San Francisco Symphony Opening Gala
The San Francisco Symphony season begins on Sept. 6 with Glinka's Ruslan and Ludmila Overture, Stravinsky's D-Major Violin Concerto, and Dvorák's Eighth Symphony. The intelligent and compelling Christian Tetzlaff is the violinist. As SFCV's Robert Commanday noted in March, this is a "real program, worthy to launch the season." Sept. 6, 8:30 p.m., Davies Hall, San Francisco, $130-$375, (415) 864-6000, www.sfsymphony.org. (M.V.C.)

S.F. Opera's A Masked Ball
San Francisco Opera's first season under General Director David Gockley opens with Verdi's midcareer A Masked Ball. Deborah Voigt stars as Amelia, with debuting tenor Marcus Haddock as the jolly King Gustav and debuting baritone Ambroglio Maestri as Amelia's fatally jealous husband, Ankarström. Marco Armiliato conducts. Sept. 8, 13, 17, 20, 23, 26, 29; times vary, War Memorial Opera House, San Francisco, $25-$235, (415) 864-3330, www.sfopera.com. (L.H.)

Opera San José's Roméo et Juliette
The South Bay scene kicks off with a rarity of particular interest. Beginning early this month, Opera San José starts its run of eight performances at the California Theatre of Gounod's lyric Roméo et Juliette, not heard in the Bay Area since Festival Opera's 2004 production. OSJ sports a new lineup of headline talent, including soprano Rochelle Bard making her debut as Juliette. The prize-winning Bard comes with a pedigree of East Coast companies, most recently in major roles with the Baltimore Opera. Sept. 9, 12, 15, 21, 23, 8 p.m.; Sept. 10, 17, 24, 3 p.m.; California Theatre, San Jose, $65-$85, (408) 437-4450, www.operasj.org. (S.M.)

Choral 9/11 Memorials
The fifth anniversary of 9/11 has brought out the best in the Bay Area's choral community. Pacific Collegium and Pacific Boychoir are performing a benefit concert for the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation, featuring the 1950s version of Duruflé's Requiem, with orchestra, as well as Gerald Finzi's lush Lo, the full final sacrifice and his innocent Dies Natalis. Sept. 9, 7:30 p.m., St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Oakland; Sept. 10, Trinity Episcopal Church, San Francisco; $10-$30, info@pacificcollegium.org, www.pacificcollegium.org.
On the day of Sept. 11, San Francisco City Chorus presents a concert of Mozart's Requiem, with a combined force of more than 150 singers drawn from area choruses. Sept. 11, 8 p.m., First Congregational Church, Berkeley, free, (415) 701-7664, www.sfcitychorus.org. (M.V.C.)

Kronos Remembers 9/11
The Bay Area's own Kronos Quartet marks the fifth anniversary of 9/11 with the West Coast premiere of Michael Gordon's The Sad Park, based on children's reactions to Ground Zero in New York. The program also includes music from Iraq, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, and other regions of the Middle East and has all the makings of a haunting and unsettling performance. Sept. 11, 8 p.m., Yerba Buena Center, San Francisco, $35-$49, (415) 392-2545, www.performances.org. (M.V.C.)

The Peony Pavilion
Love conquers death in The Peony Pavilion, as a scholar falls in love with the ghost of a young girl and then brings her back from the grave. In its original form, the Chinese kunqu opera, a great classic, lasted 20 hours; Cal Performances presents a nine-hour version over three nights. You can, if you like, attend only one three-hour segment. There will also be a symposium on the piece Sept. 14-17 at Alumni House on the UC Berkeley campus (times not yet announced). Sept. 15-16, 7 p.m; Sept. 17, 3 p.m.; Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley, $30-$86, (510) 642-9988, www.calperfs.berkeley.edu/presents. (L.H.)

Kiri and Flicka Together
Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and Frederica von Stade, nearly retired from the operatic stage, give a joint recital. It is likely to be both nostalgic and full of charm and affection. Sept. 18, 8 p.m, Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley, $48-$110, (510) 642-9988, www.calperfs.berkeley.edu/presents. (L.H.)

