It’s classical, jazz and Pops

 MUSIC

DECEMBER

Magnificat
Dec. 4 and Dec. 7
Old South Church
645 Boylston St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Copley
$16 to $22 (Sunday performance is free)
www.BostonChoral.org
Boston Choral Ensemble gets the holiday season a-rollin' with this program of music written "in praise of Mary." Mary J. Blige? Mary-Kate Olsen? Mary Tyler Moore? Check, check, and check! Wear a T-shirt featuring the face of your favorite Mary, and maybe you'll get a door prize.

The Boston Conservatory Percussion Ensemble
Dec. 5
The Boston Conservatory Theater
31 Hemenway St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Hynes
Free, 617- 912-9222
www.bostonconservatory.edu
The program for this event was still being finalized at press deadline, but it will surely include a whole lotta banging, clanging, rhythm-a-ninging, bing-bang-booming, POW!ing, wham-bam-thank-you-m'aming, and general racket-mongering.


Emerson String Quartet
Dec. 5
NEC’s Jordan Hall
30 Gainsborough St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Symphony
$45 to $58, 617- 482-6661
www.emersonquartet.com
The Emerson String Quartet brings their Grammy Award-winning clout to the NE Conservatory with a program that includes Dvořák, Ravel, and Webern. You do not have any Grammy Award-winning clout, which is neither here nor there, but nonetheless a polite reminder to keep that ego in check.

A Baroque Banquet
Dec. 6
First Church in Cambridge, Congregational
11 Garden St., Cambridge
MBTA: Red Line to Harvard
$30 (Children and Students free), (978) 474-6222
www.AndoverChamberMusic.org
Andover Chamber Music lines up some Baroque concertos in the old-school intimacy of a church. The program includes Aldo Abreu, who will perform the works of Corelli, Telemann, Vivaldi and Handel on the recorder. Throw some stank on it, Aldo!

‘Holiday Pops’
Dec. 11 through Dec. 31
Symphony Hall
301 Mass. Ave., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Symphony
$27 to $122, 617- 266-1200
www.bostonpops.org
Pop goes the, um, Pops in this annual blowout of holiday huzzahs, led by Keith Lockhart. Santa makes an appearance during the kids’ matinees, and if your innate Puritanisms don’t freak him out, then your Christmas wish probably will.

A Christmas Celtic Sojourn with Brian O’Donovan
Dec. 12 to Dec. 21
Cutler Majestic Theatre
219 Tremont St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Boylston
$25 to $75, 617- 824-8000
www.maj.org
Irish supergroup Solas, Cara Dillon, Sean Keane, dancer Kieran Jordan, and three-piece harmonizers Navan join Brian O'Donovan for a whole bunch o' Celtic merriment. They will then take on the other Boston Celtics in a game of five-on-five St. ball.

The Christmas Revels: In Celebration of the Winter Solstice
Dec. 12 to Dec. 30
Sanders Theatre
45 Quincy St., Cambridge
MBTA: Red Line to Harvard
$15 to $52, 617- 496-2222
www.revels.org
Big ups to the winter solstice! The novels of Thomas Hardy are the inspiration behind the 38th annual Christmas Revels concert. There will be music, dance, rituals and carols of the English countryside. Meanwhile, you'll try to remember what that Thomas Hardy book was about that you "read" in high school.

An Evening with Mozart
Dec. 12
First Church in Cambridge, Congregational
11 Garden St., Cambridge
MBTA: Red Line to Harvard
$30 to $40, 617- 349-0086
www.bostonchambermusic.org
It's true that Mo'zart = mo' problems. But hey, this is the holiday season, so indulge in a little Mozart and deal with the consequences later. Specifically, indulge in the Duo for Violin and Viola in B-flat, the Divertimento in E-flat, and the Oboe Quartet in F.


Elvis & Friends Holiday Show: Jukebox Heroes Live
Dec. 13 and Dec. 14
Regent Theatre
7 Medford St., Arlington
MBTA: Red Line to Alewife
$25 to $47.50, (781) 646-4849
www.regenttheatre.com
"Juke box hero!...aah aah aah…Juke box" – oh, hello, didn't see you there! I'm afraid you caught us drifting off into a little Foreigner daydream. That subtitle's to blame. Other non-Foreigner jukebox heroes are the subject of this show – the Mahoney Brothers' impersonations include Elvis Presley, the Everly Brothers, Jerry Lee Lewis, and the Beach Boys. But we do a mean Lou Gramm, no?

