Instrument: Bassoon

A delightful Mozart appetizer leads to a satisfying account of Bruckner's Fourth Symphony.

The CBSO’s matinee, conducted by Fabien Gabel, juxtaposes cheerful Mozart and an unpredictable new concerto from Mark Simpson with a polarised account of Shostakovich’s Ninth Symphony. 

With the audience sitting on stage with the performers and in the choir loft, this feels like the kind of communal experience that Bach would have recognized.

Directed by oboist Alfredo Bernadini, Ensemble Zefiro's programme themed around La Follia is thrillingly played, human, edgy and unpredictable. 

The Art of Fugue is a puzzle that demands to be solved before it can be performed. An expansive arrangement for string quartet and wind quintet attempts to solve it at Lincoln Center.  

Young Russian maestro Maxim Emelyanychev makes his Toronto Symphony with a dip into Russian imperial ballet.