"Complete" Schubert Sonatas
Whether he plays all of the Schubert sonatas (20 of them), or all the complete sonatas (11), Meng-Chieh Liu's four recitals (three this fall) are bound to be a rare treat for those who cannot get enough music of the composer whose "brief existence was neither very successful nor eventful" (David Mason Greene). Liu's own existence might have been even briefer — it has certainly been plenty eventful. At age 21, he was diagnosed with a commonly fatal and debilitating form of vasculitis, a disease of the connective tissue. Despite being told he would never play again, he persevered, and through heroic retraining he was able to return to his calling (and to rave reviews) three years later in 1998. Sept. 22, 8 p.m.; Sept. 24, 4 p.m.; Oct. 27, 8 p.m., Old First Church, San Francisco, $12-$15, (415) 474-1608, http://www.oldfirstconcerts.org. (J.D.)

Rolando Villaz—n
Acclaimed tenor Rolando Villaz—n, a grad of the 1998 Merola Opera Program, will be in town for a recital at UC Berkeley, as part of Cal Performance's lineup. What's on the program? That part is still a mystery. Sept. 24, 3 p.m., Hertz Hall, UC Berkeley, $68, (510) 642-9988, www.calperfs.berkeley.edu. (M.V.C.)

Shostakovich Mini-Festival
Join the Alexander String Quartet, pianist Roger Woodward, and lecturer Robert Greenberg in singing Happy Birthday to Dmitri, born a hundred years ago on Sept. 25 (unless you're on the Julian calendar), in San Francisco Performances' mini-festival dedicated to the other big birthday boy this year. Sept. 24, 1 p.m. and 7 p.m., Sept. 25, 7 p.m., Herbst Theatre, San Francisco, $22-$89, (415) 392-2545, www.performances.org. (M.B.)

MTT and Upshaw
The San Francisco Symphony currently holds the number-one spot among Bay Area listeners with a love for innovative music making, and there are many performances to be grateful for on the fall calendar. In late September, Michael Tilson Thomas conducts and Dawn Upshaw stars in a program of Berlioz (Overture to Benvenuto Cellini) and Brahms (Symphony No. 4), plus Lukas Foss' Time Cycle. Sept. 27-30, 8 p.m., Davies Hall, San Francisco, $25-$114, (415) 864-6000, www.sfsymphony.org. (H.T.)

Magnificat's Judgment of Solomon
Nearly everything that Warren Stewart's early music ensemble touches turns to gold. This time Magnificat offers audiences the 1702 oratorio The Judgment of Solomon, Marc-Antoine Charpentier's last completed composition, with a top-flight collection of well-known local singers and players. Sept. 29, 8 p.m., First Lutheran Church, Palo Alto; Sept. 30, 8 p.m., St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Berkeley; Oct. 1, 4 p.m., St. Gregory Nyssen Episcopal Church, San Francisco, $12-$25, (415) 979-4500, www.magnificatbaroque.org. (M.B.)

Mark Morris' King Arthur
Mark Morris Dance Group, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, and the UC Chamber Chorus combine for a spirited interpretation of Henry Purcell's opera King Arthur. The production was cocommissioned by the English National Opera, Cal Performances, and the New York City Opera. Jane Glover conducts; Adrianne Lobel, Isaac Mizrahi, and James F. Ingalls designed the production. Sept. 30 and Oct. 3, 5, 6, 7; 8 p.m., Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley, $42-$110, (510) 642-9988, www.calperfs.berkeley.edu/presents. (L.H.)

Rigoletto
Verdi's great masterpiece returns in Michael Yeargan's striking, Chirico-esque production. The vivid and moving Paolo Gavanelli shares the title role with Valeri Alexejev; Mary Dunleavy is Rigoletto's besotted daughter Gilda and Giuseppi Gripali is the Duke of Mantua. Stephen Lord conducts. Sept. 30; Oct. 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 21, 24, 29, times vary, War Memorial Opera House, San Francisco; $25-245, (415) 864-3330, www.sfopera.com. (L.H.)

