Here's a comprehensive list of all of the classical music performances scheduled for Spring 2020 in Milwaukee.
February
Ye Vagabonds Irish Cultural and Heritage Center (Hallamór Concert Series) Feb. 7 “Beijing Guitar Duo in Concert” UWM Peck School of the Arts Feb. 7 “Simply Swingin’—Sinatra & Friends” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (Pops) Feb. 7-9 Four Guys in Dinner Jackets: “Now in Technicolor” Oconomowoc Arts Center (Cabaret Series) Feb. 7-9 “Winter Journey: A Theatrical Staging of Schubert’s Winterreise” Tim Rebers and Posy Knight (53212 Presents) Feb. 7-16
Franz Schubert’s famous and challenging song-cycle Winterreise will be sung by Tim Rebers with pianist Maggie Rebers in an original theatrical staging with the dancer and choreographer Posy Knight. The Romantic music is impassioned, the story it tells is heartbreaking and the staging will be a complete experiment. The performances are at the intimate new 53212 Presents multidisciplinary performance space above Company Brewing in Riverwest, one more good reason to see this. (John Schneider)
Les Délices: “Myths & Allegories” Early Music Now Feb. 8 Bela Fleck and Abigail Washburn Thrasher Opera House Feb. 8 “Baumgartner Studio Artist Showcase featuring Leonard Bernstein’s Trouble in Tahiti” Florentine Opera Feb. 8-9 “Italy!” Karen Beaumont @ St. Hedwig’s Church Feb. 9 “Melodious Women” (guest artists: Lucille Chung, Libby Larson, Laura Snyder) Wisconsin Philharmonic Feb. 9
Women’s right to vote turns a century old, and the Wisconsin Philharmonic commemorates this special occasion with performances by talented female composers and artists: composer Libby Larsen, pianist Lucille Chung and vocalist Laura Snyder. A pre-concert event with Rebecca Kleefisch, aimed at enlightening the audience on such an important milestone and how Wisconsin led the way, is also part of this special event. The program consists of works by Joan Tower, Libby Larsen and Serge Rachmaninoff. (John Jahn)
“Musical Dialogues: J.S. Bach, Wolfgang Mozart, Robert Schumann” Philomusica Quartet Feb. 10 & 16
Formed in 2008, Philomusica String Quartet is currently in residence at Wisconsin Lutheran College. The quartet is composed of violist Nathan Hackett, cellist Adrien Zitoun, and violinists Jeanyi Kim and Alexander (Sascha) Mandl. This chamber music program includes: Bach’s Art of the Fugue, Contrapuncti 1-4; Mozart’s String Quartet No. 17 in B-Flat Major, K. 458, subtitled The Hunt; and Schumann’s String Quartet in A Major, Op. 41, No.3, named after his wife, Clara. (Harry Cherkinian)
Axiom Brass UW-Whitewater Young Auditorium Feb. 11 “Winter Pajama Jamboree” (Family Friendly) Festival City Symphony Feb. 12 “Flute Fanfare” Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra Feb. 12 “The Avant-Garden of Love” Present Music Feb. 13-14 “The Finest Hour: Divina & the Vagabonds and Hot Club of Cowtown” Door County Auditorium Feb. 14 Frank Vignola & Vinny Raniolo: “Guitar Magic” Schauer Arts Center (Cabaret Series) Feb. 14 “Songs & Sweethearts” Germantown Performing Arts Center Feb. 15 “Lyric Chorale” @ All Saints Cathedral Milwaukee Children’s Choir & Ann Arbor Youth Chorale Feb. 15 “The Finest Hour: Divina & the Vagabonds and Hot Club of Cowtown” Sharon Lynn Wilson Center for the Arts (Performing Arts Series) Feb. 15 Willy Porter Thrasher Opera House Feb. 15 “Sensoria: Experiments in Sound and Performance” (Student Performance) UWM Peck School of the Arts Feb. 15 Chamber Music Milwaukee UWM Peck School of the Arts Feb. 16 Milwaukee Musaik Wisconsin Conservatory of Music Feb. 18 Ben Folds: “One Night Only” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (Special Event) Feb. 19 Tonic Sol-fa Sharon Lynn Wilson Center for the Arts (Matinee Series) Feb. 19 Flutter (Christine Ingaldson) Woodland Pattern Book Center (Formations Series for New & Improvised Music) Feb. 20 Limanya Drum & Dance Ensemble Schauer Arts Center Feb. 21 The Carlos Adames Group Sharon Lynn Wilson Center for the Arts (Club Series) Feb. 21 Milwaukee