Boston’s oldest musical organization, the HANDEL AND HAYDN SOCIETY, begins its 192nd year with Grant Llewellyn conducting period-instrument Beethoven: the Third Piano Concerto, with fortepianist Kristian Bezuidenhout, and the Seventh Symphony (Symphony Hall, October 19, 21; 617.262.1815). Steven Lipsitt’s BOSTON CLASSICAL ORCHESTRA performs on modern instruments in a historic hall. The season opens with pianist Robert Levin playing Mozart and Thomas Oboe Lee’s new “Mozartiana” concerto (Faneuil Hall, September 28, 30; 617.423.3883).
Conductor Benjamin Zander opens his BOSTON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA season with an unusual combination: Ginastera’s Variaciones concertantes, the US premiere of Shirish Korde’s Svara-Yantra (a concerto for violin and tabla), and Musorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition (Sanders Theatre + Jordan Hall, October 18, 20, 21; 617.236.0999). Then he dives back into established masterpieces: Schubert’s Unfinished Symphony and Bruckner’s massive Fifth (November 15, 17, 18).
Jane Ring Frank’s BOSTON SECESSION offers “The Big Oh!”, which promises “a no-holds-barred exploration of sexuality through choral music” including Stravinsky, Schoenberg, Barber, and Bruckner (First Congregational Church in Cambridge, November 10; 617.499.4860).
And don’t overlook the wealth of superb, often free musical events offered by our conservatories, colleges, and universities.