Symphony Silicon Valley
Emil de Cou, well known in the Bay Area and now associate conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra, guest conducts Symphony Silicon Valley in Jennifer Higdon's Concerto for Orchestra. While Robert Spano and the Atlanta Symphony's first-rate CD makes an excellent case for the work, Marin Alsop's Cabrillo Festival Orchestra in 2004 even better plumbed the greatness and power of Higdon's score, a piece that, as much as any other, puts 21st century symphonic music firmly on the map. Sept. 30, 8 p.m.; Oct. 1, 2:30 p.m.; California Theatre, San Jose, $36-$72, (408) 286-2600, symphonysiliconvalley.org. (S.M.)

Symphony for Demented Drummer and Orchestra
Imagine a psychopath trying to break down a door to strangle you — that's basically what the snare drum does to the rest of the orchestra through much of the first movement of the Symphony No. 5 by Carl Nielsen (1865-1931). One of the most underplayed great symphonists today, Nielsen is a composer not to be missed by those wanting to hear striking musical ideas brilliantly and concisely developed. Herbert Blomstedt conducts the San Francisco Symphony and accompanies Joshua Bell in Beethoven's Violin Concerto. Oct. 4-7, 8 p.m.; Oct. 8, 2 p.m.; Davies Hall, San Francisco, $25-$110, (415) 864-6000, www.sfsymphony.org. (J.D.)

Tristan und Isolde
Thomas Moser and Christine Brewer star as Wagner's death-haunted lovers in David Hockney's primary-colors production. Brewer, with a voice of astonishing warmth, beauty, and power, has the makings of a great Isolde. Kristinn Sigmundsson is King Marke; Jane Irwin and Boaz Daniel debut as the lovers' confidantes Brangaene and Kurwenal. Donald Runnicles conducts; he was impetuously brilliant in the 1998 run of Tristan. October 5, 10, 14, 18, 22, 27; times vary, War Memorial Opera House, San Francisco, $25-$245, (415) 864-3330, www.sfopera.com. (L.H.)

Oakland Opera's Les Enfants Terribles
Oakland Opera Theater kicks off its season with Philip Glass' Les Enfants Terribles, based on the film by Jean Cocteau. If the group's Malcolm X of last season is any indication, it's likely to be an innovative performance. Oct. 6-7, 13-14, 20-21, 8 p.m.; Oct. 8, 15, 22, 2 p.m.; Oakland Metro, Oakland, $28-$36, (510) 763-1146, www.oaklandopera.org. (M.V.C.)

Leon Fleischer
The Steinway Society in San Jose has pulled off an unbelievable feat: San Francisco native and piano legend Leon Fleischer opens the season on Oct. 7. After half a lifetime of playing only left-hand repertoire (a neurological affliction incapacitated his right hand when he was just 37), he has recently begun playing with both hands again — although rarely. The program contains works by Stravinsky, Schubert, Mozart, and Ravel; the exact program has not yet been announced. Oct. 7, 8 p.m.; Oct. 8, 7 p.m., Le Petit Trianon, San Jose, $20-$65, (408) 295-6500, www.steinwaythebayarea.com. (M.V.C.)

Maxim Vengerov
Violinist Maxim Vengerov will be at Zellerbach Hall in Berkeley with Lilya Zilberstein on piano. His consummate technique and star-size personality are sure to be on display in Mozart's Adagio in E Major (arranged by Max Rostal), K. 261; the Beethoven Violin Sonata No. 7 in C Minor, Op. 30, No. 2; the Prokofiev Violin Sonata No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 80; and Shostakovich's Ten Preludes from Op. 34. Oct. 8, 3 p.m., Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley, $36-$68, (510) 642-9988, www.calperfs.berkeley.edu/presents. (M.V.C.)

"Romantic Reawakenings"
S.F. Symphony principal oboist William Bennet joins the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players for the ensemble's season opener. The program includes works by European "postmodern romantics" Marc-André Dalbavie (Axiom, La marche des transitoires) and York Höller, whose pieces are U.S. premieres (Tagträume and Ex tempore). Oct. 9, 8 p.m., Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theater, San Francisco, $10-$27, (415) 978-2787, www.sfcmp.org. (M.V.C.)