Children’s Choir Cornerstone Presbyterian Church Feb. 22 “Symphonic Spectacular” (Student Production) Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra Feb. 22 “Masur Conducts Mendelssohn” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra Feb. 22-23 “Mozart, Strauss, Beethoven” Kettle Moraine Symphony Feb. 23 “Classic Cadences” (Student Production) Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra Feb. 23 “Salon with Anthony Marwood” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra Feb. 27 Velvet Caravan Thrasher Opera House Feb. 29 “Beethoven’s Violin Concerto” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra Feb. 29-March 1
March
CONTINUING:
“Beethoven’s Violin Concerto” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra Through March 1
OPENING:
“Amadeus Guitar Duo in Concert” UWM Peck School of the Arts March 5 “Caro Pierotto and Farofa Present: BR-101” Latino Arts March 6
Making their Wisconsin debut, vocalist Caro Pierotto and the collective Farofa will lead the audience on a musical tour of their native Brazil. Following the route of the country’s major highway (BR-101) from the north to the south, listeners can expect lyrics in English, Spanish and Portuguese; musical styles will blend, exploring classical, Brazilian and rock ’n’ roll elements. This special showcase will present the multifaceted, spirited nature of Brazil’s musical influences and impact. (Anastasia Skliarova)
Socks in the Frying Pan UW-Washington County (Performing Artist Series) March 6 Socks in the Frying Pan Irish Cultural and Heritage Center (Hallamór Concert Series) March 7 “Sing-a-thon” @ Southridge Mall Milwaukee Children’s Choir March 7 Karen Casey Thrasher Opera House March 7 “Sensoria: Experiments in Sound and Performance” (Student Production) UWM Peck School of the Arts March 7 Gentri: The Gentlemen Trio UW-Whitewater Young Auditorium March 7 “The Choir of Man” Wisconsin Center District (Miller High Life Theatre) March 7 “J. S. Bach’s Mass in B Minor” Bel Canto Chorus March 8 “Handel’s Messiah” Waukesha Choral Union March 8
Few things in this world are more inspirational than listening to a talented choir perform George Frideric Handel’s Messiah. If you’ve never experienced this powerful piece live, in person, get yourself to the Shattuck Music Center in Waukesha on March 8. The Choral Union features student singers from Carroll College, as well as singers from the community. Don’t forget to stand when they sing the, always uplifting, “Hallelujah” chorus. (Susan Harpt Grimes)
Yamato: The Drummers of Japan Marcus Center (Uihlein Hall) March 13 “Powerhouse Pianists—Michael Mizrahi” Present Music March 13 “Beethoven’s Fifth” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra March 13-15 “The Tragedy of Carmen by Peter Brook” Florentine Opera March 13, 15, 21, 22 “Music by Buxtehude and Pachelbel” Karen Beaumont @ St. Hedwig’s Church March 15 “Symphony Showcase” Frankly Music March 16
The ensemble’s season finale showcases some of the stellar musicians of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra in chamber music pieces. The evocative program includes Darius Milhaud’s La Cheminée du Roi René; Joaquín Turina’s La Oración del Torero; Wolfgang Mozart’s Quintet for Horn and Strings and Louis Spohr’s captivating—and exceedingly rarely heard live—Nonet in F Major. (John Jahn)
“Jazz Week” UW-Parkside March 16-21 “Drum Tao 2020” UW-Whitewater Young Auditorium March 18 “Jazz Festival 2020” Wisconsin Conservatory of Music March 18-19
Open to all levels of middle and high school jazz combos and ensembles, the 6th Annual Wisconsin Conservatory of Music Jazz Festival will feature brand-new workshops, a new performance format, college recruitment opportunities and more, says the school’s website. Special guest artists will include Gerald Bannon (bass), Donald Edwards (drums), Derrick Gardner (trumpet), Rick Germanson (piano) and Justin Robinson (saxophone). The Conservatory’s Jazz Institute is one of the longest running jazz education programs in America. (John Schneider)
