Classical

 

OPERA SAN JOSÉ marks its 25th anniversary this fall, a silvery landmark for a company that has really flourished since moving into the ornate and capacious California Theatre a few seasons back. Last fall's production of Lucia di Lammermoor was a dramatic revelation, melding great singing with emotionally compelling acting. This year begins with Tchaikovsky's rendering of Pushkin's Eugene Onegin followed by Donizetti's The Elixir of Love. On Sept. 20, the opera will throw itself a congratulatory black-tie dinner at the Fairmont Hotel, followed by an evening of arias by present and former stars of the company, including Layna Chianakas, Christopher Bengochea and Khori Dastoor.

Chanticleer

  

All-male chorus; www.chanticleer.org. 

Wondrous Free, a tribute to the first American song, along with a new work by David Conte—Oct. 1 at 8pm at Mission Santa Clara.

A Chanticleer Christmas—Dec. 9–10 at 8pm at Stanford's Memorial Church and Dec. 15 at 6 and 8:30pm at Mission Santa Clara.

The Choral Project

   Multiple locations; 408.746.0905.

The Choral Project at Christmas—Dec. 6 at 2pm at St. Benedict's Church, Hollister.

Holiday Extravaganza—Dec. 7 at 2:30pm at Chateau Julien, Carmel.

Winter's Gifts: Solstice, presented with the San Jose Chamber Orchestra—Dec. 21 at Mission Church, Santa Clara University.

 

Fremont Symphony Orchestra

  Soren Smith Center, Ohlone College, Fremont; 510.794.1659. 

Pops Concert: Gershwin and Friends, with vocalists NuGuanda Nobles and Trente Morant—Sep. 27 at 8pm.

The Nutcracker Baller, with Yoko Young's Dance and Performing Arts Academy—Dec. 5 at 7pm, Dec. 6 at 2 and 7pm and Dec. 7 at 2pm.

Ives Quartet

  

St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Palo Alto, and Le Petit Trianon, San Jose; 650.224.7849. 

Paradoxes: The American Legacy, works by Gershwin and Ives, plus Amy Beach's Piano Quintet with guest artist William Well born— Oct. 19 at 7pm at Le Petit Trianon; Oct. 24 at 8pm at St. Mark's.

Los Gatos Community Concert Association

   

Los Gatos High School Auditorium; 408.377.1106.   

Side Street Strutters—Sep. 21 at 2:30pm.  

Dale King, pianist—Nov. 16 at 2:30pm.  

Mission Chamber Orchestra

   

Multiple locations; 408.236.3350. 

Iberia! , symphonic selections from Lima, Azevedo, deFalla and Rodrigo, with guitarists Michael Bautista and Marc Teicholz—Oct. 11 at 7:30pm at Le Petit Trianon, San Jose.

Opera Double Bill, staged works by Hector Armienta (River of Women) and Mozart (Marriage of Figaro)—Dec. 6 at 7:30pm and Dec. 7 at 2:30pm at Mexican Heritage Plaza.

Mission College Symphony

  

Mission College Main Building, Santa Clara; 408.855.5276. 

Mendelssohn and More, Featuring the Hebrides Overture and Vivaldi's Concerto for Two Violins—Nov. 9 at 3pm.

 

New Century Chamber Orchestra

  First United Methodist Church, Palo Alto; 415.357.1111.  

  Works by Piazzolla, performed by Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, plus selections by Brazilian and Argentine composers—Sep. 16 at 8pm.

Holiday Concert with soprano Melody Moore and Schola Cantorum performing Baroque works—Dec. 12 at 8pm.  

New Music Works

   Venues in Santa Cruz; 831.425.3526.   

Stepping Out, avant-garde works by Christopher Rouse, Jon Scoville and others for start of 30th season—Oct. 10 at 7:30pm at UCSC Music Center Recital Hall.  

Music For Linda, in memory of Linda Markell, works by Adés and Stravinsky—Dec. 6 at 7:30pm at Calvary Episcopal Church.  

Nova Vista Symphony

  

Multiple locations; 408.530.0700.  

Strauss and Haydn—Sep. 27 at 8pm at Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts.  