At the New S.F. Conservatory
In its new location, the San Francisco Conservatory may, deservedly, draw larger audiences to its recitals and programs this season. October is an especially interesting month: British pianist Stephen Hough, a distinctive soloist and chamber musician, holds a master class with conservatory students on Oct. 11 at 7:30 p.m. Violinist Midori, who brought her Contemporary Music Recital Program to the JCC last April, has scheduled a Conservatory master class Oct. 26 at 7:30 p.m. And the BluePrint series kicks off its first concert, titled "Fertility Rites," on Oct. 14 at 8 p.m., with a preconcert talk at 7:15 p.m., in Recital Hall. This concert brings guest sopranos Joan Heller and Patrice Pastore, performing works by Robert Cogan (Polyutterances), Hans Werner Henze (L'heure bleue), George Crumb (Quest), François Rose (Le temps scintille), and Christos Hatzis (Fertility Rites). Dates and venues vary, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, $10-$15, (415) 503-6275, www.sfcm.edu. (M.V.C.)

Die Familie Bach
California Bach Society has a new director, the busy countertenor Paul Flight, who besides soloing around town also directs the newly formed Haydn Singers and East Bay Chorus (forming out of Cantabile's East Bay contingent). Under Flight's capable hands, CBS explores the musical genius of J.S. Bach and his sons, cousins, and uncles, in a concert featuring Jesu, meine Freude and the rarely heard Wachet auf, ruf't uns die Stimme by Johann Christoph Friedrich. Oct. 13, 8 p.m., St. Gregory of Nyssa Episcopal Church, San Francisco; Oct. 14, 8 p.m., All Saints Episcopal Church, Palo Alto; Oct. 15, 4 p.m., St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, Berkeley; $10-$25, (415) 262-0272, www.calbach.org. (M.V.C.)

Golijov and Stalin
Osvaldo Golijov (pronounced GO-lee-hoff) is "one of the few composers today whose works are profoundly shifting the geography of the classical music world," according to the New York Times. Named Composer of the Year for 2005 by Musical America, the Argentine-born Golijov infuses Latin and multicultural influences into a heady, audience-energizing brew. Last Round, Golijov's string orchestra tribute to Astor Piazzolla and his hand-organ bandoneon, opens the concert. Following the favorite Saint-Saëns Piano Concerto No. 2, performed by Jean-Yves Thibaudet, conductor Semyon Bychkov concludes with the Shostakovich's Symphony No. 10. The second movement of this powerful work, probably the most blistering in the literature, purportedly depicts Stalin as an all-encompassing whirlwind. Oct. 18-21, 8 p.m., Davies Hall, San Francisco, $25-$110, (415) 864-6000, www.sfsymphony.org. (J.D.)

Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and Emanuel Ax
The award-winning Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and star pianist Emanuel Ax join forces in commemoration of Mozart's 250th this month, with the ballet music from Idomeneo; the Piano Concerto in B-flat Major, K. 595; and the E-flat Major Concerto, K. 482. Oct. 22, 3 p.m., Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley, $34-$58, (510) 642-9988, www.calperfs.berkeley.edu/presents. (H.T.)

Del Sol Quartet
The Del Sol Quartet is all over the calendar this fall with ambitious performances of contemporary music. Catch them first on Oct. 22 in the Music on the Hill series in San Francisco. They'll be playing with cellist Joan Jeanrenaud and presenting Marc Blitzstein's Quartet for Strings along with Schubert's Quintet in C Major, D. 956. But don't forget to check their Web site for many other fascinating offerings this fall. Oct. 22, 7 p.m., Saint Kevin's Church, San Francisco, $12-$17, (415) 820-1429, http://musiconthehill.org. (M.V.C.)

Composers Inc.
Often hardly dry on the paper, the new works featured on Composers Inc. concerts are not only fresh, but they're played by some of the finest musicians around. Be ready for some razzamatazz with Anthony Joseph Lanman's Il Dolce Stile Nuovo for strings and piano and Michael Torke's July for saxophone quartet. Also on the program is music by Joan Tower, Allen Shearer, Susan Burkey, and Jeffrey Miller. Oct. 24, 8 p.m., Green Room, War Memorial Veterans Building, San Francisco, (415) 512-0641, www.composersinc.org. (M.V.C.)

Imani Winds Family Matinee
I'm a fan of San Francisco Performances' Family Matinees (see earlier review), and the first of the season promised to be a winner, with the Grammy-nominated Imani Winds quintet. Jeff Rosenfeld called their last S.F. performance "genre-bending." Oct. 28, 11 a.m., Herbst Theatre, San Francisco, $8-$15, (415) 392-2545, www.performances.org. (M.B.)

