From sports (here's hoping for another deep Phillies playoff run!) to politics (maybe better not to go there...), this fall will offer no shortage of things for Philadelphians to talk about.
WRTI's classical team is already abuzz about the 2024-25 concert season, which features an embarrassment of riches for listeners in the Tri-State area, from intimate chamber recitals to epic orchestral showcases. Whether you’re drawn to the concert hall to escape the world or to plumb its deeper insights, you'll find the right concert in our Classical Fall Preview. (And while we’re here, don’t miss our Jazz Fall Preview.)
This is a special edition of Fanfare, a weekly digest of concert listings in the Philly area; if you don’t already receive this free service in your inbox, sign up today. — Zev Kane, Classical Program Director
The Listeners — Opera Philadelphia, Sept. 25, 27, 29, Academy of Music
Opera Philadelphia’s first year in many without a Festival O will leave nobody wanting for new music, as they open their season with the American premiere of The Listeners. Featuring music by one of today’s greatest composers, the Philly area’s own Missy Mazzoli, and a libretto by Royce Vavrek, it tells an all-too-timely story of the dangers presented by charismatic leaders. Given that theme, one would rightly expect a heavier tone from the production, which comes with a content warning. Almost co-headlining is the company’s bold new pricing model, which has left limited tickets for all three performances. (John T.K. Scherch)
Mahler’s Symphony No. 3 — The Philadelphia Orchestra, Oct. 3-5, Marian Anderson Hall
Gustav Mahler’s symphonies have always provoked a visceral response from me, and his Third is no exception. What a thrill to hear Those Fabulous Philadelphians take on a work that “mirrors the whole world,” according to Mahler himself. Star mezzo Joyce DiDonato joins Yannick Nézet-Séguin in a performance of this epic work. Let the combined sounds of the orchestra, soloist and choir wash over you and “willingly surrender to the rhapsodist!” (Meg Bragle)
Stolen — Tempesta di Mare, Oct. 5 and 6, various locations
Tempesta di Mare has an intriguing concert planned for October 5th and 6th, featuring works by Reinhard Keiser and George Frederic Handel that come from a “suitcase of stolen music.” You’ll hear how these two quoted other composers and popular works from their own time, which today might be considered copyright infringement. This is all presented by one of the best period instrument ensembles around. (Dave Tarantino)
Triomphi — Piffaro, Oct. 11-13, various locations
To kick off its season, Piffaro, the Renaissance Band has devised a fascinating collaboration inspired by Francesco Petrarch, the 14th-century humanist whose writings and scholarship sparked the Italian Renaissance. The pristine New York-based vocal ensemble TENET Vocal Artists joins Piffaro in popular songs of the period and madrigals based on Petrarch’s poetry. In an imaginative touch, designer Camilla Tassi evokes Renaissance Italy through visual projections. (Melinda Whiting)
Riccardo Muti Leads Verdi’s Requiem — The Philadelphia Orchestra, Oct. 24-26, Marian Anderson Hall
During his tenure at the helm of The Philadelphia Orchestra from 1980 to 1992, Riccardo Muti offered multiple operas in concert that became eagerly anticipated events. Most were from the Italian Romantic tradition, and all were presented with remarkable precision and fidelity to the score. Those classic performances are still fresh in my mind — so for me, Muti’s rare return to Philadelphia with Verdi’s highly operatic Requiem setting is another can’t-miss occasion. (Whiting)
Chamber Music of George Walker — Bowerbird, Nov. 2, University Lutheran
George Walker was one of the greatest composers to make his way through our city, studying at the Curtis Institute of Music in the 1940s, and soon after becoming the first Black instrumentalist to perform with The Philadelphia Orchestra (He later became the first Black composer to win a Pulitzer Prize). A group of ensembles converge on University Lutheran for this Bowerbird concert of his chamber works, including pianists Dynasty Battles and David Hughes; members of the Arcana New Music Ensemble; and the Daedalus Quartet, performing Walker’s first string quartet, whose second movement was later expanded into his most famous work, Lyric for Strings. (Scherch)
The Gesualdo Six — Penn Live Arts, Nov. 7, St. Mary’s Church
Powered by the distinctly beautiful style of composers like Thomas Tallis, William Byrd, Thomas Morley, and John Dunstable, the motet — a form of sacred vocal music — achieved its peak in the English Renaissance. Few contemporary ensembles are better equipped to interpret this delicate and idiomatic repertoire than The Gesualdo Six, who make a rare Philly visit as part of a wonderfully varied Penn Live Arts season. The intimate acoustics of St. Mary’s Church is sure to make the renowned British sextet sound all the more ravishing. (Zev Kane)
Belcea Quartet & Quatuor Ebene — PCMS, Nov. 10, Perelman Theater
A solo Philly appearance by either of these quartets — two of the finest in business today — would be an occasion worth celebrating in its own right, so this joint concert from the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society feels particularly special. Equally remarkable is the program, which features the two greatest exemplars of the esoteric yet sonically rich string octet repertoire: Felix Mendelssohn’s effervescent Octet in E-flat Major and Georges Enescu’s colorful, inventive Octet in C Major. This crossover episode is not to be missed! (Kane)
Happy Hour Fantastique — The Philadelphia Orchestra, Nov. 21, Marian Anderson Hall
The Philadelphia Orchestra’s answer for the future of classical music is their Orchestra After 5 series, which received Philly Mag’s “Best Classical Outing” of 2024. This installment features Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique in a multimedia presentation. You can drink a signature cocktail inspired by this work in a pre-concert happy hour, and hang afterwards to chat with conductor Stéphane Denève and host Tristan Rais-Sherman. (Tarantino)
Fretwork and Iestyn Davies — PCMS, Dec. 6, Church of the Holy Trinity
Fretwork is a wonderful viol consort known not only for excellence in the core repertoire, but for expanding the canon through commissions — over 40 to date. Iestyn Davies, who I first saw at his standout Metropolitan Opera debut in Handel’s Rodelinda in 2011, has continued to impress since then. The program highlights some of the gorgeous repertoire for this combination of strings and voice originating in Germany throughout the 17th century; listen for the way the voice intertwines with the special sound of a viol consort. (Bragle)