There's Snow Place Like Home, works by Prokofiev and Sibelius—Dec. 14 at 3pm at McAfee Center, Saratoga High School.  

Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra

 

Dinkelspiel Auditorium, Stanford;  www.pacomusic.org.   

Northern Lights, with guest Aki Toyoshima performing Shostakovich's Cello Concerto no. 1—Oct. 18 at 8pm.    

The Mozart Effect, with pianist Robert Schwartz—Dec. 13 at 8pm.  

Palo Alto Philharmonic

  

Multiple locations; www.paphil.org.  

Orchestra Concert I, Elgar's Cello Concerto in E minor and Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique—Oct. 25 at 8pm at Cubberley Theatre, Palo Alto.  

Chamber Music Concert—Nov. 15 at 8pm at Palo Alto Art Center Auditorium.  

Orchestra Concert II, featuring works by Rimsky-Korsakov, Tchaikovsky's Romeo and Juliet and Respighi's Pines of Rome—Dec. 6 at 8pm at Cubberley Theatre.  

Peninsula Symphony

    

Multiple locations; 650.941.5291.   

Jeffrey Siegel Plays Grieg, guest pianist performs Piano Concerto in A Minor, plus pieces by Sibelius and Dvorak—Oct. 17 at 8pm at San Mateo Performing Arts Center and Oct. 18 at 8pm at Flint Center.   

Swing Fever, Dancing, food and wine and live and silent auctions with a swing band—Nov. 15 at 6pm at Crowne Plaza Hotel, Foster City.  

Holiday Concert, with the Stanford Symphonic Chorus—Nov. 21 at 8pm and Nov. 23 at 1:30pm at Stanford Memorial Church.  

Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra

 

First United Methodist Church, Palo Alto; 415.252.1288.  

Myth and the Muse, Comus by Arne and Pygmalion by Rameau, with sopranos Sophie Daneman and Meredith Hall and tenor Colin Ainsworth—Sep. 20 at 8pm.  

Bach Reconstructed, the Brandenburg Concerto no. 1 and the Suite of Sinfonias, with conductor Paul Goodwin and oboist Gonzalo Z. Ruiz—Oct. 17 at 8pm.   

A Classic Triple, works by Beethoven, Haydn (Symphony no. 88) and Mozart (Symphony no. 35), with guest artists Colin Jacobsen, Tanya Tomkins and Eric Zivian—Nov. 14 at 8pm.   

Natale Barocco, with soprano Marta Almajano—Dec. 5 at 8pm.  

Redwood Symphony

  

Cañada College Main Theater, Redwood City; 650.366.6872.   

Atmosphères, a performance of Ligeti modernist orchestral piece plus works by Beethoven, Prokoviev and Ravel, with guest pianist Chloe Pang—Sep. 27 at 8pm. 

Halloween Concert, scary music by Saint-Saëns and Danny Elfman—Oct. 25 at 7pm.   

American Kosher, a program of works by Foss, Glass, Golijob and Reich, with Jewish themes—Nov. 23 at 3pm at Congregation Beth Am in Los Altos Hills.  

San Francisco Early Music Society

 

First Lutheran Church, Palo Alto; Fridays at 8pm; 510.528.1725.   

An Evening With Bach—Sep. 26.   

Music at the Time of Philip the Fair, with Ensemble la Rota—Oct. 10.  

Music From Purcell's London, with Musica Pacifica—Oct. 31.  

Choral Music From Christmas to Epiphany, with Artists' Vocal Ensemble— Dec. 12.  

San Francisco Symphony

  

South Bay concerts at Flint Center, Cupertino; 415.864.6000.  

Music for Families—Oct. 5 at 3pm.   

Marek Janowski conducts Beethoven, Mozart and Schumann, with pianist  

Leon Fleisher—Oct. 17 at 8pm.   

A Choral Christmas—Dec. 10 at 7:30pm.  

Peter and the Wolf—with Leonard Nimoy as narrator—Dec. 13 at 2pm.  

San Jose Chamber Music Society

 

Concerts by visiting ensembles. Concerts start at 7pm, with pre-show talks at 6:15pm; Le Petit Trianon, San Jose; 408.286.5111.   