Tis the Season
Dec. 13
Faneuil Hall, Boston
MBTA: Orange/Green Line to Haymarket
Free,
www.bostonchildrenschorus.org
Children singing, bells ringing, and Faneuil Hall – try to block out the infestation of commercialism in that historic area and you've got yourself some old-fashioned holiday cheer. The Back Bay Ringers and the Boston Children’s Chorus provide the music.

Troublemakers
Dec. 14
Tsai Performance Center
685 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston
MBTA Line: Green Line to Boston University East
$5 to $30, 617- 353-8725
www.nephilharmonic.org
In this family-friendly event, Young Artist winner Bobby Chen will perform Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto, and anchorman Steve Aveson will aid an orchestrated narration of Tubby the Tuba. Then the "Instrument Petting Zoo" will allow children to meet the musicians, even the cranky, self-absorbed ones!

Stars: A Holiday Celebration
Dec. 14 to Dec. 21
Jordan Hall
30 Gainsborough St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Symphony
$15 to $45, 617- 542-SING
www.bgmc.org
Presents and cocoa and cheer, gatherings of friends and family, the occasional wassailing: it's a gay ol' time of year. Make it even gayer with the 150 voices of the Boston Gay Men's Chorus.

Carols and Lullabies: Christmas in the Southwest
Dec. 19
Old South Church
645 Boylston St., Boston
Green Line: Green Line to Copley
$25 to $45, (800) 658-4276
http://www.choruspromusica.org
Christmas in the Southwest probably sounds pretty good to you right about now, as you're busy trying to bring your body temperature back up to something resembling normalcy. Chorus Pro Musica's annual holiday show includes Benjamin Britten's "Ceremony of Carols" and Conrad Susa's "Carols and Lullabies: Christmas in the Southwest."

Harry Connick, Jr.: A Holiday Celebration
Dec. 19 to Dec. 21
The Colonial Theatre
106 Boylston St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Boylston
$37.50 to $97.50, 617- 931-2787
www.broadwayacrossamerica.com/boston
When Harry Connick, Jr.'s not charming the ladies with that ivory-ticklin' smile and N'awlins accent, he's catching yuletide fever on records like "What a Night! A Christmas Album." Both the rockin' pneumonia and the boogie-woogie flu tend to be contagious at Connick's shows, so take your vitamins beforehand.


Perotin / Josquin: Christmas in French-speaking Lands, 1200 & 1500
Dec. 20
First Church in Cambridge, Congregational
11 Garden St., Cambridge
MBTA: Red Line to Harvard
$10 to $50, 617- 960-7956
www.blueheronchoir.org
The Blue Heron Choir's twist on the holiday concert includes Christmas motets by Josquin Desprez and the polyphonic sounds of Master Perotin and others from Notre Dame de Paris circa 1200. It's polyphantastic!

Ultrasonic Rock Orchestra: A Night at the Rock Opera
Dec. 26 to Dec. 31
Stuart St. Playhouse
200 Stuart St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Boylston
$39.50, 617- 426-4499
www.stuartSt.playhouse.com
Doodz: what says post-Christmas/pre-New Year's better than some bombastic theatrical rock performed by 19 amped-up musicians? Nothing, of course, so throw up that ready-to-rock fist and engage. Queen, Bowie, the Who – it's all arena certified, and it's all ready to salute you.

Jim Brickman
Dec. 27 to Dec. 28
Cutler Majestic Theatre
219 Tremont St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Boylston
$25 to $55, 617- 824-8000
www.maj.org
Jim Brickman, "America's Romantic Piano Sensation," is joined by singer Anne Cochran and electric violinist Tracy Silverman for his holiday homecoming show. Ivories will be tickled, cockles of hearts will be warmed, and the phrase "romantic piano sensation" will once again be in vogue.

JANUARY

Altan
Jan. 9
Sanders Theatre
45 Quincy St., Cambridge
MBTA: Red Line to Harvard
$22 to $28, 617- 876-4275
www.WorldMusic.org
If traditional Irish music is your bag, then Altan's fiddle, guitar, accordion, and bouzouki are the contents of said bag. Dig the duets between vocalist Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh and fiddler Ciarán Tourish.

