Classical Month in Washington (April 2015)

There is so much good music to be heard in the month of April: here are the ten performances at the top of our list, plus one.

ORCHESTRAS:
Krzysztof Urbanski takes the podium of the National Symphony Orchestra for an all-Russian program, combining Shostakovich's tenth symphony with Rachmaninoff's third piano concerto, featuring Daniil Trifonov as soloist (April 2 to 4).

A couple of good programs from the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra this month, too, including flutist Adam Walker in the East Coast premiere of the new flute concerto by Kevin Puts (April 9 and 12).

One of the top picks for the whole season happens in April, when John Eliot Gardiner leads the English Baroque Soloists and Monteverdi Choir in Monteverdi's L'Orfeo, presented by Washington Performing Arts in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall (April 21).

KEYBOARD:
Washington Performing Arts presents the local recital debut of British pianist Stephen Hough, playing music by Chopin and Debussy, at the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater (April 1). At least one thing has remained constant in the upheaval at Washington Performing Arts, and that is the biennial recital by Russian pianist Evgeny Kissin, this year presented in the Music Center at Strathmore (April 22). His program this year is centered on Prokofiev's fourth sonata, plus some Beethoven, Chopin, and Liszt.

Handel, "Great" Harpsichord Suites (vol. 1, 1720), J. Vinikour (Delos, 2009)

One of the harpsichordists we most want to hear these days, Jory Vinikour, gets his turn in a free concert at the Library of Congress (April 25), in a program that includes two of the Handel suites he has recorded so beautifully.

Rounding out the keyboard category, go hear one of the best organists in the world, Olivier Latry from the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Paris, when he plays a recital at St. John's Episcopal, Georgetown (April 28).

CHAMBER MUSIC:
Pianists Katherine Chi and Aleksandar Madžar perform Stockhausen's Mantra, with percussion and electronics, in a free concert at the Library of Congress (April 24).

Rounding out the year's British Choir Festival, the Choir of St. Paul's Cathedral, London performs at Washington National Cathedral (April 26).

Mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke performs songs by Schubert, Copland, and Wolf with the Miró String Quartet, plus some movements for string quartet, on the Fortas Chamber Music Concerts series at the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater (April 29).

EXTRA:
I moved to Washington to pursue a doctorate at the Catholic University of America, and although most of the professors I worked with there in the 1990s have retired, the Benjamin T. Rome School of Music still has a special place in my heart. That institution is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year of being a school of music, and the festivities include a commissioning project, on the theme of the Stations of the Cross, which will be performed later this month (February 20, at the Church of the Little Flower in Bethesda). In April, CUA musicians will mark the anniversary with a big concert in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall (April 12).

See the complete calendar after the jump.

COMPLETE CALENDAR:
Last month | Next monthClassical Month in Washington is a monthly feature. If there are concerts you would like to see included on our schedule, send your suggestions by e-mail (ionarts at gmail dot com). Happy listening!

April 1, 2015 (Wed)
7:30 pm
Stephen Hough, piano
Washington Performing Arts
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 2, 2015 (Thu)
1 pm
Washington Piano Society
Holiday Park Community Center (Wheaton, Md.)

April 2, 2015 (Thu)
7 pm
National Symphony Orchestra
With Krzysztof Urbanski (conductor) and Daniil Trifonov (piano)
Music by Shostakovich, Rachmaninoff
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 3, 2015 (Fri)
6 pm
Jeremy Filsell, organ [FREE]
Dupré, Le Chemin de la Croix
Church of the Epiphany

April 3, 2015 (Fri)
7:30 pm
William and Mary Symphony Orchestra
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 3, 2015 (Fri)
8 pm
National Symphony Orchestra
With Krzysztof Urbanski (conductor) and Daniil Trifonov (piano)
Music by Shostakovich, Rachmaninoff
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 4, 2015 (Sat)
8 pm
National Symphony Orchestra
With Krzysztof Urbanski (conductor) and Daniil Trifonov (piano)
Music by Shostakovich, Rachmaninoff
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 5, 2015 (Sun)
2 pm
Kennedy Center Chamber Players
Music by Shostakovich, Dvorák
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 7, 2015 (Tue)
12:10 pm
Washington Bach Consort [FREE]
Bach, Siehe zu, daß deine Gottesfurcht, BWV 572
Church of the Epiphany