Escher String Quartet—Sep. 28.   

Les Paladins—Nov. 8.   

Afiara String Quartet and pianist Stephen Prutsman—Nov. 30.  

San Jose Chamber Orchestra

 

Le Petit Trianon, San Jose; 408.295.4416.  

  Souvenirs, with viola player Mimi Dye performing her Venezuela-tinged piece One Beautiful Light, plus Tchaikovsky's Souvenirs de Florence—Oct. 26 at 7pm.  

Winter's Gifts: Light, with the Choral Project. Dec. 21 at 7pm at Mission Santa Clara.  

San Jose Symphonic Choir

  

St. Joseph's Cathedral, San Jose; 408.995.3318.  

Handel's Messiah—Nov. 29 at 8pm.   

You-Sing-It-Messiah—Dec. 8 at 7:30pm at the California Theatre, San Jose.  

San Jose Wind Symphony

  

McAfee Center, Saratoga; 408.927.7597.  

  An American Opening Night—Oct. 19 at 3pm.  

The Royals—Dec. 7 at 3pm.  

Santa Cruz County Symphony

 

Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium, Saturdays at 8pm; Mello Center, Watsonville, Sundays at 2pm; 831.420.5260.   

Bernstein, Stravinsky and Rachmaninov—Sep. 27–28.   

Handel, Brahms and Beethoven—Nov. 1.  

Saratoga Symphony

  

St. Andrews Episcopal Church, Saratoga; www.saratogasymphony.com.   

Fall Concert, works by Weber and Brahms, plus a work for two trumpets—Oct. 19 at 3pm.  

 

Schola Cantorum

      

Various locations; 650.254.1700.   

American Voices—Oct. 18 at 8pm at Los Altos United Methodist Church and Oct. 19 at 4pm at First Congregational of Palo Alto.   

Home for the Holidays, American choral selections—Dec. 13 at 8pm Grace Lutheran Church, Palo Alto, and Dec. 14 at 4pm at St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, Saratoga.  

Silicon Valley Symphony

 

   Presbyterian Church of Los Gatos; www.bamusic.org/svs.   

Prodigy, selections by Smetana, Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich, with 11-year-old violinist Stephen Waards—Nov. 15 at 7:30pm.  

Steinway Society

  

Highlighting visiting pianists. Petit Trianon, San Jose; Sundays at 7pm; 408.286.2600, ext. 23.  

Gwendolyn Mok—Sep. 14.  

  Garrick Ohlsson—Oct. 12.  

The Lee Trio—Nov. 9.   

St. Michael Trio—Nov. 16 at 2:30pm.  

Adam Neiman—Dec. 7.  

Symphony Silicon Valley

 

   California Theatre, San Jose; Thursdays at 7:30pm, Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 2:30pm; 408.286.2600.   

Dances at an Opening, Leslie Dunner conducts works by Ginastera, Ellington and Prokofiev—Sep. 27–28.   

Mendelssohn and Beethoven, with Christina Mok playing Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto, plus Beethoven's Symphony no. 1 and Debussy's La Mer— Oct. 16 at 7:30pm and Oct. 18–19.   

Mozart and Tchaikovsky, Paul Polivnick conducts Mozart's Clarinet Concerto with guest soloist Michael Corner, plus Tchaikovsky's Symphony no. 4—Dec. 6–7.   

Carols in the California, with the Chorale—Dec. 7 at 7:30pm.  

Winchester Orchestra

    

Saturdays at 7:30pm at West Valley College, Saratoga, and Sundays at 7pm at Trinity Cathedral, San Jose; 408.866.5302.   

First Concert, works by Handel, Beethoven  and Mozart, with soloist Paul Schrage—Oct. 25–26.  

Second Concert, Mozart's finale from The Marriage of Figaro and some holiday sounds—Dec. 13–14.  

 

Youth Groups

   

California Youth Symphony

    

Sundays at 2:30pm; 650.325.6666.   

Hindemith, Beethoven and Ravel, with pianist Dong June Kim—Nov. 16 at 2:30pm at Flint Center and Nov. 23 at 2:30pm at San Mateo Performing Arts Center.  

