The colder months are the perfect time to head indoors and experience all the culture that Boston has to offer
Classical Music
Although the Boston area is a hotbed of classical music, every once in a while something unique still occurs, even in this saturated space. Such is the case January 23 at Symphony Hall when Me2/, a New England-based classical music organization dedicated to helping people living with mental illness and those that support them, brings 100 of its musicians to perform a concert entitled “Stigma Free at Symphony Hall.” The show is free, yet reservations are required. In another one-of-a-kind event, the Boston-based Sheffield Chamber Players premiere a commissioned work by up-and-coming composer Kevin Day at two concerts, one on January 27 at Waltham’s Lyman Estate and another February 13 at the South End’s Chase Young Gallery. Also on February 13, go off the beaten path and enjoy a recital of music by Dvorak, Florence Price and Edvard Grieg at Peabody Hall in Dorchester hosted by Ashmont Hill Chamber Music and performed by acclaimed young violinist Randall Goosby. In the category of tried-and-true, the famed Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) continues its season at Symphony Hall, with highlights including the return of BSO music director Andris Nelsons (pictured) to the conductor’s stand for several programs, beginning with the February 24–26 & March 1 concerts featuring the music of Shostakovich and Stravinsky. The storied Handel & Haydn Society (H&H) also takes up residence at Symphony Hall for a performance of Haydn and Mozart on January 28 & 30 in one of Harry Christopher’s final appearances as artistic director and conductor of H&H. Symphony Hall is again the site for another classical mainstay, the Boston Philharmonic, which presents music by Mussorgsky, Shostakovich and Beethoven on February 6. Celebrity Series of Boston welcomes a plethora of classical musicians to town this winter, including Russian piano prodigy Alexander Malofeev, who sits at the keys on February 2 at Longy School of Music’s Pickman Hall in Cambridge to play Mozart, Rachmaninoff and more for his Boston-area debut. Late winter sees the return of Boston Baroque music director/conductor Martin Pearlman to the stage at the GBH Calderwood Studio in Brighton, where his ensemble performs works by Vivaldi and Handel on March 19 & 20.
As of January 15, the City of Boston is requiring patrons for indoor performances wear masks and show proof of vaccination. Cambridge has a mask mandate as well for all indoor spaces.
