It’s a busy week on the Philadelphia classical music scene and there truly is something for everyone. Fanfare is here to help plan your itinerary; sign up to receive this guide in your inbox every week, for free!
Spotlight: Ricercar Consort and Céline Sheen — Thursday, Episcopal Cathedral
PennLive Arts brings the Belgian-based Ricercar Consort to Philadelphia for the first time, in a program of 17th century masters including Vivaldi, Monteverdi, Purcell and Handel — all inspired by the Virgin Mary. They are joined by Grammy-nominated soprano Céline Scheen, a singer of pristine beauty and intelligence.
March 6 at 7:30 p.m., Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral, 19 South 38th Street, $46; tickets and information.
Emi Ferguson and Ashley Jackson — Wednesday, American Philosophical Society
A fascinating pairing by two genre-defying artists. Flutist Emi Ferguson and harpist Ashley Jackson join together for a program titled “Enchanted Dawn.” Centered around Ravi Shankar’s work of the same name for flute and harp, and inspired by the Penn Museum’s collection from the ancient city of Ur, the program celebrates the role of music from ancient times to today.
To learn more about the civilization of Ur and the role of the flute and harp in Sumerian culture, the Penn Museum and PCMS have teamed up for “Songs of Love and Loss from the Royal Tombs of Ur,” a Tuesday talk with Ferguson and Jackson, moderated by Paul Delnero, an Assyriologist who received his PhD at Penn. The conversation and an accompanying musical demonstration are free with registration.
Concert on March 5 at 7:30 p.m., American Philosophical Society, Benjamin Franklin Hall, 427 Chestnut Street, $25; tickets and information.
Pre-Concert talk on March 4 at 6:30 p.m., Penn Museum, 3260 South Street, free; register here.
Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra — Friday, The Barnes Museum
The Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra specializes in the juxtaposition of old and new classical works. They will play music by Bach, Montgomery, Perry and Villa-Lobos as the featured entertainment for the Barnes monthly Friday night mixer highlighting their newest exhibition, Cecily Brown: Themes and Variations.
March 7 at 6 p.m., The Barnes Foundation, 2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, $35; tickets and information.
Beethoven’s “Eroica” — Friday through Sunday, Marian Anderson Hall, Kimmel Center
Pierre-Laurent Aimard is known as a new music maverick, but he brings clarity and frisson to everything I’ve ever heard him play. He joins The Philadelphia Orchestra for Ravel’s jazz-infused Concerto for Left Hand. The rest of the program is anchored by Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony, and guest conductor Osmo Vänskä begins with a short work by Michael Tilson Thomas which will surely have added poignancy given his recent announcement about the return of his cancer and subsequent retirement.
March 7 and 9 at 2 p.m., March 8 at 8 p.m., Marian Anderson Hall, Kimmel Center, 300 South Broad Street, $56 to $195; tickets and information.
Richard Goode — Friday, Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center
Pianist Richard Goode is a sensitive and subtle musician — and one of today’s finest recitalists. This is a great chance to hear him in his core repertoire, including sonatas by Haydn as well as works by Brahms and Mozart. The program is sold out at the moment, but you can join the waitlist on the PCMS website for a chance to hear this thoughtful artist at the top of his game.
March 7 at 7:30 p.m., Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, 300 South Broad Street, sold out, but call 215-569-8080 or email boxoffice@pcmsconcerts.org to join the waitlist; tickets and information.
Beethoven’s Sixth & Sō Percussion — Saturday and Sunday, Richardson Auditorium, Princeton University
The Princeton Symphony Orchestra presents a program mostly focused on music inspired by the environment. Featuring the Grammy-winning ensemble Sō Percussion playing Viet Cuong’s Re(new)al, a meditation on renewable energy, alongside Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony and Carlos Simon’s Four Black American Dances.
March 8 at 8 p.m., March 9 at 4 p.m., Richardson Auditorium, Princeton University, 68 Nassau Street, Princeton, NJ, $10-$120; tickets and information.
ECCO with Nicholas Phan — Sunday, Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center
The ever-interesting tenor Nicholas Phan joins ECCO (the collective East Coast Chamber Orchestra) for an evening of 20th and 21st-century music for strings. The program will feature Benjamin Britten’s song cycle Les Illuminations, John Adams’ Shaker Loops, and pieces by William Grant Still and Hanna Benn.
March 9 at 3 p.m., Perelman Theater, Kimmel Center, 300 South Broad Street, $30; tickets and information.
Lucy Railton — Sunday, Solar Myth
Lucy Railton is a British cellist, composer and curator who is deeply engaged with the physicality of sound. A classically trained musician, she stretches the boundaries between electronic music, improvisation and spacial acoustics. She appears at Solar Myth as a part of the 25th Anniversary celebration of the Ars Nova Workshop.
March 9 at 8 p.m., Solar Myth, 1131 South Broad Street, $25 advance, $35 day-of-show; purchase tickets.