All That Jazz: The Best of Broadway
Jan. 13
Scullers Jazz Club
400 Soldiers Field Road, Allston
MBTA: 64 Bus at Cambridge St. and Mass Pike Exit
$23, 617- 562-4111
www.follenangels.com
Put on the Ritz and swing on over to Scullers for the Follen Angels' repertoire of snappy Broadway showstoppers. Songs from "Chicago," "Gypsy," "South Pacific," and "Damn Yankees" will have you screaming, "My, that's a hot number!"

Venice Baroque Orchestra
Jan. 17
Emmanuel Church
15 Newbury St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Arlington
$19 to $64 617- 661-1812
www.bemf.org
Venice ain't all about canals and pigeons. It's also where three great opera composers hail from. The instrumental works of Vivaldi, Galuppi, and Albinoni (possibly inspired by – what else? – canals and pigeons) are showcased by the Venice Baroque Orchestra, featuring violinist Guiliano Carmignola and Andrea Marcon on keyboard.

His Vision, Our Voice: Annual Martin Luther King Concert
Jan. 19
Jordan Hall at the New England Conservatory
290 Huntington Avenue, Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Symphony
$10 to $25, 617- 585-1260
www.bostonchildrenschorus.org
The life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is celebrated by the Boston Children's Chorus and the Young People's Chorus of New York City. Academy Award-winning actor Louis Gossett, Jr. ("Iron Eagle" trumps "Top Gun" in our book!) guests. Presented by WCVB Channel 5, New England Conservatory of Music, and State St. Corporation.

Philharmonia Quartett Berlin
Jan. 23
Jordan Hall at NEC
30 Gainsborough St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Symphony
$45 to $58, 617- 482-6661
www.celebrityseries.org
What do the principle concertmaster and string section leaders of the Berlin Philharmonic do when they get bored with the danged Philharmonic? They branch off, guerrilla style, and form the Philharmonia Quartett Berlin! They're a lean, mean, Mozart- and Lutoslawski- and Schubert-playing machine.

Romeros Guitar Quartet
Jan. 24
Jordan Hall at NEC
30 Gainsborough St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Symphony
$35 to $55, 617- 482-6661
www.celebrityseries.org
Family ties are strong in the Romeros Guitar Quartet. Brothers Celin and Pepe picked up where their father, Celedonio, left off, four decades after he formed the first Romero Quartet. And you know what they say – the family that plays classical guitar together stays together.

The 41st Annual Berklee High School Jazz Festival
Jan. 31
Hynes Convention Center
900 Boylston St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Hynes
Free, 617- 747-8601
www.berklee.edu
Before they are forced to choose between becoming an underpaid, underappreciated artist or a peddler of schlock incidental music on The Weather Channel, high school jazz musicians, still imbued with idealism and pride, strut their stuff in big bands, combos, and vocal ensembles for Berklee's annual event.

An Evening with Shawn Klush
Jan. 31 to Feb. 1
Regent Theatre
7 Medford St., Arlington
MBTA: Red Line to Alewife
$22 to $42, (781) 646-4849
www.regenttheatre.com
Lord, take us downtown – we're just lookin' for some Klush. Shawn Klush, that is, aka "The Closest Thing to the King" and winner of Elvis Presley Enterprises' Premiere Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest (which, incidentally, is the longest competition title ever won by anyone for anything). Elvis lives, indeed – in Arlington, y'all!

FEBRUARY

Schumann Chamber Series, Year Five
Feb. 1 and Feb. 8
Emmanuel Music
15 Newbury St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Arlington
$10 to $55, 617- 536-3356
www.emmanuelmusic.org
Musicians from Emmanuel Music perform some Schumann quartets, trios, and major song cycles. When they start shouting "Schumann in the house!" between songs, you'll know they're feeling it.

Jazz as Condition: Mint Condition
Feb. 5
Berklee Performance Center
136 Mass. Ave., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Hynes
$22.50 to $30, 617- 747-2261
www.berklee.edu
Minneapolis R&B band Mint Condition (or, as we like to call 'em, Mint Condish) was originally discovered by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis in the late '80s. They can smooth jam with the best of them, but at this Berklee show, the focus is on the role jazz plays in their sound.

Ladysmith Black Mambazo
Feb. 7
Sanders Theatre
45 Quincy St., Cambridge
MBTA: Red Line to Harvard
$28 to $40, 617- 876-4275
www.WorldMusic.org
They were recruited by Paul Simon for his blockbuster 1986 album "Graceland," but South African vocal group Ladysmith Black Mambazo are badass in their own right – not to mention that their wardrobe is like an unsupervised party of color!

