{"id":126011,"date":"2026-07-20T10:54:47","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T14:54:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=126011"},"modified":"2026-07-20T22:29:53","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T02:29:53","slug":"critics-picks-classical-music-events-absolutely-need-see-week-july-20-july-26-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2026\/07\/20\/critics-picks-classical-music-events-absolutely-need-see-week-july-20-july-26-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"CRITIC\u2019S PICKS | Classical Music Events You Absolutely Need To See This Week: July 20 \u2013 July 26 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"L-R
L-R (clockwise): Iconic jazz pianist Herbie Hancock; cellist Rachel Mercer, The Glass Orchestra (Photos 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 July 20 and 26, 2026.<\/p>\n

Toronto Concert Orchestra: Elton Rohn: The Hits<\/h3>\n

Tuesday, July 21, 8 p.m.
\nPalais Royale Ballroom, 1601 Lake Shore Blvd. W., $99+<\/p>\n

Ah, the glamour of summer evening concerts with TCO returns to Palais Royale Ballroom this week. First of five in the series for this summer, the TCO opening will feature Elton Rohn, one of the world\u2019s best Elton John tribute bands. Come out with your most outrageous costumes, sequins and jewels, and enjoy the brilliant hits of Elton with a full orchestra and band. It\u2019s a lovely way to enjoy the broad palette of the orchestra – with lots of whimsy and vulnerable, heartfelt emotions. Read our Interview with Artistic Director Sharon Lee and co-Artistic Director Marcus Scholtes here<\/a>. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Koffler Arts: The Glass Orchestra<\/h3>\n

Friday, July 24, 6:30 p.m.
\nKoffler Arts \u2014 Young Place, 180 Shaw St., Suite 105, $24<\/p>\n

In celebration of the current summer exhibition Plague Crystals by Natalia Romik, Koffler Arts is hosting the Glass Orchestra. These four musicians: Rick Sacks, Bill Parsons, Paul Hodge, and Eric Cadesky, have been busy designing, building, and playing glass instruments for decades. If you wonder \u2018what do you mean, glass orchestra?\u2019 this is the way to find out and expand your idea on what music is and how we create, perform, and perceive. Come out for this fascinating hour-long concert, complete with cash bar. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Toronto Summer Music: Prodigies & Power<\/h3>\n

Friday, July 24, 7:30 p.m.
\nWalter Hall, University of Toronto, $30+<\/p>\n

It\u2019s quite difficult to pick just a few from the rich offerings of TSM. However, the variety of works \u2014 from the great Prokofiev Sonata for two violins to the notoriously difficult Mendelssohn Piano Trio and rarely programmed Dohn\u00e1nyi piano quintet with the amazing Orion Weiss on the piano (along with Sharon Wei, viola, and Rachel Mercer, cello) \u2014 makes this a definite favourite from this week\u2019s selections. Born out of a humorous inspiration \u2014 \u2018Listening to bad music sometimes inspires good ideas… After once hearing an unsuccessful piece for two violins without piano accompaniment, it struck me that in spite of the apparent limitations of such a duet one could make it interesting enough to listen to for ten or 15 minutes\u2019 \u2014 the Sonata for Two Violins bears the signature Prokofiev soundscape, from barebone to the most magical melodic moments and everything in between. To hear it live with Andrew Wan and Jonathan Crow, who’ve been working so closely for years, will be a treat. And Orion Weiss is a fantastic pianist, especially excellent in his chamber musicianship. What a great promise to a lovely evening. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Summer Opera Lyric Theatre: Earnest, The Importance of Being<\/h3>\n

Saturday, July 25, 2 p.m., Sunday, July 26, 2 p.m., July 29, 8 p.m., July 31, 8 p.m.
\nAlumnae Theatre, 70 Berkeley St., $22+<\/p>\n

These young singers and pianist\/coaches have prepared three different works for this summer\u2019s SOLT production: Menotti\u2019s The Medium, Victor Davies and Eugene Benson\u2019s Ernest, the Importance of Being, and Leo\u0161 Jan\u00e1\u010dek\u2019s Katya Kabanova. Out of the three, Davies and Benson\u2019s take on Oscar Wilde\u2019s masterpiece seems to be a great fit for the dire world we face now, through the haze of the wildfire \u2014 as many describe it as the one of the funniest operettas they\u2019ve ever encountered, full of hilarity and sarcasm, but also with sincerity and sharp observations. It\u2019ll be interesting to see how these young singers, with director Sabina Rzazade (the pianist half of the recent winning duo of the 49th Eckhardt-Gramatt\u00e9 National Music Competition for voice) navigate this Canadian work, premiered in 2008. Come out and support the young, and be inspired by their drive, dedication, and artistry. Read our Preview of the three productions here<\/a>. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Massey Hall: Herbie Hancock<\/h3>\n

Sunday, July 26, 8 p.m.
\nMassey Hall, $77+<\/p>\n

One of the biggest figures in the contemporary piano world, Herbie Hancock is taking over Massey this Sunday evening. With greats \u2014 Terence Blanchard, James Genus, Lionel Loueke, and Jaylen Petinaud, this is a remarkable concert \u2014 a true master at his peak maturity. Info here<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

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Classical music and opera events in Toronto for the week of July 20 to 26, 2026. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":126014,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[42533,10,76,19,3895,4967,41496,32,38,43,59,63],"tags":[],"yst_prominent_words":[14776,8345,8398,21105],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/07\/Copy-of-CRITICS-PICKS-2026-07-20T105412.291.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-wMr","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126011"}],"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=126011"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126011\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":126040,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/126011\/revisions\/126040"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/126014"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=126011"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=126011"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=126011"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=126011"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}