Classical
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Deviant Septet Surely realizing it was unsustainable, two composers who contemporaneously took the orchestra to its hypertrophied extreme-Stravinsky (in The Rite of Spring, 1913) and Schoenberg (in his Gurre-Lieder, completed in 1911)-soon thereafter turned to radically stripped-down chamber groupings to write pieces that are (in their way) just as theatrically gripping. Yet Schoenberg, somehow, bet on the right horse: The instrumentation of his song cycle Pierrot lunaire (flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano) became the template for uncountable new-music ensembles over the succeeding century; while Stravinsky’s The Soldier’s Tale-every bit as picturesque-spawned no successors. Which means that performances of this wry, Faust-ian folk tale are rare, put together by ad hoc collations of musicians-and that if you want to make a permanent performing group out of this odd instrumentation (violin, bass, clarinet, bassoon, trumpet, trombone, percussion), you’re going to have to commission yourself a repertory. Deviant Septet, out of Brooklyn, took this quixotic path; and though the Stravinsky is naturally the centerpiece of tonight’s concert, they’ll also play new works by Esa-Pekka Salonen and others. GAVIN BORCHERT Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave., Seattle, WA 98101 $17-$25 Wednesday, March 25, 2015, 7:30pm
Seattle Symphony Their Sibelius cycle wraps up with the Symphonies 5, 6, and 7. (Thursday’s concert will be followed by a brief recital of Sibelius’ songs.) Benaroya Hall, 200 University St., Seattle, WA 98101 $20-$120 Thursday, March 26, 2015, 7:30pm
Seattle Philharmonic Exploring two tragic heroes: Hamlet (via Shostakovich’s incidental music) and Petrouchka (via Stravinsky’s ballet score). Benaroya Hall, 200 University St., Seattle, WA 98101 $30 Saturday, March 28, 2015, 2pm
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Paul Kikuchi A CD-release event for his Bat of No Bird Island, a cycle of pieces inspired by (and incorporating) his grandfather’s collection of 78s. Jack Straw Cultural Center, 4261 Roosevelt Way N.E., Seattle, WA 98105 Free Saturday, March 28, 2015, 3pm
Byrd Ensemble British choral music from the early 20th century by Finzi, Walton, and the like. Saint Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral, 1245 10th Ave. E. $10-$20 Saturday, March 28, 2015, 7:30pm
Philharmonia Northwest Will Haydn’s Mass in Time of War ever not be relevant? philharmonianw.org Meany Hall for the Performing Arts, UW Campus, Seattle, WA 98105 $25 Saturday, March 28, 2015, 7:30pm
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Seattle Men’s Chorus Honoring two martyrs, Tyler Clementi and Harvey Milk, with new works. McCaw Hall (Seattle Center), 321 Mercer St., Seattle, WA 98109 $28-$68 Saturday, March 28, 2015, 8pm
Seattle Symphony Their Sibelius cycle wraps up with the Symphonies 5, 6, and 7. Benaroya Hall, 200 University St., Seattle, WA 98101 $20-$120 Saturday, March 28, 2015, 8pm
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Seattle Men’s Chorus Honoring two martyrs, Tyler Clementi and Harvey Milk, with new works. McCaw Hall (Seattle Center), 321 Mercer St., Seattle, WA 98109 $28-$68 Sunday, March 29, 2015, 2pm
Puget Sound Wind Quintet Music by Nielsen, Piazzolla, and others. St. Matthew Episcopal Church, 123 L St. N.E., Auburn $10-$17 Sunday, March 29, 2015, 4pm
Compline Services A half-hour meditation each week with the eight-voice Renaissance Singers. Saint Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral, 1245 10th Ave. E. Free Sunday, March 29, 2015, 9:30pm
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Music of Remembrance Actor Paul Wegener was nearly 40 when he made his first film in 1915: an eerie Romantic fantasy of sorcery, love, and death called The Student of Prague. While on location there, he heard an obscure legend about a medieval rabbi who made a monster of clay to defend the city’s Jews from an emperor’s persecution. The story came to obsess Wegener, who made three versions of it. The last-The Golem: How He Came into the World (1920)-was a huge success, soon recognized as one of the masterpieces of silent cinema. With his broad, flat face and narrow, slanted eyes, Wegener specialized in spooky roles. His man of clay, stiff as a child’s crude modeling attempt, begins as an almost comic figure, but rapidly develops a tragic dimension as the lurid events around him unravel. Wegener’s performance is amplified by the bizarrely Expressionist settings of architect Hans Poelzig, who created a stony vision of medieval Prague as an enormous termite mound of muddy spires and crepuscular alleys. A freshly restored print of Wegener’s film forms the climax of this Music of Remembrance concert devoted to music inspired by Jewish folklore. Betty Olivero has composed a new klezmer-flavored score for The Golem, to be performed by a string quartet and Laura DeLuca on clarinet, under the baton of Guenter Buchwald. ROGER DOWNEY Benaroya Recital Hall, 200 University St., Seattle, WA 98101 $30-$40 Monday, March 30, 2015, 7:30pm
London Symphony On his 70th-birthday tour of the West Coast, Michael Tilson Thomas conducts favorites by Britten, Gershwin, and Sibelius. Benaroya Hall, 200 University St., Seattle, WA 98101 Call for ticket prices. Wednesday, April 1, 2015, 7:30pm
Compline Services A half-hour meditation each week with the eight-voice Renaissance Singers. Saint Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral, 1245 10th Ave. E. Free Sunday, April 5, 2015, 9:30pm
Seattle Baroque Orchestra Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons” plus flute concertos. Town Hall, 1119 Eighth Ave., Seattle, WA 98101 See website for details. Saturday, April 11, 2015
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Seattle Modern Orchestra Violinist Graeme Jennings plays virtuosity-stretching solo works. Chapel Performance Space (Good Shepherd Center), 4649 Sunnyside Ave. N. See website for details. Saturday, April 11, 2015
Compline Services A half-hour meditation each week with the eight-voice Renaissance Singers. Saint Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral, 1245 10th Ave. E. Free Sunday, April 12, 2015, 9:30pm