April 7, 2015 (Tue)
7:30 pm
New York City Ballet
Kennedy Center Opera House

April 7, 2015 (Tue)
7:30 pm
Karen Cargill, mezzo-soprano
Vocal Arts D.C.
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 7, 2015 (Tue)
8 pm
Philadelphia Orchestra
With Yannick Nézet-Séguin, music director
Washington Performing Arts
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 8, 2015 (Wed)
7:30 pm
New York City Ballet
Kennedy Center Opera House

April 8, 2015 (Wed)
7:30 pm
Edgar Meyer, double bass
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 8, 2015 (Wed)
7:30 pm
Tchaikovsky, Swan Lake
Washington Ballet
Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theater

April 9, 2015 (Thu)
7 pm
WNO Domingo-Cafritz Young Artists [FREE]
Scenes from American opera
Smithsonian American Art Museum

April 9, 2015 (Thu)
7:30 pm
New York City Ballet
Kennedy Center Opera House

April 9, 2015 (Thu)
7:30 pm
Miranda Cuckson, violin
Mansion at Strathmore

April 9, 2015 (Thu)
7:30 pm
Tchaikovsky, Swan Lake
Washington Ballet
Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theater

April 9, 2015 (Thu)
8 pm
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
With Adam Walker, flute
Kevin Puts, Flute Concerto
Meyerhoff Symphony Hall (Baltimore, Md.)

April 10, 2015 (Fri)
7:30 pm
New York City Ballet
Kennedy Center Opera House

April 10, 2015 (Fri)
7:30 pm
Tchaikovsky, Swan Lake
Washington Ballet
Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theater

April 10, 2015 (Fri)
8 pm
Folger Consort
Music of Telemann, others
Folger Shakespeare Library

April 10, 2015 (Fri)
8 pm
Daniel Hope (violin), Paul Neubauer (viola), David Finkel (cello), Wu Han (piano) [FREE]
Library of Congress

April 10, 2015 (Fri)
8 pm
Chick Corea and Herbie Hancock
Washington Performing Arts
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 10, 2015 (Fri)
8 pm
Poulenc Trio
Barns at Wolf Trap

April 11, 2015 (Sat)
11 am and 1:30 pm
NSO Teddy Bear Concert
Kennedy Center Family Theater

April 11, 2015 (Sat)
1:30 and 7:30 pm
New York City Ballet
Kennedy Center Opera House

April 11, 2015 (Sat)
1:30 and 7:30 pm
Tchaikovsky, Swan Lake
Washington Ballet
Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theater

April 11, 2015 (Sat)
5 and 8 pm
Folger Consort
Music of Telemann, others
Folger Shakespeare Library

April 11, 2015 (Sat)
5 pm
Washington Bach Consort
With J. Reilly Lewis (harpsichord)
First Congregational UCC

April 11, 2015 (Sat)
7:30 pm
Smithsonian Chamber Music Society
National Museum of American History

April 11, 2015 (Sat)
8 pm
Dali Quartet and Ricardo Morales (clarinet)
Horowitz Performing Arts Center (Columbia, Md.)

April 11, 2015 (Sat)
8 pm
Fairfax Symphony Orchestra
GMU Center for the Arts

April 11, 2015 (Sat)
8 pm
National Philharmonic
Bach, St. John Passion
Music Center at Strathmore

April 11, 2015 (Sat)
8 pm
Salomé Chamber Orchestra
Dumbarton Concerts

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
1:30 pm
New York City Ballet
Kennedy Center Opera House

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
1:30 and 6:30 pm
Tchaikovsky, Swan Lake
Washington Ballet
Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theater

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
1:30 and 4 pm
NSO Teddy Bear Concert
Kennedy Center Family Theater

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
2 pm
Folger Consort
Music of Telemann, others
Folger Shakespeare Library

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
3 pm
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
With Adam Walker, flute
Kevin Puts, Flute Concerto
Music Center at Strathmore

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
3 pm
Left Bank Quartet [FREE]
Smithsonian American Art Museum

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
4 pm
IBIS Chamber Music
Rock Spring Congregational United Church of Christ (Arlington, Va.)