Love and Lyricism
Feb. 7
Longy School of Music
1 Follen St., Cambridge
MBTA: Red Line to Harvard
$30 (Children and students free), (978) 474-6222
www.AndoverChamberMusic.org
Just in time for Valentine's Day is the Andover Chamber Music's program of music that is being described as "intimate" and "passionate." Those are two words that do not describe a new 42" flat-panel TV, dude, so think twice when determining what qualifies as "romantic" this year.

Sarasa Ensemble
Feb. 7
First Church, Cambridge
161 First St., Cambridge
MBTA: Red Line to Harvard
$19 to $64, 617- 661-1812
www.bemf.org
The Sarasa Ensemble, founded over ten years ago by Boston cellist Tim Merton, is comprised of more than 60 musicians from all over the world. They're kinda like the Justice League of classical ensembles, and we don't have to tell you how wicked that is. Soprano Dominique Labelle and countertenor Michael Chance sing arias and duets from Handel, Purcell, and Pergolesi.

Buddy, Bopper and Valens: Their Last Show 50 Years Later!
Feb. 8
Regent Theatre
7 Medford St., Arlington
MBTA: Red Line to Alewife
$25.50 to $39.50, (781) 646-4849
www.regenttheatre.com
Fifty years after the plane crash that took their lives, Buddy Holly, the Big Bopper, and Richie Valens are remembered through the magic of impersonation. Scott Walker (not that Scott Walker – egad, can you imagine?) is the Big Bopper, Brian Best is Holly, and Valens is portrayed by his cousin, Ernie. We are not making this up.

Cyprien Katsaris
Feb. 10
Seully Hall
8 The Fenway, Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Hynes
$12, 617- 912-9222
www.bostonconservatory.edu
The French-Cypriot pianist makes his Boston recital debut with sonatas by Cimarosa, Haydn, and Schubert, as well as works by Bach, Liszt, Strauss, and others. But he's best-known for his between-song stand-up comedy.

Black Sea Salsa
Feb. 13
Arsenal Center for the Arts
321 Arsenal St., Watertown
MBTA: 70/70A bus to School St.
$20, 617-923-8487
www.arsenalarts.org
You've been waiting for someone to combine Afro-Cuban jazz with Armenian music. Black Sea Salsa is here to say, "Wait no longer, oh ye anticipator of disparate intermingling!" Trumpeter Dan Teager leads six horns, four vocalists, and five percussionists through the stuff of your wild, expectant dreams.

Rokia Traoré
Feb. 13
Somerville Theatre
55 Davis Square, Somerville
MBTA: Red Line to Davis Square
$28 to $35, 617- 876-4275
www.WorldMusic.org
African singer and multi-instrumentalist Traoré's incredible new album, "Tchamantché," was pushed back from the fall to early next year, but it comes out in plenty of time for you to play catch-up before her local appearance. Expect bluesy, dreamlike African music, full of the rich tones of guitar and lute, and Traoré's intoxicating voice.

(Un)Lucky in Love
Feb. 13 to Feb. 14
First Church in Cambridge, Congregational
11 Garden St., Cambridge
MBTA: Red Line to Harvard
$15 to $35, 617- 499-4860
www.bostonsecession.org
If you found a tear in your beer last night, listen up. The "vicissitudes of love" are the focus of the Boston Secession's alternative Valentine concert, which features works by Stephen Sondheim, Leonard Bernstein, and Jason Robert Brown.

Anne Sofie von Otter, Brad Mehldau, and Bengt Forsberg
Feb. 13  
Sanders Theater
45 Quincy St., Cambridge
MBTA: Red Line to Harvard
$35 to $55, 617- 482-6661
www.celebrityseries.org
Mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter and jazz pianist Brad Mehldau are joined by classical pianist Bengt Forsberg for an evening of virtuosic one-upmanship. Well, perhaps it won't be a competitive event, but we'll have money riding on somebody nonetheless.

A Tale That’s Told in Ancient Song
Feb. 14 to Feb. 15
The Goethe Institut
170 Beacon St., Boston
MBTA: Orange Line to Back Bay
$18 to $38, 617-427-8200
www.chameleonarts.org
The folk traditions of composers' native lands are highlighted in pieces such as Ravel's Tzigane Rapsodie de Concert, Bedrich Smetana's Piano Trio, Manuel de Fall's Canciones Populares Espanolas, and Judith Weir's "Airs from Another Planet: Traditional Music from Outer Space." Cool, alien music about the inevitable destruction of an unsuspecting planet Earth!