Midori Meets Britten and Petrassi
Late October at the Symphony features the wonderful violinist Midori with conductor Roberto Abbado in Britten's Violin Concerto plus Petrassi's Concerto for Orchestra No. 2. (Petrassi wrote orchestral concertos rather than symphonies — eight of them.) Oct. 25, 27-28, 8 p.m.; Oct. 26, 29, 2 p.m.; Davies Hall, San Francisco, (415) 864-6000, www.sfsymphony.org. (H.T.)

The English Concert
The English Concert and director Andrew Manze present a program of Mozart violin music, his 40th Symphony, and C.P.E. Bach's Symphony No. 3. Manze is a wizard on the violin, and a virtuoso of line and improvisation; the concert is likely to be spectacular. Oct. 29, 3 p.m., Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley; $30-$52, (510) 642-9988, www.calperfs.berkeley.edu/presents. (L.H.)

Bronfman, Shaham, and Mørk
Lovers of the piano trio repertoire won't want to miss this great lineup at Cal Performances on Nov. 1: pianist Yefim Bronfman, violinist Gil Shaham, and cellist Truls Mørk. Exceptional players separately and together, they'll be presenting the Schubert Piano Trio No. 1 in B-flat Major, D. 898, Op. 99, and the Tchaikovsky Piano Trio in A Minor, Op. 50. Nov. 1, 8 p.m., Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley, $30-$52, (510) 642-9988, www.calperfs.berkeley.edu/presents. (H.T.)

MTT, Mackey, Mahler ... and Schoenberg
There's an MTT spectacular opening on November 2: Steven Mackey's Lost and Found, Schoenberg's Cabaret Songs (from 1901 — so fear not, they're in tonal Viennese-pops style), and Mahler's Fourth Symphony. Soprano Measha Brueggergosman is soloist for the Schoenberg and Mahler. Nov. 2-4, 8 p.m.; Nov. 5, 2 p.m.; Davies Hall, San Francisco (Nov. 5 performance at Flint Hall in Cupertino), $25-$114, (415) 864-6000, www.sfsymphony.org. (H.T.)

PBO and Jake Heggie
Philharmonia Baroque, which opens its season in September with Handel and Rameau, move on to Jake Heggie, premiering his To Hell and Back, the group's first-ever commission. Soprano Isabel Bayrakdarian and Broadway singer Patti LuPone join conductor Nicholas McGegan and the players in this tale of Persephone's underworld adventures. Nov. 2, 8 p.m., Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, Palo Alto; Nov. 3, 8 p.m., Herbst Theatre, San Francisco; Nov. 4, 7:30 p.m. and Nov. 5, 8 p.m., First Congregational Church, Berkeley; $29-$67, (415) 392-4400, www.philharmonia.org. (M.V.C.)

Aki Takahashi in Santa Cruz
For those who've not ventured over the hill since the opening of the Music Center Recital Hall at UC Santa Cruz and the renovation of Sunset Center in Carmel, a couple of promising events deserve attention. The first is on Nov. 3, when cutting-edge pianist Aki Takahashi presents her classical credentials in a Schubert sonata, then tears into a feast of newer fare by Peter Garland, Hi Kyung Kim, Andrew Imbrie, Morton Feldman, and arrangements from the "Hyper Beatles Collection." The intimate (and adjustable) Recital Hall sports great acoustics. Nov. 3, 8 p.m., Recital Hall, UC Santa Cruz, $14-$40, (831) 459-2159, http://artslectures.ucsc.edu. (S.M.)

Andrew Imbrie's 85th Birthday Celebration
Berkeley composer Andrew Imbrie, whom SFCV's Robert Commanday called "a composer apart," is honored on his 85th birthday with a concert by Japanese pianist Aki Takahashi, less than a week after her performance in Santa Cruz. On the program is To My Son (a premiere), Duet for Two Friends, and Mukashi Mukashi — Once Upon a Time by Andrew Imbrie, along with works by Hi-Kyung Kim, Toru Takemitsu, and Michio Mamiya. Nov. 8, 12:15 p.m., Hertz Hall, UC Berkeley, free, (510) 642-4864, http://music.berkeley.edu. (M.B.)

