1 Steve Reich At 80
The Britten Sinfonia and London Symphony Orchestra lead the Barbican’s birthday tribute to one of contemporary music’s most revered senior figures. As well as performances of The Desert Music, Different Trains and Reich’s video opera Three Tales, there’s a brand-new work, Pulse.
Barbican Hall & Milton Court, EC2; LSO St Luke’s, EC1, Sat & Sun
2 Psappha And Hebrides Ensemble
Two of Britain’s finest new-music groups unite for their 25th anniversaries, with works by Peter Maxwell Davies, Schoenberg and a new David Fennessy piece.
Glasgow, Tue; Edinburgh, Wed; Salford, Thu; Leeds, Fri ; touring to 12 Nov
3 Lulu
First seen in Amsterdam last year, William Kentridge’s production of Berg’s masterpiece comes to London as the highlight of the ENO’s current season. Brenda Rae takes the title role of the femme fatale on to whom her lovers project their fantasies, with James Morris as Dr Schön and Nicky Spence as Alwa. Mark Wigglesworth conducts.
London Coliseum, WC2, Wed to 19 Nov
4 Simplicius Simplicissimus
One of the most significant German operas of the 20th century finally receives its UK premiere thanks to Independent Opera. Polly Graham directs Karl Amadeus Hartmann’s version of Grimmelshausen’s novel.
Sadler’s Wells, EC1, Fri to 19 Nov
5 Kevin Volans
Birmingham Contemporary Music Group presents a double bill of world premieres by one of the quirkiest major living composers. The Signum Quartet gives the first performance of Volans’s 12th string quartet and Barry Douglas is the soloist in the fourth piano concerto.