“Spring Solstice Concert” (Guest Artist Greg Hartmann: Rachmaninoff Piano Concert #2) Cardinal Stritch University March 19 Mark Mantel & Wilhelm Matthies; Montauk Project (Ryan Miesel & Jake Polancich) Woodland Pattern Book Center (Formations Series for New & Improvised Music) March 19 “Ricky Nelson Remembered” Cedarburg Performing Arts Center March 20 Skerryvore Thrasher Opera House March 20 “Aretha: Queen of Soul” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (Pops) March 20-22 “The Histories” Concord Chamber Orchestra March 21
William Shakespeare was a keen reader of history, always looking for the dramatic impact of historical characters and events. In this concert, the Concord Chamber Orchestra performs classical music based upon The Bard’s works, as well as accompanies the winner of its annual concerto competition in a performance of a work chosen by said winner from their repertoire. (John Jahn)
“Let Freedom Ring!” Festival City Symphony March 22 Peacherine Ragtime Society Orchestra Schauer Arts Center March 22 “Mozart Without Words” (Yaniv Dinur, soloist) Philomusica Quartet March 23 “An Evening with Hamilton’s Renée Elise Goldsberry” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (Special Event) March 27 Katie Boeck Sharon Lynn Wilson Center for the Arts (Club Series) March 27 Darrell Scott Thrasher Opera House March 27 “Who Are We?” (7 World Premieres) (Student Production) UWM Peck School of the Arts March 27-29 “George Hinchliffe’s Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain” Sharon Lynn Wilson Center for the Arts (Performing Arts Series) March 28 “Davidson Chamber Recitals” (Student Production) Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra March 29 Chamber Music Milwaukee (World Premieres) UWM PSOA Music March 29
April
Billy Stritch: “I’m Playing His Songs: The Music of Marvin Hamlisch” Sharon Lynn Wilson Center for the Arts (Matinee Series) April 1
Grammy Award-winning singer-pianist Billy Stritch, a mainstay on New York’s cabaret circuit, pays tribute to the prolific composer who composed more than 40 film scores during his amazing career. Hamlisch composed many popular tunes, such as “The Way We Were,” “What I Did for Love,” “Nobody Does It Better” and “Through the Eyes of Love” for shows like A Chorus Line, They’re Playing our Song, The Goodbye Girl, Sweet Smell of Success and many more. (Harry Cherkinian)
“Pianist Nathan Carterette performs Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1” UWM Peck School of the Arts April 1 “Johnny A. Just Me…and My Guitars” Thrasher Opera House April 3 “Clipper Plays Mozart; Beethoven’s ‘Eroica’” UWM PSOA Music April 3 EmiSunshine UW-Whitewater Young Auditorium April 3 “Brahms + Schumann” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra April 3-4
“If only you could breathe into your orchestra, when it plays, that longing for spring!,” Robert Schumann wrote to a conductor of the German composer’s latest symphonic work, his Symphony No. 1 in B-Flat Major, Op. 38, adding that he wanted the audience to hear sounds from his work suggesting “the world turning green.” This MSO program bursts with both spring and song, including as it does three major choral pieces written by Schumann’s great friend, Johannes Brahms, featuring mezzo-soprano Tamara Mumford and the Milwaukee Symphony Chorus. (John Jahn)
House of Time: “Angels and Demons” Early Music Now April 4
Hailing from New York City, chamber ensemble House of Time performs on period instruments and contextualizes the beautiful, vital impact of early music for a contemporary audience. Tatiana Daubek, Matt Zucker, Gonzalo X. Ruiz and Avi Stein—all renowned soloists in their own right—will perform works by Baroque composers Antonio Corelli, Martin Marais (who “played like an angel”) and Antoine Forqueray (who “played like a devil”). In the spirit of Early Music Now’s educational mission, audience members may enjoy a pre-concert lecture. (Anastasia Skliarova)