Oakland East Bay Symphony
The Oakland East Bay Symphony opens its season with a program that features American composers, including Joan Tower's Made in America, written last year and scheduled for upcoming performances in all 50 states. Also on the program: the Gershwin favorite Rhapsody in Blue and Copland's Symphony No. 3 (including the famous Fanfare for the Common Man). Nov. 10, 8 p.m., Paramount Theatre, Oakland, $15-$62, (510) 444-0801, www.oebs.org. (M.V.C.)

Fancy Fretwork
The U.K.-based Fretwork, which the Independent newspaper called "the world's leading viol consort," make a rare appearance in the Bay Area thanks to the San Francisco Early Music Society, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary. On the program is an equally rare concert of secretly Jewish composers, the Lupos and the Bassanos, who Henry VIII brought from Italy in 1540, thinking they had converted to Christianity. They served the Tudor and Stuart courts for more than a hundred years, and in the process revolutionized English music. This promises to be the highlight of the SFEMS fall season, although John Holloway's intelligent reading of J.S. Bach's violin works, Oct. 20-22, and Voces Musicales' promising Renaissance Christmas, Dec. 15-17, should also give Fretwork a run for its money. Nov. 11, 8 p.m., St. John's Presbyterian Church, Berkeley; Nov. 12, 3:30 p.m., St. Gregory of Nyssa Episcopal Church; Nov. 13, 8 p.m., First Lutheran Church, Palo Alto; $22-$25, (510) 528-1725, www.sfems.org. (M.B.)

Every Man Jack
Composer Libby Larsen and librettist Philip Littell have teamed up in a new opera about Jack London. Every Man Jack will premiere at the Sonoma City Opera as part of the Green Music Festival. It stars baritone Rod Gilfry in the title role. Nov. 11-12, 15, 18-19; times vary, Person Theatre, Sonoma State University, $58-$99, (877) 778-3378, www.sonomacityopera.org. (M.V.C.)

Volans and Shostakovich
The first of two world premieres at San Francisco Symphony this season, Kevin Volans' Piano Concerto will be followed on the program by the symphony formerly considered Shostakovich's greatest, the Fifth. Fashion has shifted accolades to the Eighth nowadays, but no one can say there is a better combination of classic construction and power than in the Fifth's first movement. All ears will be on how MTT interprets the coda of the last movement — will it sound genuinely rejoicing, or like forced hosannas to Stalin? As for the Volans, fashion mavens should listen carefully to see if his brand of semipopular postminimalism, sparked by the S.F. Symphony commission, has moved into new territory. Balakirev's Russia begins the concert; Marc-André Hamelin is the pianist. Nov. 15, 17-18, 8 p.m.; Nov. 16, 2 p.m.; Davies Hall, San Francisco, $25-$110, (415) 864-6000, www.sfsymphony.org. (J.D.)

SFS Youth Orchestra
The talented San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra marks its 25th anniversary with a program of Wagner, Lalo, Liadov, and Shostakovich. Nov. 19, 2 p.m., Davies Hall, San Francisco, $10-$25, (415) 864-6000, www.sfsymphony.org. (M.B.)

Volti
The always adventurous and polished chorus spotlights composers Wayne Peterson, Alan Fletcher, and Stacy Gorrup in a concert titled "Commitment." The set features the world premiere of No More to Hide by Fletcher, sung by the sterling soprano Christine Brandes, about the recent same-sex marriages performed in San Francisco's City Hall. Nov. 16, 12 p.m., City Hall Rotunda, San Francisco; Nov. 20, 4 p.m., St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Berkeley; Nov. 21, 8 p.m., St. Francis Lutheran, San Francisco, $8-$20, (415) 771-3352, www.voltisf.org. (M.B.)

City Lights in the City
For film buffs, there's a full screening of Charlie Chaplin's classic City Lights, with David Robinson conducting the San Francisco Symphony in Chaplin's original score. Nov. 22, 24, 25; 8 p.m., Davies Hall, San Francisco, $31-$114, (415) 864-6000, www.sfsymphony.org. (H.T.)

