>> Related story: Tuning up for classical music season
HAWAI‘I SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Blaisdell Concert Hall
Masterworks concerts $35-$96, Pops concerts $27-$79; hawaiisymphonyorchestra.org or 946-8742
“Symphonie Fantastique”
7:30 p.m. Saturday, 4 p.m. Sunday
Michael Stern, conductor; Sandy Cameron, violin. Copland, “Fanfare for the Common Man”; Danny Elfman, “Concerto for Violin & Orchestra (Eleven, Eleven)”; Berlioz, “Symphonie Fantastique”
“Northern Lights”
7:30 p.m. Sept. 28, 4 p.m. Sept. 29
Carlos Miguel Prieto, conductor, Soyeon Kate Lee, piano. Grieg, “Piano Concerto in A minor, Op 16”; Sibelius, “Symphony No. 2”
“Two Seasons”
7:30 p.m. Nov. 9, 4 p.m. Nov. 10.
Keitaro Harada, conductor, J. Scott Janusch, oboe. Prokofiev, “Symphony No. 1 (Classical Symphony)”; Schubert, “Symphony No. 5”; Magnussen, “Na Kau ‘Elua (The Two Seasons)”
“Ode to Joy”
7:30 p.m. Jan. 4, 4 p.m. Jan. 5
JoAnn Falletta, conductor, Esther Yoo, O‘ahu Choral Society artistic director. Tchaikovsky, “Francesca da Rimini”; Beethoven, “Symphony No. 9 (Choral)”
“Mostly Mozart”
7:30 p.m. Jan. 11, 4 p.m. Jan. 12
Carl St. Clair, conductor, Norman Krieger, piano. Mozart, “Overture to ‘The Abduction from the Seraglio’”: Mozart, “Piano Concerto No. 24”; Shostakovich, “Symphony No. 10”
“JoAnn Returns”
7:30 p.m. Feb. 29, 4 p.m. March 1
JoAnn Falletta, conductor, Bella Hristova, violin. Enescu, “Romanian Rhapsody No. 1”; D. Ludwig, “Violin Concerto”; Dvorak, “Symphony No. 8.” Hristova returns to perform a concerto written by her husband, David Ludwig, as an imagination of “the before, during and after” of a wedding ceremony.
“Classic Kahane”
7:30 p.m. March 21, March 22
Jeffrey Kahane, conductor and piano. Beethoven, “Piano Concerto No. 4”; Mendelssohn, “The Hebrides (Fingal’s Cave)”; Schumann, “Symphony No. 1”
“Tchaikovsky’s Masterpiece”
7:30 p.m. March 28, 4 p.m. March 29
Rei Hotoda, conductor; Chee-Yun, violin.
“Ravel & Beethoven”
7:30 p.m. April 11, 4 p.m. April 12
Rune Bergmann, conductor; Behzod Abduraimov, piano. Bizet, “Overture from Carmen (Les Toreadors)”; Ravel, “Piano Concerto”; Beethoven, “Symphony No. 3 (Eroica)”. Making his Hawaii debut, Abduraimov is a native of Uzbek whose career was launched when he won the London International Piano Competition in 2009 at age 18.
“Viva Vivaldi!”
7:30 p.m. May 30, 4 p.m. May 31
Jun Markl, conductor; Alexi Kenney, violin. Tchaikovsky, “Capriccio Italien”; Vivaldi, “The Four Seasons”; Mendelssohn, “Symphony No. 4 (Italian)”. Kenney, making his Hawaii debut, is an Avery Fisher Career Grant winner known for his diverse tone colors.
“Beethoven Rachs!”
7:30 p.m. June 6, 4 p.m. June 7
Naoto Otomo, conductor; William Wolfram, piano. Magisterial works deserve magisterial artists, and Otomo conducting Rachmaninoff and Wolfram performing Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto couldn’t be a better example. Beethoven, “Concerto for Piano No. 5 (Emperor)”; Rachmaninoff, “Symphony No. 2”
POPS SERIES
“Country Legends”
7:30 p.m. Sept. 27
Nashville recording artists Rachel Potter of “The X Factor” and Patrick Thomas from “The Voice” pay tribute to Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Hank Williams and many more with the help of conductor Joseph Stepec and the symphony.
“The Music of Queen”
730 p.m. Oct. 18-19
“Bohemian Rhapsody,” “We Are the Champions,” “Another One Bites the Dust,” great tunes all, thanks to Freddie Mercury’s distinctive voice and presentation. Brody Dolyniuk has proved himself to be more than adept at channeling many rock frontmen in other symphonic rock concerts with the symphony.
