Classical music and opera events happening in and around Toronto for the week of February 4 – 10.

Critic’s Picks (Feb. 4 – 10)

Ludwig van Toronto’s weekly Critic’s Picks are a curated list of some of the best concerts happening now through the end of the week. For a look at the full breadth of what’s available in and around Toronto, check out our curated concert listings here.

Tuesday 5

Canadian Opera Company | Cosi fan tutte. 7:30 p.m. Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, 145 Queen St. W. $35-$350. Seven performances to Feb. 23. Start times vary.

The second of two operas in the COC Winter Seasons opens with the Atom Egoyan production of Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte, last seen five years ago. It is a colourful and whimsical show designed by Debra Hanson with images based on Frida Kahlo’s painting The Two Fridas. Kirsten MacKinnon (Fiordiligi), Emily D’Angelo (Dorabella), Ben Bliss (Ferrando), Johannes Kammler (Guglielmo), Tracy Dahl (Despina), and Russell Braun (Alfonso). Mozart specialist Bernard Labadie at the helm. | Details

Tapestry Opera | Hook Up. 7:30 p.m. Theatre Passe Muraille Mainspace Theatre, 16 Ryerson Ave. 11 performances to Feb. 9. $25/$55(VIP) Start times vary.

Hook Up, a Tapestry Opera production in partnership with Theatre Passe Muraille, continues this week. It’s the story of the lives of three friends at university – “no parents, new friends, new rules, and a new normal. Hook Up raises questions of consent, shame, and power in the lives of young adults navigating uncharted waters on their own.” Emily Lukasik, Alicia Ault, Nathan Carroll, Alexis Gordon and Jeff Lillico. Music by Christ Thornborrow and libretto by Julie Tepperman. Adult content. | Details

Music Toronto | Juho Pohjonen. 8 p.m. Jane Mallett Theatre, St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts, 27 Front St. E. $53.50-$58.

Finnish pianist Juho Pohjonen plays a program of Rameau, Mozart, and Beethoven. | Details

Wednesday 6

Canadian Opera Company | Elektra. 7:30 p.m. Four Seasons Centre, 145 Queen St. W. $45-$350.

This revival of Elektra received uniform praise when it opened last week. Directed by James Robinson and conducted by Johannes Debus. American soprano Christine Goerke, British soprano Susan Bullock, Canadian soprano Erin Wall, Canadian tenor Michael Schade, and German baritone Wilhelm Schwinghammer. Five more performances to Feb. 22. | Details

Toronto Symphony Orchestra | Brahms and Dvořák. 8 p.m. Roy Thomson Hall, 60 Simcoe St. $40.75-$154. Repeats Feb. 7 & 9.

TSO Concertmaster Jonathan Crow and Principal Cello Joseph Johnson join forces in Brahms’s Double Concerto, paired with Dvorak’s Symphony No. 6. The concert opens with Czech-Canadian composer Oskar Morawetz’s Carnival Overture, with the TSO joined by the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra. | Details

Thursday 7

University of Toronto Faculty of Music | Plagiarism and Theft with pianist Younggun Kim. 12:10 p.m. Walter Hall, Edward Johnson Building, 80 Queen’s Park. Free.

Don’t let the provocative title fool you — it’s a recital program of musical creations inspired by pieces that precede it. The talented pianist Younggun Kim presents a recital of works based on other works, including Bach-Busoni Chaconne, Godowsky’s Studies on Chopin’s Etudes, and Ravel’s La Valse. | Details

Tafelmusik | The Tempestuous Violin 8 p.m. Trinity-St. Paul’s Centre, 427 Bloor St. W. $30-$99. Repeats Feb. 8, 9, 10(mat), 12 (George Weston Recital Hall).

Baroque violinist Enrico Onofri, frequent collaborator and former teacher of Tafelmusik’s Elisa Citterio, plays a program that “explores music’s role in inciting human passions and unleashing the power of Mother Nature.” Works by Kapsberger, Gabrieli, Scheidt, Castello, Legrenzi, Corelli, Locke, and Vivaldi. | Details

Mississauga Symphony Orchestra | La bohème 8 p.m. Hammerson Hall, Living Arts Centre, 4141 Living Arts Drive, Mississauga. $50-$95. Repeats Feb. 9.

Mississauga Symphony Orchestra puts on a fully staged La boheme, starring a youthful cast led by tenor Romulo Degado (Rodolfo) and soprano Shantelle Przybylo (Mimi). Denis Mastromonaco conductors, and David Ambrose is the stage director. | Details

Friday 8

Royal Conservatory of Music | Johannes Debus Conducts the Royal Conservatory Orchestra. 8 p.m. Koerner Hall, 273 Bloor St. W. $25-$60.

COC Music Director Johannes Debus conducts the RCM Orchestra in a program of Mozart and Tchaikovsky. Emily Phernambucq is the soloists in the Mozart Flute Concerto No. 1. | Details

Sunday 10

Amici Chamber Ensemble | Mozart’s Party: Serenades of a Master. 3 p.m. Mazzoleni Hall, Royal Conservatory of Music, 273 Bloor St. W. $50/$40(sr)/$30(under 30)/$15(st).

In this Mozart’s month, the Amici Chamber Ensemble presents Mozart’s Party: Serenades of a Master, featuring many of Amici’s long-time collaborators and friends from the TSO Wind Section and students from the Glenn Gould School. Program includes Mozart’s Serenade No. 10 for winds in B flat Major, K. 361/370a (“Gran Partita”), Piano Trio in C Major, K. 548, as well as Young Composers Program Compositions. | Details

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Joseph So

Joseph So is Professor Emeritus at Trent University and Associate Editor of Opera Canada.He is also a long-time contributor to La Scena Musicale and Opera (London, UK). His interest in music journalism focuses on voice, opera as well as symphonic and piano repertoires. He appears regularly as a panel member of the Big COC Podcast.He has co-edited a book, Opera in a Multicultural World: Coloniality, Culture, Performance, published by Routledge (Taylor & Francis Group).

CRITIC'S PICKS | 10 Concerts You Absolutely Need To See In Toronto This Week (Feb. 4 – 10)