Aoife Scott Irish Cultural and Heritage Center (Hallamór Concert Series) April 4 Joseph Sartori Concert: “An Evening of the Classics” Plymouth Arts Center April 4 “Powerhouse Pianists—Cory Smythe” Present Music April 4 Dallas String Quartet: “DSQ Electric” Schauer Arts Center April 4 “Benjamin Verdery in Concert” (Classical Guitar) UWM Peck School of the Arts April 4 “UWM Piano Festival: The Art of Teaching Beethoven” UWM Peck School of the Arts April 4 “April 2020 Masterworks—RSO at The Rita” Racine Symphony Orchestra April 5
The RSO was established in 1932 and is one of Wisconsin’s oldest orchestras. This program features John Adams’ Shaker Loops, Joseph Haydn’s Farewell Symphony No. 45 and the winner of the 2020 Young Artist Competition as the featured guest artist. Conductor Pasquale Laurino directs. (Harry Cherkinian)
Milwaukee Musaik Woman’s Club of Wisconsin April 9 “A. Curtis Farrow Presents Gospelfest 2020” Fiserv Forum April 10 Semi-Toned Marcus Center for the Performing Arts (Wilson Theatre) April 15 Milwaukee Composers Collective (Student Production) UWM Peck School of the Arts April 16 Hal Rammel & Steve Nelson-Raney; Jim Schoenecker & Jay Mollerskov Woodland Pattern Book Center (Formations Series for New and Improvised Music) April 16 Paul Silbergleit Sextet Sharon Lynn Wilson Center for the Arts (Club Series) April 17 John Daugherty and Elena Abend: Robert Schumann’s Liederkreis UWM Peck School of the Arts April 17 Wisconsin Brass Quintet UW-Washington County (Performing Artist Series) April 17 Zarzuela Florentine Opera (@ the Center Series) April 17-18 “Revolution: The Music of the Beatles—A Symphonic Experience” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (Pops) April 17-19 Jack Wright and the Heartlight Band: “Songs & Stories of Neil Diamond” Schauer Arts Center April 18 John Sebastian Thrasher Opera House April 18 Oconomowoc Chamber Orchestra Spring Concert Oconomowoc Arts Center April 19 “Floral Fantasia” (Guest Artist: Kevin Pearl) Wisconsin Philharmonic April 19 Joaquín Turina: Circulo; Julius Röntgen: Trio in C Minor; Franz Schubert: Trio in B-flat Major Prometheus Trio April 20-21
The Wisconsin Conservatory of Music’s resident trio features Stefanie Jacob, Margot Schwartz and Scott Tisdel. They will perform three works in the Helen Bader Recital Hall, a venue which, through its floral ornamentation alone, inspires a sense of springtime. Turina’s instrumentation feels uncluttered, providing ample room for sweeping melodies. Lesser-known, Röntgen’s trio interweaves a motif that builds tension, creating a subtly sinister, conflicted undertone. The most “classical” work on the program certainly is Schubert’s, which delivers triumphant vigor. (Anastasia Skliarova)
The Second City: “Laughing for All the Wrong Reasons” Marcus Center (Wilson Theatre) April 23-25 “Bach to the Future... Reach for the Stars” Bach Chamber Choir May 3
This fine choral group consists of amateur, student and professional musicians who present concerts throughout the year; its director and accompanist are professional musicians and the only paid staff members. These folks sing for the love of music, and what better reason. Though works on this concert’s program aren’t known as of this writing, attendees are sure to hear gorgeous choral works from Baroque and Classical era masters and beyond. (John Jahn)
“Fanfare and Finale” Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra April 26 Ben LaMar Gay Woodland Pattern Book Center (Alternating Currents Live) April 26 “Masterful Tonal Spices” (Melinda Lee Masur, guest pianist) Philomusica Quartet April 27
May
UWM Symphony Orchestra: “Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2” (Student Orchestra) UWM Peck School of the Arts May 1
This behemoth of a season finale—one of Rachmaninoff’s best-known works—should earn these student musicians significant esteem. Written in the years before the true tumult of the Russian Revolution, this award-winning composition helped heal the critical wounds of Rachmaninoff’s widely panned first symphonic endeavor. From its formidable duration to its fortissimo outbursts, this symphony is nothing short of demanding and dramatic. Enjoy an evening at the Helene Zelazo Center for the Performing Arts and support this local educational institution’s performance. (Anastasia Skliarova)