Holiday Concert—Dec. 14 at 2:30pm at Smithwick Theater, Los Altos Hills; free.  

Cantabile Youth Singers

    

Various locations; 650.424.1410.   

Schaumburg Youth Choir, workshop and concert—Oct.. 12, call for info.  

Carmina Burana, with Ballet San Jose— Nv. 13–18 at San Jose Center for the Performing Arts.   

Holidays With Cantabile—Dec. 1 at 7:30pm at St. Joseph's Cathedral.  

El Camino Youth Symphony

    

Flint Center, Cupertino; 650.213.7111.  

  Senior Symphony Season Opener, works by Beethoven, Prokofiev, Dvorak and Rimsky-Korsakov—Oct 25 at 7:30pm.  

Senior Symphony Holiday Concert, with selections by Brahms and Strauss—Dec. 14 at 2:30pm at the California Theatre, San Jose.  

San Jose Youth Symphony

 

 Various venues; 408.885.9220.   

A Symphony of Voices, with the Crystal Children's Choir performing works by Bernstein, Bizet and Verdi—Dec. 6 at 2:30pm at the California Theatre, San Jose.  

Season of Hope, a holiday performance—Dec. 13 at 7 and 8pm at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph, San Jose.  

 

Opera

 

Mission City Opera

    

Mission City Center for the Performing Arts, Santa Clara; 408.749.7607.   

Amahl and the Night Visitors—Dec. 7 at 7:30pm; call for details.  

Opera San José

    

California Theatre, San Jose; 408.437.4450.  

Eugene Onegin, with music by Tchaikovsky, based on Pushkin; begins the 25th season— Sep. 6–21.   

Silver Season Gala, a black-tie celebration with dinner at the Fairmont and a concert with past and present company vocalists—Sep. 20 at 5pm; call for tickets details.  

The Elixir of Love, by Donizetti—Nov. 8–23.  

West Bay Opera

    

Lucie Stern Theater, Palo Alto; 650.424.9999.  

Carmen—Oct. 17–26.   

Dance

 

Abhinaya Dance Company Of San Jose

  

Various venues; abhinaya.org.  

Solo dance by Rasika Kumar, benefit for Shiva Murugan temple—Sep. 14 at 3pm at Cubberley Theater, Palo Alto.  

Company Performance—Sep. 21 at 2pm at Indian Community Center, Milpitas.  

Rama Vaidyanathansolo concert—Sep. 28 at 5pm at 3250 Monroe St., Santa Clara.  

Vijaya Dasami, student recital—October, call for details.  

Rivers—A Mystical Journey—Nov. 15–16 at Mexican Heritage Theater; call for times.  

Ballet San Jose

    

San Jose Center for the Performing Arts; 408.288.2800.  

  Unforgettable, a fundraising evening with fashion and high-end cars—Sep. 25, 6–9pm, at Club Auto Sport San Jose.  

A Night in Casablanca, a dinner with auctions and dancing to raise money for the ballet—Oct. 4, 6pm–midnight, at Corinthian Events Center, San Jose.  

The Toreador and, with choreography by Bournonville, adapted by Flemming Flindt, a San Jose exclusive—Nov. 20–23.   

The Nutcracker—Dec. 11–28.  

Moscow Ballet

      

Flint Center, Cupertino; 408.998.TIXS.   

Great Russian Nutcracker—Dec. 21 at 3pm.  

Santa Clara Ballet

 

   Santa Clara Convention Center, Santa Clara; 408.881.0879.   

The Nutcracker—December dates TBA; call for details.  

Santa Clara University Center of Performing Arts

  

408.554.4015.  

Fall Dance Festival—Oct. 18 at 1 and 8pm, Oct. 19 at 2pm at Fess Parker Studio Theatre.   

Choreographers' Gallery—Dec. 4 at 8pm, Dec. 5 at 7 and 9pm at Mayer Theatre.  

Smuin Ballet

Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts; 650.903.6000.   

The Christmas Ballet 2008—Dec. 3–7.  

Western Ballet 

    

Mountain View Center for Performing Arts; 650.903.6000.   

The Nutcracker—Dec. 12–14.

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