Harry Potter in Concert: “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”
7:30 p.m. Nov. 1-2, 4 p.m. Nov. 3
Movie music night: “Star Wars: A New Hope”: Concert and Gala
7:30 p.m. Jan. 31, 2 p.m. Feb. 1
HAWAII OPERA THEATRE
Blaisdell Concert Hall
$34-$135, hawaiiopera.org or 596-7858, ticketmaster.com or 800-745-3000
“Tosca”
Politics and lust collide in Puccini’s dramatic opera about a ruthless baron who tries to manipulate the hotblooded diva Tosca into his bed while condemning her lover to death. HOT debuts for Rochelle Bard in the title role, Dimitris Paksoglou, Aleksey Bogdanov, Jose Adan Perez and director Omer Ben Seadia. 7:30 p.m. Oct. 11; 4 p.m. Oct. 13; and 7:30 p.m. Oct. 15
“The Marriage of Figaro”
Two servants working in the same household hope to get married, but the count they serve schemes to seduce the female servant, while his wife schemes to get him back. HOT debuts for Ryan Kuster in the title role, Amina Edris, Edward Parks, Mane Galoyan and Martina Bingham. Directed by Tara Faircloth. 7:30 p.m. Feb. 14; 4 p.m. Feb. 16; and 7:30 p.m. Feb. 18
“Salome”
A stage presentation of Richard Strauss’ adaptation of the Oscar Wilde drama about John the Baptist, who is persecuted by the lascivious King Herod while also being pursued by the king’s seductive stepdaughter, Salome. HOT debuts for Elizabeth Blancke-Biggs in the title role, Chris Merritt, Nathan Berg, Daveda Karanas and Josh Weeker. Directed by Karen Tiller-Polivka, with dancers performing the famed Dance of the Seven Veils. Two performances only, 7:30 p.m. April 24 and 4 p.m. April 26
CHAMBER MUSIC HAWAII
$30, chambermusichawaii.org or 489-5038
“Ode to Beethoven”
An early Beethoven quartet will be paired with a Schubert quartet to open festivities celebrating the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth. 7:30 p.m. Oct. 21, Paliku Theatre, Windward Community College; 7 p.m. Oct. 22, University of Hawaii-West Oahu Campbell Library; 7:30 p.m. Oct. 28, Doris Duke Theatre, Honolulu Museum of Art
“Bohemian Rhapsody”
The term “Bohemian” is now commonly associated with a free-spirited lifestyle, but it actually is a region that is now part of the Czech Republic. The area has given rise to several great composers, including the Czech Anton Reicha and Hungarians Gyorgy Ligeti and Endre Szervanszky, whose works for wind ensemble will be performed. 7:30 p.m. Nov. 4, Paliku Theatre; 7:30 p.m. Nov. 11, Doris Duke Theatre; 7 p.m. Nov. 12, UH-West Oahu Library
Holiday Brass Choir
7 p.m. Dec. 9, Central Union Church
Holiday Brass Quintet
7:30 p.m. Dec. 16, Central Union Church
Merry & Bright II
7:30 p.m. Dec. 20, Doris Duke Theatre
“Mozart’s Most Memorable Melodies”
KHON-TV news anchor Joe Moore introduces some of his favorite Mozart tunes adapted for wind ensemble. 7:30 p.m. Jan. 13, Paliku Theatre; 7:30 p.m. Jan. 20, Doris Duke Theatre
“Poetry in Music”
Talented local mezzo soprano Laurie Rubin sings poems set to music, accompanied by Chamber Music Hawaii artists. 7:30 p.m. Feb. 17, Paliku Theatre; 7:30 p.m. Feb. 24, Doris Duke Theatre
“Brass Through the Looking Glass”
7:30 p.m. March 16, Paliku Theatre; 7:30 p.m. March 23, Doris Duke Theatre; 7 p.m. March 30, UH-West Oahu Library
“Drama in Palindromes”
A second tribute to Beethoven, with performances of Bartok and Beethoven string quartets. 7:30 p.m. April 6, Paliku Theatre; 7:30 p.m. April 13, Doris Duke Theatre
Season Finale: “The Mark of Zorro”
Guest maestro Rick Benjamin returns to lead Chamber Music Hawaii artists in the original score of the 1920s silent swashbuckler, which stars Douglas Fairbanks and will be projected on screen. 7:30 p.m. May 23, Orvis Auditorium, University of Hawaii at Manoa. Special price: $35
HONOLULU CHAMBER MUSIC SERIES
$20-$45, Orvis Auditorium, University of Hawaii at Manoa, honoluluchamber musicseries.org
Trio con Brio Copenhagen:
Piano trio consisting of violinist Soo-Jin Hong, her sister cellist Soo-Kyung Hong and Soo-Kyung’s husband, Danish pianist Jens Elvekjaer, returns to celebrate its 20th anniversary representing one of Scandinavia’s most distinguished chamber ensembles. 7:30 p.m. Oct. 18
Invoke
A crossover quartet that doesn’t skimp on artistry or virtuosity, Invoke blends folk, jazz, bluegrass as well as classical and minimalist styles. Nick Montopoli, Zachariah Matteson, Karl Mitze and Geoff Manyin have won numerous alternative music contests with their uniquely American sound, created on violin, banjo, mandolin and cello. 7:30 p.m. Dec. 10
Camerata RCO
Named for a grand concert hall in Amsterdam, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra is considered one of the world greatest orchestras. This chamber ensemble consists of string and wind players from that acclaimed group. 7:30 p.m. Jan. 18
Riley Lee and the Enigma Quartet
Lee is a shakuhachi master credited with bringing the instrument to prominence around the world. He performs with the Enigma Quartet, made of fine string players from various Australian symphony orchestras, in a program titled “Five Elements,” a collective effort inspired by the ancient belief that the entire universe is made up of air, water, earth, fire and ether. 7:30 p.m. Feb. 21
Calder Quartet
This young American string quartet has performed not only in the great concert halls around the world but also in late-night television studios hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, Conan O’Brien and Craig Ferguson. 7:30 p.m. March 14