Brownbag Concerts at Trinity Cathedral and Four More Classical Music Events to Enjoy This Week

When Adolphe Sax developed the saxophone in the 1840s in Belgium, he was out to create a new breed of instrument for military bands that would bridge the gap between woodwinds and brass. The instrument is still used for those purposes, as well as starring in music that Sax would have never dreamed of. Our picks this week begin and end with saxophones.

On Wednesday, October 5 at 12:10 pm, saxophonists Jake Swanson and Sarah Marchitelli will be in the spotlight at Trinity Cathedral as the Brownbag Concerts return for a new season. The performers will join Todd Wilson and Trinity Chamber Orchestra in Cleveland native Eric Ewazen’s Down a River of Time, and saxo-centric works by Alexander Glazunov and Erland von Koch. A freewill offering will be taken up, and you can either pack a lunch or buy one for $7. The Cathedral is located at E. 22nd and Euclid in downtown Cleveland.

The Cleveland Institute of Music continues its “Boulez Legacy” series on Wednesday, October 5 at 8:00 pm in Kulas Hall with “Boulez the Conductor.” Guest conductor Steven Smith will channel the late Pierre Boulez in works that were dear to the heart and intellect of the composer-conductor who visited the Severance Hall podium to conduct The Cleveland Orchestra for some 50 years. The program includes Igor Stravinsky’s Le Chant du Rossignol, Olivier Messiaen’s Sept Haïkï: Esquisses japonaises, and Gustav Mahler’s Adagio from the unfinished Symphony No. 10. The concert is free.

Celebrating its 25th anniversary season, Apollo’s Fire will open with four performances of “Resplendent Purcell — Music for Westminster Abbey.” The programs include music written to celebrate the joys and convey the sorrows of Britain’s royal family during Henry Purcell’s all too brief career as organist of Westminster Abbey in the late 17th century. AF founder Jeannette Sorrell, conducts the orchestra and Apollo’s Singers in the Funeral Music for Queen Mary, and Ode for the Birthday of Queen Mary, and tucks in highlights from Purcell’s dramatic works, King Arthur and Dido & Aeneas. The excellent soloists include Molly Netter and Molly Quinn, sopranos, Amanda Powell, mezzo-soprano, Eric Brenner, countertenor, Karim Sulayman, tenor, and Jeffrey Strauss, baritone. You can catch the first performance at Fairlawn Lutheran Church, 3415 W. Market St. in Fairlawn on Thursday, October 6 at 7:30 pm, or one of the three following shows: Friday or Saturday, October 7 or 8 at 8:00 pm at First Baptist Church, 3630 Fairmount Blvd. in Shaker Heights, or Sunday, October 9 at 4:00 pm at Rocky River Presbyterian Church, 21750 Detroit Rd. Tickets are reservable online.

The Cleveland Orchestra will take you to Rome this weekend without needing a plane ticket or a passport. Franz Welser-Möst is your tour guide, and the itinerary includes the Fountains, Pines, and Festivals of Rome as represented in the spectacular tone poems of Ottorino Respighi. Beethoven comes along for the ride with his short and thoroughly engaging Eighth Symphony. There are four shows at Severance Hall, beginning on Thursday, October 6 at 7:30 pm and continuing on Friday and Saturday, October 7 and 8 at 8:00 pm, and on Sunday, October 9 at 3:00 pm. Tickets can be purchased online.

Back to saxophones. On Thursday, October 6 at 8:00 pm, Battle Trance, the tenor saxophone quartet with Travis Laplante, Patrick Breiner, Matt Nelson, and Jeremy Viner will visit the BOP STOP in Ohio City to treat you to music from the ensemble’s recent CD, Blade of Love, “focusing on the physical and spiritual intersection of the saxophone and the human body.” Sound intriguing? You can book tickets in advance here.

For details of these and many other events, visit the ClevelandClassical.com Concert Listings page.