Lynn Harrell in Carmel
Acoustics at Carmel's new Sunset Theater vividly reach every seat in the house, all of them expected to sell out for cellist Lynn Harrell's November appearance. Harrell's recording of the Bach cello suites is still held up as an example of how great the works themselves are, not to mention his distinctive interpretations. Harrell's announced program includes such meat-and-potatoes sonata repertoire as Schubert's "Arpeggione," Beethoven's D Major, and Brahms' E Minor. Nov. 30, 8 p.m., Sunset Theater, Carmel, $20-$52, (831) 625-9938, www.carmelmusic.org. (S.M.)

Advent and Christmas Cantatas
'Tis the season for Dietrich Buxtehude with the early music masters Magnificat. Dec. 1, 8 p.m., First Lutheran Church, Palo Alto; Dec. 2, 8 p.m., St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Berkeley; Dec. 3, 4 p.m., St. Gregory Nyssen Episcopal Church, San Francisco; $12-$25, (415) 979-4500, www.magnificatbaroque.org. (M.B.)

Takács Quartet
Probably Cal Performances' biggest recital event will be the Takács Quartet performance, with the familiar Geraldine Walther, longtime principal of the S.F. Symphony, on viola. The premier string ensemble continues its exploration of the complete Beethoven string quartet cycle with the A Major, Op. 18, No. 5; C Minor, Op. 18, No. 4; and A Minor, Op. 132. (They'll be back in Berkeley on March 25, too, with the F Major, Op. 18, No. 1; E-flat Major, Op. 74; and C-sharp Minor, Op. 131. And if you can't get enough Takács, they'll be in Santa Cruz on Dec. 1). Dec. 3, 3 p.m., Hertz Hall, UC Berkeley, $42, (510) 642-9988, www.calperfs.berkeley.edu/presents/. (H.T.)

Music for Movies, Music for Volcanoes
David Zinman will conduct the S.F. Symphony in a well-balanced quartet of 20th century items, beginning with one of Copland's less commonly performed works, Music for Movies, a suite cobbled together in 1942 from excerpts for The City, Of Mice and Men, and Our Town. Hilary Hahn, one of the best-ever interpreters of the romantic Barber Violin concerto, will try her bow on the equally romantic concerto of Erich Wolfgang Korngold. In case hardnosed modernists are dying from a sugar overdose, Anders Hillborg's Liquid Marble will provide a change of pace. This truly frightening piece looses 10 minutes of the rarest and highest-temperature lava onto the stage (musically, that is). Bring your asbestos jacket! Finally, survivors of the eruption can stick some jaunty tunes into their heads to walk out with, via the ever-fresh Háry János suite of Kodály. A shorter version of the concert, with Marble lost and less Háry, will include an explanatory lecture focusing on the cinematic aspects of Copland and Korngold. Dec. 6-7, 8 p.m. (full concert); Dec. 8, 6:30 p.m. (shorter version in the "6.5" series); Davies Hall, San Francisco, $25-$110, (415) 864-6000, www.sfsymphony.org. (J.D.)

Left Coast Chamber Ensemble
It's true that the Left Coasters' most interesting concerts are in February and March of 2007. Still, Artistic Director Kurt Rhode has an intriguing penchant for juxtaposing music of the past and present, an approach that's now familiar to anyone who attended the most recent Music@Menlo Festival. Whether or not the works have anything to do with each other is another thing, however. The strategy continues with a concert on the theme of "Beethoven and His Legacy." The first of two concerts pairs Beethoven's String Quartet in C-sharp Minor, Op. 131, with recent Left Coast commissions by Bill Beck, Sam Nichols, and Yu-Hui Chang. (The second part of the series continues in May.) Dec. 7, 8 p.m., Throckmorton Theatre, Mill Valley; Dec. 11, 8 p.m., Green Room, War Memorial Veterans Building, San Francisco; $15-$20, (415) 642-8054, www.chambermusicpartn.org. (M.B.)

San Francisco Girls Chorus
S.F. Girls Chorus' holiday concert is always a treat (see one past review). This year's concert, titled "Voices of Hope and Peace," features works by Ralph Vaughan Williams, Baldassare Galuppi, J.S. Bach, Zoltán Kodály, and others. Dec. 8, 8 p.m., Lafayette-Orinda Presbyterian Church, Lafayette; Dec. 12, 8 p.m., Davies Hall, San Francisco; $12-$50, (415) 392-4400, www.sfgirlschorus.org. (M.B.)

