{"id":124387,"date":"2026-05-19T10:20:37","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T14:20:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=124387"},"modified":"2026-05-19T08:42:50","modified_gmt":"2026-05-19T12:42:50","slug":"critics-picks-classical-music-events-absolutely-need-see-week-may-18-may-24-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2026\/05\/19\/critics-picks-classical-music-events-absolutely-need-see-week-may-18-may-24-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"CRITIC\u2019S PICKS | Classical Music Events You Absolutely Need To See This Week: May 18 \u2013 May 24 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"L-R
L-R (clockwise): Violinist Hilary Han (Photo courtesy of the artist); Anoushka Shankar (Photo courtesy of the artist); the Penderecki Quartet (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 May 18 and 24, 2026. For more of what\u2019s happening around Toronto, visit our calendar here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Music Toronto: Penderecki Quartet: 40th Anniversary Concert<\/h3>\n

Thursday, May 21
\nJane Mallett Theatre, St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts, $60+<\/p>\n

Four decades is a long time! Since 1991, they\u2019ve been based in Waterloo, performing and nurturing close and faraway \u2014 their contribution as artists and educators has been much appreciated by Torontonians and beyond. As the Penderecki Quartet celebrate their 40th anniversary, the group is bringing much loved repertoire: Mozart\u2019s Hoffmeister Quartet, Penderecki\u2019s Leaves of an Unwritten Diary, and Schubert Quintet with guest cellist Roman Borys. Come and join the celebration, and take part in the magical intimacy of string quartet. A pre-show concert at 6:30 p.m. will feature Jacques Forestier and Jeanie Chung: a budding international artist, Forestier, with Chung at the piano, will take on Dvorak\u2019s Romantic Pieces and Strauss\u2019 Sonata \u2014 a great chance to hear one of the best violins in the world, a Guadagnini (c.1765). Read our Preview of the concert here<\/a>. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Toronto Symphony Orchestra: Shankar\u2019s Sitar<\/h3>\n

Thursday, May 21, 7:30 p.m., Saturday, May 23, 7:30 p.m.
\nRoy Thomson Hall, $69+<\/p>\n

Ravi Shankar quickly became a household name through diverse collaboration, including working with Yehudi Menuhin and George Harrison of the Beatles, bringing the Indian Sitar to the Western audience. Anoushka Shankar, daughter of Ravi, is an amazing artist \u2014 a performer and creator with 11 Grammy nominations \u2014 and she is bringing Ravi Shankar\u2019s iconic sitar concerto no.2, Raga-Mala, to the stage. Concert opener, Meeting Along the Edge, from Passages, a collaborative work by Philip Glass and RS, will receive its Canadian premiere this Thursday evening. The tickets are going fast \u2014 even with the choir loft open, the hall is near capacity. So don\u2019t wait, get your tickets now for this true cross-over concert. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Royal Conservatory: Hilary Hahn with Tom Poster<\/h3>\n

Thursday, May 21, 7 p.m.
\nKoerner Hall, $70+<\/p>\n

It is so good to see the return of legendary Hilary Hahn to the stage after a bout of health concerns. Her playing, ever since she was a wee young lady entering Curtis at age 10, has been impeccable and mesmerizing \u2014 truly one of the best of our time. The hiatus since summer 2024 has left many of her fans worried, and this concert, a reschedule from June 06, 2024, would certainly be a highlight of 2026 spring. Come out and hear her in full glory, with pianist Tom Poster. The luminous program consists of mostly French repertoire: Ravel, Debussy, Lili Boulanger and Faur\u00e9, along with two fresh works: a North American premiere of Scott Tixier: Ressemblance, Duo for Violin and Piano, and Bu-Ching Lam\u2019s Solitude d\u2019automne. What a way to return, and what a chance to welcome this brilliant artist. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Toronto Bach Festival: Kaffeehaus<\/h3>\n

Saturday, May 23, 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.
\nChurch of the Holy Trinity, 19 Trinity Square, $65, festival pass available<\/p>\n

It has been hard to tell which season we are in, thanks to the weather, but the return of the annual TBF is a great sign of spring. This year, four events and a lecture have been scheduled for the weekend, starting with Bach\u2019s Double Concertos on Friday evening, stretching well into the Sunday afternoon. And the loveliest of the selection is the Kaffeehaus. Featuring great voices: Sherezade Panthaki, Nicholas Burns, Asitha Tennekoon and Martin Gomes, along with narrator R.H. Thomson as Herr Zimmermann, and the Toronto Bach Festival Orchestra + guests from Collegium Musicum, University of Toronto, this casual, open-warmth program always sells out. The 4 p.m. is packed out, so get your 8 p.m. ticket now, and join in for this beloved tradition. Read our Interview with Artistic Director John Abberger here<\/a>. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Royal Conservatory: Kevin Chen<\/h3>\n

Sunday, May 24, 3 p.m.
\nKoerner Hall, $35+<\/p>\n

Canadian pianist Kevin Chen made his mark by winning the first prize at the Franz Liszt competition (2021), Concours de Gen\u00e8ve (2022), Arthur Rubinstein (2023), and most recently, a second prize at the International Chopin Competition (2025). Known for the beautiful colours that he draws from the piano \u2014 essentially a big black inanimate object \u2014 his strength is in making that machine sing pure melodies. Bringing a program full of panache and flair \u2014 Chopin, Scriabin, and Liszt \u2014 this is a great way to soak into piano virtuosity for a Sunday afternoon. The hauntingly beautiful Vers la Flamme, Scriabin\u2019s last piano work, has been of great interest to past piano giants: Richter, Horowitz, Ashkenazy, and now Volodos and Sokolov \u2014 it will certainly be an experience for the uninitiated. Read our Interview with Kevin Chen here<\/a>. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

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Classical music and opera events in Toronto for the week of May 18 to 24, 2026. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":124389,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[42533,74,76,18,19,3895,38,47,63,68],"tags":[42922,4223,39815,2594,19042],"yst_prominent_words":[10861,7173,13493,14729,26696,6606,10287,12857,14728,8282,19041,19040],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/05\/Copy-of-CRITICS-PICKS-2026-05-19T084159.968.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-wmf","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/124387"}],"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=124387"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/124387\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":124391,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/124387\/revisions\/124391"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/124389"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=124387"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=124387"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=124387"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=124387"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}