“A Night at the Theatre” Waukesha Choral Union May 1 “Beethoven’s Heroic Symphony” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra May 1-2 “Blue Heron: Fit for the Immortal Gods: The Music of Johannes Ockeghem” Early Music Now May 2 “Family Concert” @ St. Sebastian Parish Milwaukee Children’s Choir May 2 Lee Rocker of the Stray Cats Schauer Arts Center May 2 Carsie Blanton Thrasher Opera House May 2 UWM Choral Collage Concert (Student Production) UWM Peck School of the Arts May 2 “J.S. Bach: St. John Passion” Master Singers of Milwaukee May 2-3
Join the Master Singers of Milwaukee at All Saints’ Cathedral in Milwaukee and St. Luke’s Lutheran Church in Waukesha for performances of one of Baroque master Johann Sebastian Bach’s greatest choral-orchestral works (and that’s saying a lot!): the St. John Passion. First performed in 1724, this oratorio uses texts from the bible’s John chapter to narrate its crucifixion story. (John Jahn)
“Bach to the Future… Reach for the Stars” Bach Chamber Choir May 3 “Monuments” Festival City Symphony May 3 “Rachmaninoff, Winds” Kettle Moraine Symphony May 3 UWM Jazz Ensemble Concert (Student Production) UWM Peck School of the Arts May 3 The Bridge—a Transatlantic Network for Creative Music: “Bridge #14: Sangliers” Woodland Pattern Book Center (Alternating Currents Live) May 3 UWM Flute Ensemble Concert (Student Production) UWM Peck School of the Arts May 5 UWM Gospel Choir Spring Concert (Student Production) UWM Peck School of the Arts May 5 “Spring Pajama Jamboree” (Family Friendly) Festival City Symphony May 6
The Festival City Symphony will conclude its season with a free Spring Pajama Jamboree concert in the Bradley Pavilion of the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. The program will include patriotic tunes and, as always, children from the audience will conduct the orchestral finale, “The Stars and Stripes Forever.” The audience is invited to bring a blanket and sit on the floor, up close, to “meet” the orchestra. Conventional seating is also available. Recommended for children in K4 through fifth grade. (Harry Cherkinian)
“What Would Petula Do? A Tribute to Petula Clark” Sharon Lynn Wilson Center for the Arts (Matinee Series) May 6 “The Texas Tenors” Cedarburg Performing Arts Center May 8 Betsy Ade & Well-Known Strangers Sharon Lynn Wilson Center for the Arts (Club Series) May 8 “Beethoven + Bolcom’s Violin Concerto” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra May 8-9 “Mater alma: Marian Adoration in England” Aperi Animam May 9
Choral music focused on St. Mary was encouraged when England was primarily Roman Catholic but, as Aperi Animam’s Daniel Koplitz says, when Henry VIII and his successors imposed Protestantism, “the amount of music lost is immeasurable” as institutions housing music “went up in flames, lost forever.” Some of the music to be performed at the Milwaukee group’s “Mater Alma” concert was published by William Byrd in 1610, a time when “even owning a copy could be considered treason” Koplitz continues. Other elements of the program are of more recent origin, including pieces by 20th century Britain’s Benjamin Britten and contemporary Eastern Orthodox composer John Taverner. (David Luhrssen)
“The Tragedies” Concord Chamber Orchestra May 9 “Rhythm and Blues” (Student Production) Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra May 9 “Hope” Sheboygan Symphony Orchestra May 9
Joined by the Sheboygan Symphony Chorus, Wisconsin’s oldest continually performing orchestra will round out its 101st season with Camille Saint-Saëns’ Cello Concerto No. 1 and Jenkins’ The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace. Dedicated to victims of the Kosovo crisis, this mass depicts wartime agony and invokes nonviolence. Guest soloist Alina Vasquez will perform Saint-Saëns’ fiery work; considered by many composers to be among the finest cello concertos ever written, this passionate piece nimbly traverses the range of registers accessible to the instrument. (Anastasia Skliarova)
