{"id":115206,"date":"2025-06-16T10:55:48","date_gmt":"2025-06-16T14:55:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=115206"},"modified":"2025-06-16T10:55:48","modified_gmt":"2025-06-16T14:55:48","slug":"critics-picks-classical-music-events-absolutely-need-see-week-june-16-june-22","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2025\/06\/16\/critics-picks-classical-music-events-absolutely-need-see-week-june-16-june-22\/","title":{"rendered":"CRITIC\u2019S PICKS | Classical Music Events You Absolutely Need To See This Week: June 16 \u2013 June 22"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"L-R
L-R (clockwise): Tafelmusik Summer Baroque Institute grande finale in 2016 and Andrew Eusebio (Photo courtesy of Tafelmusik); Toronto composer Luis Ramirez (Photo courtesy of the artist); The Kindred Spirits Orchestra with Maestro Kristian Alexander (Photo courtesy of KSO)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This is a list of concerts we are attending, wishing we could attend, or thinking about attending between June 16 and 22, 2025. For more of what\u2019s happening around Toronto, visit our calendar here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Tafelmusk Baroque Summer Institute: Opening Night<\/h3>\n

June 16, 8 p.m.
\nJeanne Lamon Hall, Trinity-St. Paul\u2019s Centre, Free with ticket reservation<\/p>\n

The annual bustle of TBSI returns to the city! Drawing both young, and experienced musicians around the world, the institute focuses on exploring baroque performance practice, and their showcase concerts are full of good music and good fun. Come out, and reserve your tickets asap, as these events often run full house. If the opening concert tickles your fancy, there are numerous offerings from TBSI in the next two weeks, including a chance to audit the courses, and other free offerings (details here<\/a>). It\u2019s always good to experience such enthusiasm in person. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Opera 5: Toronto Opera Festival: Elegies \u2014 A Song Cycle by William Finn<\/h3>\n

Tuesday, June 17, 7:30 p.m., Friday, June 20, 7:30: p.m.
\nFactory Theatre, 125 Bathurst St., $24+<\/p>\n

Elegies by Finn is a tiny production involving 5 singers and a piano, but it packs a punch. A remembrance piece drawing from the losses of 9\/11, Finn\u2019s songs are still made to celebrate, as \u201clife has infinite joys.\u201d This is one of the three events for Opera 5\u2019s Toronto Opera Festival 2025<\/a>, and here\u2019s your chance to explore this built from scratch, young opera company\u2019s view on what operatic experience could be. Sometimes it is easy to typecast an artform into an archetype, and it\u2019s always a good thing to take a different perspective. The word on the street is that the opening last Sunday was quite lovely \u2014 so get out there and sink into this tidy 70-min performance. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Bound for Banff Benefit Concert<\/h3>\n

Thursday, June 19, Noon
\nSt. Andrew\u2019s United Church, Pay-what-you-can, $40 suggested at door<\/p>\n

Three early-stage career singers \u2014 Maeve Palmer, Hillary Tufford, and Christian Matta \u2014 will be heading to the world renowned Banff Centre for the \u201cInterplay\u201d summer program this year. With pianist Helen Becqu\u00e9, they\u2019ve organized a fundraising noon concert at the beautiful St. Andrew\u2019s. Focusing on the operatic favourites \u2014 arias, duets, and trios, this is a great event to hear these upcoming young singers closely in person, and share their enthusiasm and artistic flair; no artist can exist without their community, and being there is essential in creating a close-knitted community that keeps arts alive in our world. Do come out and enjoy this lovely break of eternal favourites. Details and more info in our Preview here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The Happenstancers: The Two Deaths of Ophelia<\/h3>\n

Thursday, June 19, 7:30 p.m.
\n918 Bathurst Centre for Culture, Arts, Media and Education, $33.28, free for students<\/p>\n

Ah, poor phelia. The happenstances will construct the eternal tragic heroine through brand new works by Ryan Chase and Luis Ramirez, along with the music of Linda Catlin Smith, Shawn Jaeger, Ann Southam, Wolfgang Rihm, Oliver Knussen, Charles Wuorinen, Krzysztof Penderecki, Claude Vivier, Thomas Ad\u00e8s, and recitations from Virgina Woolf\u2019s selected letters. Planned in two separate storytellings, back-to-back, this clever programming is full of rich music, rarely performed live, and the cast of musicians, all familiar faces in Toronto\u2019s chamber music scene, promises much richness. Come and sink into the tragic poignancy that surrounds this gentle lady. Reader our Preview here<\/a>. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Kindred Spirits Orchestra\/Orpheus Choir\/Resound Choir: Verdi’s Requiem<\/h3>\n

Saturday, June 21, 8 p.m.
\nGeorge Weston Hall, Meridian Arts Centre, $25+<\/p>\n

This amazing work \u2014 Verdi\u2019s finest, personally \u2014 illustrates everything from eternal love, to the agony of hellfire and loss. It is quite something to experience in person. There are many recordings and broadcasts available; however, to hear the collective breath of the choir and the orchestra, in this life-to-death progression, is a quite a poignant human experience. Additionally, the community music making, including civic orchestras and local choirs, is integral in sustaining arts within our community. Come out and support these three ensembles, all in pursuit of artistic excellence in this great work. 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 June 16 to 22, 2025. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":115207,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[41660,74,76,19,3895,41496,38,43,59,63],"tags":[1867,41212,41089],"yst_prominent_words":[7173,8345,14047,36690,12228,6616,6886,10287,12857,6741,14186],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/06\/Copy-of-CRITICS-PICKS-2025-06-16T105254.534.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-tYa","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115206"}],"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=115206"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115206\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":115208,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115206\/revisions\/115208"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/115207"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=115206"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=115206"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=115206"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=115206"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}