Music of Love: A Classical Valentine
Feb. 14
Faneuil Hall
Congress St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Government Center
$18 to $57, 617- 423-3883
www.BostonClassicalOrchestra.org
It's double the love at the Boston Classical Orchestra's Valentine's show: soprano Megan Tillmann sings with her husband, tenor Matthew DiBattista; and mezzo soprano Majie Zeller sings with her husband, baritone David Kravitz. Expect excerpts from Brahms, Schubert, Strauss, Wagner, and Meatloaf.

Radius Ensemble
Feb. 15
Arsenal Center for the Arts
321 Arsenal St., Watertown
MBTA: 70/70A bus to School St.
$26, 617- 923-8487
www.arsenalarts.org
A chamber music group of winds, strings, and piano, the Radius Ensemble performs music from classical times to modern times. For their Watertown show, they'll perform Piazzola Tangos for wind quintet and Brahms' String Quintet in F, Op. 88.

The Boston Conservatory Orchestra
Feb. 20
Sanders Theatre
45 Quincy St., Cambridge
MBTA: Red Line to Harvard
$5 to $12, 617- 496-2222
www.bostonconservatory.edu
Under the supervision of conductor Bruce Hangen, the following will be performed: Shubert's Overture in D, D. 590; Prokofiev's Symphony No. 5; Mozart's "Kyrie," K. 341; Beethoven's "Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage"; and Mozart's "Regina Coeli," K. 108. Do you know what those all have in common? If so, please let us know so that we can look smart when talking about the performance with other people.

Fortunes
Feb. 21
Tsai Performance Center
685 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Boston University East
$5 to $30, 617- 353-8725
www.nephilharmonic.org
Gunther Schuller's Cello Concerto and Steven Stucky's Second Concerto for Orchestra receive their Boston premieres. Also in the lineup is Jorge Grossman's "Pasiphae," winner of the New England Philharmonic Call for Scores competition. Obviously, our concerto about the life and times of Bill "Spaceman" Lee was not a winner. We are not bitter.

The Man in Black: A Tribute to Johnny Cash
Feb. 21
Regent Theatre
7 Medford St., Arlington
MBTA: Red Line to Alewife
$25.50 to $39.50, (781) 646-4849
www.regenttheatre.com
"Hello, I'm Johnny Cash." Actually, that's not true. It's really Shawn Barker, Johnny Cash impersonator and fellow man in black. Also, he does not wear black on the outside because black is how he feels on the inside.

Beethoven's Archduke Trio
Feb. 22
Sanders Theatre
45 Quincy St., Cambridge
MBTA: Red Line to Harvard
$20 to $50, 617- 349-0086
www.bostonchambermusic.org
Beethoven's beloved "Archduke" Piano Trio is rad, but even better when paired with Shostakovich's Piano Quintet in G minor and Mozart's Duo for Violin and Viola in G, K. 423. That piece of advice is free of charge.

Angela Hewitt
Feb. 22
NEC’s Jordan Hall
30 Gainsborough St., Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Symphony
$35 to $55, 617- 482-6661
www.celebrityseries.org
It has been said that Bach interpreter Angela Hewitt "solves the labyrinth of Bach all the while regarding her piano as an extension of her voice." We're not sure exactly what that means, but if it involves a keytar and some wrap-around shades, we're there.

Rhonda Rider
Feb. 24
Seully Hall
8 The Fenway, Boston
MBTA: Green Line to Hynes
$12, 617- 912-9222
www.bostonconservatory.edu
A member of the piano trio Triple Helix, Rhonda Rider has recently appeared with the Boston Chamber Music Society, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and Emmanuel Music's Schumann Series (we painted S-C-H-U-M-A-N-N on our bare chests for that one). Here she performs pieces by Steve Reich, John Harbison, Fauré, Weir, and Pårt with the help of violinists Judith Eissenberg and Cordelia Paw (B.M. ‘09), and Mary Ruth (UV) Ray on viola.

Bach, Beethoven & the Boys (Girls, Too!)
Feb. 28
John Hancock Hall
180 Berkeley St., Boston
MBTA: Orange Line to Back Bay
www.bostonchildrenschorus.org
That classical gas ain't just for adults no more! The nine choirs of the Boston Children’s Chorus come together for a concert "full of inspiration and surprises." Proceeds from the show will benefit the BCC’s tuition fund.