If the 2010-2011 season was the best
classical programming Rochester has
seen in 20 years — anchored by the grand finale season of Rochester Philharmonic
Orchestra Conductor and Music Director
Christopher Seaman — the 2011-2012 season will be the year of the GPS.
Classical music fans: start your engines, because we are going to be going out
and about downtown and beyond to get to all of the wonderful offerings large
and small, professional, student, and community.

The season starts on a high note Friday, September 23, at
Kodak Hall with works by Faurรฉ, Albert, and Berlioz
as conductor Neil Varon leads the Eastman School
Symphony Orchestra and the Eastman Philharmonia in a season that
will have you going back for more. Of all the programming I’ve seen thus far, Varon has made blue-chip selections from Mozart to Bartok,
Ravel to Shostakovich in each one of several free concerts at the Eastman
Theater (October 21 & 24, November 14 & 18, December 2 & 12;
esm.rochester.edu).

The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra opens its season
at Eastman Theatre with its annual Red Carpet Walk on Friday, September 30,
with works of Beach, Halvorsen, Svendsen,
and J. Strauss, Jr., followed by a rooftop party with champagne and hors
d’oeuvres at the East End Garage (rpo.org). The inaugural concert under the
baton of the RPO’s new Conductor and Music
Director ArildRemmereit begins
with lesser-known works and stays on that track for the season. And, this
season’s concerts include works by female composers like Fanny Mendelssohn,
Gabriela Lena Frank, and Peggy Stuart Coolidge. Why not go an hour early for
the pre-concert chat, beginning with the second RPO concert, to get to know Remmereit and learn more about these composers? Of special
note, Itzhak Perlman will perform with
the RPO on Sunday, January 22. Tickets are already on sale for this special
event. Perlman will perform the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 35.

Chamber music will be a recurring theme this season, from the
anticipated release this fall of the new CD from the Ying Quartet to the
ESM-based ensemble’s concerts (February 26, April 22; ying4.com), along with
performances by another Grammy Award-winning quartet, The Parker Quartet (October
16), and other visiting groups like The Chamber Music
Society of Lincoln Center (October 18), Trio Solisti
(November 8), St. Lawrence String Quartet (November 13), and Imani Winds (January 31). For information
on all of the above concerts visit esm.rochester.edu.

Of course, there is also the homegrown Society for Chamber
Music in Rochester (October 9,
November 21; chambermusicrochester.org) with performances on January 22 and
March 4 of selected Debussy works for strings. Or, as per the Pegasus Early Musicwebsite, to “blur the lines between chamber and orchestral music,” get to a
performance on February 26 by Fioritura with works by
Vivaldi, Telemann, Zelenka, and more
(pegasusearlymusic.org).

Not to be overlooked under the heading of
chamber music are two chamber orchestras, CordanciaSinfonietta (November 18, February 17;
cordancia.org) and the University of Rochester Chamber Orchestra (December 6, February 18, April 21; rochester.edu). And, the Empire State
Lyric Theater will host a Chamber Opera Festival (March 2-4, empirestatelyrictheatre.org),
including a fully staged performance of “Medium.”

On October 21, the University of Rochester‘s
Women’s Chorus will host its 100th anniversary concert, which will feature
the voices of alums (rochester.edu). And I’m told we’ll see Concentus Women’s Chorus as part of the annual Early Music Festival (October 28, musicaspei.org) at St. Anne’s Church. While we’re on
the subject of women, don’t miss out on the Eastman Repertory Singers and Women’s Chorus performing Haydn’s “Theresienmesse”
at Reformation Lutheran Church (October 23, esm.rochester.edu). And note that
the Women in Music Festival is already on the calendar (March 26-30, esm.rochester.edu/wmf/).

No less than three, exciting Eastman Opera Theatre productions will be staged this season: Stephen Sondheim’s “Assassins” (November
3-6), “The Clandestine Marriage” (February 2-5), and “The Bartered Bride” (March
29-April 1; esm.rochester.edu).

This fall, our busy, busy November will also include the Eastman
Rochester Organ Initiative‘s EROI Festival (November 10-13, esm.rochester.edu/eroi), packed with organ concerts at
several churches. This year’s conference theme is improvisation. If you’re not
familiar with our local organ treasures, attend this weekend full of concerts,
and also don’t miss out on the American Guild of Organists “Celebrity Organ
Recital Series” (September 23, November 13, and February 17; agorochester.org).

Although it sounds far off, the holiday season will feature
some particularly festive concerts this year. The RPO’s “Nutcracker” production will include the Bach Children’s Chorus and Rochester City
Ballet (November 25-27, rpo.org). The next holiday stop would be the Eastman
Rochester Chorus with Eastman Philharmonia performing the Schubert
Mass in A-flat Major (December 2, esm.rochester.edu). The Penfield Symphony
Orchestra has a holiday music concert of favorites (December 5,
penfieldsymphony.org), and CordanciaSinfonietta will perform “Amahl
and the Night Visitors (December 9-16, cordancia.org). After the New Year, Third
Presbyterian Church Chancel Choir will present the ninth annual Boar’s Head
and Yule Log Festival with more than 150 people in the cast and choir (January 7-8,
thirdpresbyterian.org).

Although most groups are still formalizing their spring
concerts, Eastman’s World Music Series (esm.rochester.edu) includes a production by Jeng
Yi, a Korean drum and dance ensemble, on April 4. This series also includes ambira concert (September 14),
fiddle tunes (March 7), and the gamelan lila muni (April
30).

And, this year I want you to mark your calendars early for
the biennial Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition (July
28-August 4, 2012). You can attend rounds through to finals and cheer on your
favorite young pianists as a star-filled panel of judges makes their
selections. The 2010 competition was such a high level of talent from around
the world that I’m already looking forward to next summer.

While we’re on next summer… For now, I’ll leave off with the
teaser that the line-up for next summer’s classical music festivals will be
enough to keep you in town. Forget Europe, camping, or
putting up with your relatives. Think no further than Canandaigua, Skaneateles,
and Cooperstown. (Oh, and don’t forget: we’ll kick it
off with jazz.)

For a full listing of
the 2011-2012 classical-music season visit the 2011
Fall Guide at rochestercitynewspaper.com.

This article appears in Sep 14-20, 2011.