Santa Rosa Symphony
Bruno Ferrandis, the charismatic new music director of the Santa Rosa Symphony, will be out of town, but the long nights of December will make the rising star of guest conductor Joana Carneiro all the more visible. Currently assistant conductor of the L.A. Philharmonic, Carneiro, a native of Lisbon, will turn her hand to one of the great British choral works, Vaughan Williams' Dona Nobis Pacem. Highlights of the antiwar cantata include three dramatic settings of Walt Whitman poetry. Also on the program, John Corigliano's Fantasia on an Ostinato, his take on Beethoven's Seventh Symphony, and the Schumann Piano Concerto, played by Jonathan Biss. Dec. 9-10, 3 p.m.; Dec. 11, 8 p.m., Wells Fargo (neé Luther Burbank) Center for the Arts, Santa Rosa, $16-$49, (707) 546-8742, www.santarosasymphony.com. (J.D.)

Other Minds
A wide range of new-music voices will continue to confound expectations at this year's Other Minds festival of three concerts. Composers from Norway (Maja Ratkje), Germany (Markus Stockhausen), the Netherlands (Tara Bouman), Daniel David Feinsmith (U.S.), and Ronald Bruce Smith (Canada) will be on-site, with their music, to resist all attempts at classification. Joining them will be two more elder masters who can't hide from their distinguished records: the most famous living Danish composer, Per Nørgård, master of otherworldly sounds; and the relatively traditional and highly accessible Peter Sculthorpe (Australia), champion of the didgeridoo — and string instruments too. This three-day extravaganza may prove to be the best-yet manifestation of Artistic Director Charles Amirkhanian's vision. Dec. 8-9, 8 p.m.; Dec. 10, 2 p.m., Kanbar Hall, San Francisco Jewish Community Center, San Francisco, $20-$26 per concert, (415) 292-1233, www.otherminds.org. (J.D.)

Thomas Adés
It's not often that pianist and controversial composer Thomas Adés appears in recital, but San Francisco Performances has got him on the roster in early December, playing Janácek, Castiglioni, Stravinsky, Nancarrow, and his own Traced Overhead. Bay Area pianist Sarah Cahill will host a Meet the Artist conversation with Adés the next day at Hotel Rex. Dec. 9, 8 p.m., Herbst Theatre, San Francisco, $29-$47, (415) 392-2545, www.performances.org. (M.V.C.)

Berkeley Symphony
Berkeley Symphony has just four subscription concerts this year, the first in December. The concert features Shostakovich's Symphony No. 7, the "Leningrad" ("an epic work from times of war," as the BSO Web site notes, "a warning of threats both from abroad ... and from within"). There's also lots of Pärt on the program: Summa for strings, Für Aline for piano, and Arbos for brass and percussion. Dec. 14, 8 p.m., Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley, $23-$56, (510) 841-2800, www.berkeleysymphony.org. (M.V.C.)

ABS' Messiah
There will be no dearth of Messiahs this time of year, but American Bach Soloists' version is always definitive. ABS performs the 1743 edition from the London premiere, with soloists Elizabeth Weigle, soprano; Jennifer Hines, mezzo-soprano; Benjamin Butterfield, tenor; and James Maddalena, baritone. Dec. 16, 7:30 p.m., Dec. 17, 4 p.m., Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts, Davis; Dec. 18-19, 7:30 p.m., Grace Cathedral, San Francisco; $17-$55, (415) 621-7900, www.americanbach.org. (M.V.C.)

Angelika Kirchschlager
Barbara Bonney and Angelika Kirchschlager were scheduled to appear together at Herbst in the middle of the month, but soprano Bonney has since cancelled this and other appearances due to "personal reasons." However, mezzo Kirchschlager will carry on, with the inestimable Malcolm Martineau on piano, in works by Haydn, Grieg, Brahms, Schubert, and Liszt. Dec. 17, 2 p.m., Herbst Theatre, San Francisco, $27-$49, (415) 392-2545, www.performances.org. (M.V.C.)