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
4 pm
Choral Arts Chamber Chorus
Phillips Collection

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
7 pm
A Far Cry
Dumbarton Oaks

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
7:30 pm
Smithsonian Chamber Music Society
National Museum of American History

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
7:30 pm
Ran Dank and Soyeon Kate Lee, piano
JCCGW (Rockville, Md.)

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
7:30 pm
Jay Campbell (cello) and Conor Hanick (piano)
Washington Performing Arts
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 12, 2015 (Sun)
8 pm
Benjamin T. Rome School of Music 50th Anniversary Concert
Catholic University of America
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 13, 2015 (Mon)
7:30 pm
Washington International Music Festival
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 13, 2015 (Mon)
8 pm
A Far Cry
Dumbarton Oaks

April 14, 2015 (Tue)
12:10 pm
Douglas Buchanan, organ [FREE]
Church of the Epiphany

April 15, 2015 (Wed)
7:30 pm
Martin Kasik, piano
Embassy Series
Embassy of the Czech Republic

April 16, 2015 (Thu)
6 pm
NSO Youth Fellows [FREE]
Kennedy Center Millennium Stage

April 16, 2015 (Thu)
7 pm
National Symphony Orchestra
With Vassily Sinaisky, conductor
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 16, 2015 (Thu)
7:30 pm
Israeli Chamber Project
Mansion at Strathmore

April 17, 2015 (Fri)
6 pm
NSO Prelude [FREE]
Kennedy Center Millennium Stage

April 17, 2015 (Fri)
8 pm
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Music by Haydn, Vaughan Williams, Musorgsky
Meyerhoff Symphony Hall (Baltimore, Md.)

April 17, 2015 (Fri)
8 pm
National Symphony Orchestra
With Vassily Sinaisky, conductor
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 17, 2015 (Fri)
8 pm
UMd Chamber Singers and University Chorale
Clarice Smith Center

April 18, 2015 (Sat)
5 pm
21st Century Consort
Smithsonian American Art Museum

April 18, 2015 (Sat)
6 pm
Emerson String Quartet
Music by Berg, Haydn, Beethoven
National Museum of Natural History

April 18, 2015 (Sat)
6 pm
Manhattan School of Music [FREE]
Conservatory Project
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 18, 2015 (Sat)
7:30 pm
Maryland Opera Studio
One-act operas by Rossini, Menotti, Ravel
Clarice Smith Center

April 18, 2015 (Sat)
8 pm
National Symphony Orchestra
With Vassily Sinaisky, conductor
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 18, 2015 (Sat)
8 pm
Bach Sinfonia
Bach, Weimar cantatas
Cultural Arts Center (Silver Spring, Md.)

April 18, 2015 (Sat)
8 pm
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Music by Haydn, Vaughan Williams, Musorgsky
Music Center at Strathmore

April 18, 2015 (Sat)
8 pm
John O'Conor, piano [FREE]
Washington Conservatory of Music
Westmoreland Church (Bethesda, Md.)

April 18, 2015 (Sat)
8 pm
Peter Burroughs and Debra Lawrence
In Series (music of Wagner and Liszt)
Casa Italiana

April 18, 2015 (Sat)
8 pm
Renaissonics
St. George's Episcopal Church (Arlington, Va.)

April 19, 2015 (Sun)
3 pm
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Music by Haydn, Vaughan Williams, Musorgsky
Meyerhoff Symphony Hall (Baltimore, Md.)

April 19, 2015 (Sun)
3:30 pm
Peter Burroughs and Debra Lawrence
In Series (music of Wagner and Liszt)
Casa Italiana

April 19, 2015 (Sun)
4 pm
Amadeus Winds
Amadeus Concerts
Saint Luke Catholic Church, McLean

April 19, 2015 (Sun)
4 pm
New Orford Quartet
Phillips Collection

April 19, 2015 (Sun)
5:30 pm
Richard Goode, piano
Shriver Hall (Baltimore, Md.)

