{"id":110955,"date":"2025-01-13T09:59:53","date_gmt":"2025-01-13T14:59:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=110955"},"modified":"2025-01-13T09:59:53","modified_gmt":"2025-01-13T14:59:53","slug":"critics-picks-classical-music-events-absolutely-need-see-week-january-13-january-19","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2025\/01\/13\/critics-picks-classical-music-events-absolutely-need-see-week-january-13-january-19\/","title":{"rendered":"CRITIC\u2019S PICKS | Classical Music Events You Absolutely Need To See This Week: January 13 \u2013 January 19"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"L-R
L-R (clockwise): Pianist Bruce Liu (Photo courtesy of the artist); pianist Emanuel Ax (Photo courtesy of the artist); The Imani Winds (Photo courtesy of the artists)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This is a list of concerts we are attending, wishing we could attend, or thinking about attending between January 13 and 19, 2024. For more of what\u2019s happening around Toronto, visit our calendar here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Toronto Symphony Orchestra: Emanuel Ax + Mozart<\/h3>\n

Wednesday, January 15, 8 p.m., Saturday, January 18, 8 p.m., Sunday, January 19, 3 p.m.
\nRoy Thomson Hall, $63+<\/p>\n

Similar to last week, there\u2019s plenty of familiarity in TSO\u2019s programming this week: Mozart\u2019s Piano Concerto No. 25 with perennial favourite, Emanuel Ax; and the amazing Also Sprach Zarathustra \u2014 and yes, it is great to imagine some of the audience discovering the work as a whole for the first time. There\u2019s so much more music after the glorious opening, the opening that became engraved so deeply into our cultural history with Kubrick\u2019s 2001: A Space Odyssey (in fact, there\u2019s a good 30+ min after \u2018Einleitung, oder Sunnenaufgang\u2019: \u2018Introduction\u2019, or Sunrise). And, every one of those minutes is golden. Getting exposed to Tippet\u2019s Concerto for Double String Orchestra is a welcome bonus; his retake on the old tradition of the ripieno concerto (a bit like Vivaldi\u2019s concerti grossi), features many elements of the past: folk songs, the earliest base of an orchestra, including the strings, plus jazz and the rhythmic diversity (thank you, world music) that infiltrated classical music in the early 20th century. Come and experience how we build past and present, and what it means for us, to look back and ponder about what progress or passage of time could mean with this piece, nearly 90 years old, yet sounding fresh to many of us. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Canadian Opera Company: Dance Series: Preview of DanceWeekend \u201825<\/h3>\n

Wednesday, January 15, Noon
\nRichard Bradshaw Amphitheatre, Four Seasons Centre, Free.<\/p>\n

In anticipation of Dance Ontario\u2019s annual DanceWeekend\u201925, amazingly fluid, vibrant, and dedicated dancers will fill the midweek noon hour with gestures, rhythm, and lyricism. Drawing from such wide genres of ballet, flamenco, Hip Hop, Indian classical, Egyptian, Chinese, contemporary, and more, this is a great opportunity to experience rhythm and music in a different context. How do we manipulate time? Or is it we who are manipulated by time and sonic events? Does it matter which way it goes? Come and find out \u2014 and see the sound and pulses come alive before our eyes. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Hugh\u2019s Room Live: Gryphon Trio + Jovino Santos Neto and Friends<\/h3>\n

Saturday, January 18, 8 p.m.
\nGreen Sanderson Hall, Hugh\u2019s Room, 296 Broadview Ave., $45+<\/p>\n

Three-time Latin Grammy nominee Jovino Santos Neto is a jack of all trades \u2014 he plays the flute, piano, composes and arranges, and teaches and conducts. This busy man is joined by the local fav Gryphon Trio and other guest musicians in an evening of exploration of music and nature. Chamber music can be in many different forms and genres, and it is always lovely to see such collaboration \u2014 let\u2019s see what this mature artist (boyish Jovino, 70 years old this year, and an inhabitant of such very different cultures; Rio de Janeiro and Seattle), will present to us, with such rich life experiences. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

21C Music Festival: Michelle Cann and The Imani Winds<\/h3>\n

Saturday, January 18, 8 p.m.
\nKoerner Hall, $21+<\/p>\n

The classic woodwind quintet consists of flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, and bassoon. However, unlike string orchestras or brass bands, unless you\u2019ve been seeking out to hear this specific format, most audiences may have heard such a combination only in passing fragments: in an orchestra concert with section solos, most likely. To hear the ensemble\u2019s colour and capability is a rare opportunity, and the excellent Imani Winds, winners of a 2024 Grammy Award, are visiting Toronto as part of the 21C Music Festival. IM will present brilliant contemporary woodwind quintet compositions by Paquito D\u2019Rivera and Lalo Schifrin, along with two of the cheekiest works by Poulenc: Trio for Oboe, Bassoon, and Piano, FP 43, and the Sextet, FP 100, with a Canadian premiere of Valerie Coleman\u2019s Portraits of Langston, for flute, clarinet, piano and narrator. A great chance to explore the woodwind soundscape. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

University of Toronto Opera: The Avenue of Avarice<\/h3>\n

Sunday, January 19, 2:30 p.m.
\nFleck Dance Theatre, Harbourfront Centre, Free (with email registration).<\/p>\n

A true local project here. Four mini-operas composed by students of Faculty of Music, University of Toronto, drawing from the colourful history of Toronto\u2019s Jarvis Street, will be premiered on this Sunday afternoon. It\u2019s remarkable how many stories sleep quietly in the very streets we casually stroll through. The richness of our own experience fuels us through the changes and trials of our own life, of our own space. Though all the online-tickets are taken, there will be a limited number of walk-up tickets available, scheduled to be released at 12:30 p.m. onward on Sunday at the Fleck Dance Theatre. Of course, you can stream from home, but it\u2019s never the same. Come out and be part of this to-be-packed house, and fall into the magic of live storytelling. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Royal Conservatory of Music: Bruce Liu, Piano<\/h3>\n

Sunday, January 19, 3 p.m.
\nKoerner Hall, $75+<\/p>\n

Bruce Liu, winner of 18th Chopin Piano Competition in 2021, brings his musical finesse and brilliant technique to Koerner Hall this Sunday afternoon matinee, with a rich program of late romanticism and a hint of modernism: Tchaikovsky, Mendelssohn, Rachmaninov, Scriabin and Prokofiev. The piano, despite its percussive nature, can be spun to tell stories of infinitely long phrases under the hands of a masterful pianist \u2014 an impossible task for mere mortals. There are very few tickets left for this concert, so get your tickets right away, and see what magic may fill this afternoon concert. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

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\nHERE<\/a>.<\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Classical music and opera events in Toronto for the week of January 13 to 19, 2024. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":110956,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[41660,76,19,3895,20,38,63,71],"tags":[40017,1143,1607,40307],"yst_prominent_words":[19831,8345,14729,18823,14728],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/01\/Copy-of-CRITICS-PICKS-2025-01-13T094730.901.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-sRB","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110955"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/62"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=110955"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110955\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":110957,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110955\/revisions\/110957"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/110956"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=110955"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=110955"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=110955"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=110955"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}