas. For locations go to https://www.cineplex.com/Events/MetOpera/ParticipatingTheatres $28/$27(sr).
Russian soprano Anna Netrebko brings her Aida to the Metropolitan Opera. Aleksandrs Antonenko is Radames, and Georgian mezzo Anita Rachvelishvili sings Amneris. Nicola Luisotti conducts. | DETAILS