April 19, 2015 (Sun)
6 pm
San Francisco Conservatory of Music [FREE]
Conservatory Project
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 19, 2015 (Sun)
7 pm
Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra
With Wynton Marsalis, trumpet
Washington Performing Arts
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 20, 2015 (Mon)
6 pm
New England Conservatory [FREE]
Conservatory Project
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 21, 2015 (Tue)
12:10 pm
Rachel Barham (soprano) and James Rogers (baritone) [FREE]
Church of the Epiphany

April 21, 2015 (Tue)
6 pm
Bienen School of Music, Northwestern University [FREE]
Conservatory Project
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 21, 2015 (Tue)
8 pm
English Baroque Soloists and Monteverdi Choir
With John Eliot Gardiner (Monteverdi, L'Orfeo)
Washington Performing Arts
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 22, 2015 (Wed)
6 pm
Juilliard School [FREE]
Conservatory Project
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 22, 2015 (Wed)
7:30 pm
Maryland Opera Studio
One-act operas by Rossini, Menotti, Ravel
Clarice Smith Center

April 22, 2015 (Wed)
7:30 pm
Mendelssohn Piano Trio
Embassy Series
Embassy of Slovenia

April 22, 2015 (Wed)
8 pm
Evgeny Kissin, piano
Washington Performing Arts
Music Center at Strathmore

April 23, 2015 (Thu)
6 pm
Eastman School of Music [FREE]
Conservatory Project
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 23, 2015 (Thu)
8 pm
Brian Billion, piano
Washington International Piano Series
Catholic University, Ward Recital Hall

April 24, 2015 (Fri)
6 pm
Berklee College of Music [FREE]
Conservatory Project
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 24, 2015 (Fri)
7:30 pm
Maryland Opera Studio
One-act operas by Rossini, Menotti, Ravel
Clarice Smith Center

April 24, 2015 (Fri)
8 pm
BBC Concert Orchestra
GMU Center for the Arts

April 24, 2015 (Fri)
8 pm
Mantra [FREE]
Music by Carter, Stockhausen
Library of Congress

April 25, 2015 (Sat)
2 pm
Jory Vinikour, harpsichord [FREE]
Library of Congress

April 25, 2015 (Sat)
6 pm
Oberlin Conservatory of Music [FREE]
Conservatory Project
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 25, 2015 (Sat)
8 pm
Pacifica Quartet
Kreeger Museum

April 26, 2015 (Sun)
2 and 4 pm
NSO Family Concert
Music by Gershwin
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 26, 2015 (Sun)
3 pm
Maryland Opera Studio
One-act operas by Rossini, Menotti, Ravel
Clarice Smith Center

April 26, 2015 (Sun)
3 pm
Washington Bach Consort
Bach, B Minor Mass
National Presbyterian Church

April 26, 2015 (Sun)
4 pm
Zhang Zuo, piano
Phillips Collection

April 26, 2015 (Sun)
5 pm
Choir of St. Paul's Cathedral, London
Washington National Cathedral

April 27, 2015 (Mon)
6 pm
Youth Symphonic Orchestra and Choir “Polígono Don Bosco” [FREE]
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 28, 2015 (Tue)
12:10 pm
Soyoon Yim (piano), Albert Hunt (clarinet), Rachelle Betancourt (violin) [FREE]
Church of the Epiphany

April 28, 2015 (Tue)
6 pm
Seneca Valley H.S. Chamber Choir, Luther Jackson Concert Choir [FREE]
Kennedy Center Millennium Stage

April 28, 2015 (Tue)
7:30 pm
Oliver Latry, organ
St. John's Episcopal, Georgetown

April 28, 2015 (Tue)
7:30 pm
Bella Hristova (violin) and Amy Yang (piano)
Young Concert Artists
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 29, 2015 (Wed)
7:30 pm
Miró Quartet with Sasha Cooke, mezzo-soprano
Fortas Chamber Music Concerts
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater

April 29, 2015 (Wed)
8 pm
New World Symphony
Washington Performing Arts
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 30, 2015 (Thu)
7 pm
National Symphony Orchestra
Music by Beethoven, Penderecki, Strauss
Kennedy Center Concert Hall

April 30, 2015 (Thu)
7:30 pm
New York Festival of Song
Vocal Arts D.C.
Kennedy Center Terrace Theater