Moraine Chorus Spring Concert UW-Washington County May 10 Moraine Symphonic Band Spring Concert UW-Washington County May 10 Milwaukee Musaik Wisconsin Conservatory of Music May 11 “Audrey G. Baird Stars of Tomorrow” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (Special Event) May 12 “A Flute Festival” (Student Production) Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra May 13 “Beethoven and Broadway: The Eroica and Broadway Standards” (Student Production) Cardinal Stritch Music May 14 “Salon with Susan Babini” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra May 14 “Keep the Home Fires Burning” Bel Canto Chorus May 15
Narrated by Emmy Award-winning Mary Alice Tierney, this concert presents music inspired by World War I. These works were meant to boost morale, comment on life in the trenches and grieve, as in Herbert Howell’s Elegy for Viola, String Quartet and String Orchestra, played by the Falls Baptist Chamber Orchestra. Ralph Vaughan Williams composed his Dona Nobis Pacem to passionately warn against another worldwide conflict, integrating Walt Whitman’s Civil War poetry and Catholic texts. Bel Canto performs the story of “the war to end all wars.” (Anastasia Skliarova)
“Cache MKE” Latino Arts May 15 “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (Special Event) May 15-16 PAC Singers Spring Concert: “Musical Potpourri” Plymouth Arts Center May 15-16 The Paul Thorn Band Thrasher Opera House May 15-16 “Spring Concert” Chant Claire Chamber Choir May 16 “String Serenade Metamorphosis” Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra May 16 Ted Vigil: “Tribute to John Denver” Oconomowoc Arts Center May 16 “An Evening with Kathy Mattea” Sharon Lynn Wilson Center for the Arts (Performing Arts Series) May 16 Germantown Spring Community Band Concert Germantown Performing Arts Center May 17 “Symphonic Celebration” (Student Production) Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra May 17 “Progressions May Melodies” (Student Production) Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra May 20 “Spaghetti Western” The Cooperage Present Music May 22
Think of the sound of the Old West, and what comes to mind? Not the grand, orchestral sweep of classic Hollywood, but the reverberating electric guitar and Jew’s harp of Ennio Morricone’s great scores. The Italian composer’s scores for those great ’60s “Spaghetti Westerns” are the inspiration for Present Music’s season closer, programmed by co-artistic director David Bloom. (David Luhrssen)
“Pastoral Sounds” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra May 22-23 Corky Siegel and the Will Tilson Blues Band Thrasher Opera House May 23 “Honors Chamber Program Recital” (Student Production) Milwaukee Youth Symphony Orchestra May 27 Macbeth Florentine Opera May 29-31
Italian master Giuseppe Verdi takes William Shakespeare to an operatic level with one of the most complex relationships ever to haunt the stage. Consumed by the promise of political power and propelled by his ambitious wife, Macbeth gets caught in a murderous web to claim the Scottish throne. Instead of great power, however, blind ambition leads only to madness and destruction—all set to Verdi’s magnificent, dramatic score. (John Jahn)
June
“Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra June 5-6 “Season Finale: Everyone Sang” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra June 12-14 Neophonic Jazz Orchestra Oconomowoc Arts Center June 14 “Blockbuster Scores: Music from TV and Film” Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (Pops) June 19-21 Kids from Wisconsin Plymouth Arts Center June 27 Jason Gillette & the Showtime Big Band Sharon Lynn Wilson Center for the Arts (Starry Nights) June 28