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Jean-Yves Thibaudet, one of the world’s foremost concert pianists, is celebrated for his sensitive and dazzling interpretations of his native French music, and other extensive repertoire. But his stage pizzazz sets him apart: He often dresses in couture outfits by Vivian Westwood, has model good-looks, plus a youthful spirit and enthusiasm that is contagious. He'll perform an an all-Liszt program with Cal Performances on Jan. 26.

When you first encounter the quiet, eerie, achingly stretched opening chords of Bartók’s first string quartet, you know that you are in the presence of something magnificent. That the Alexander String Quartet’s would present the complete cycles of Bartók’s six and Kodály’s two string quartets is newsworthy enough, but there is more to the story.

The San José Chamber Orchestra celebrated Johann Sebastian Bach on Sunday and the evening began with a bang.

The New Esterházy Quartet's performance — the third iteration of the ensemble’s “Dedicated to Haydn” series — demonstrated camaraderie, marked above all by exceptional unity of purpose and total commitment to the group's interpretive schemes.

Glee, the T.V. show, may have given the wrong impression of what Glee Clubs actually do. They're really choruses, and often have high musical standards. For an excellent example see the Cornell Glee Club's upcoming concerts.

Like London, Vienna, and Venice in the Old World in times gone by, the San Francisco Bay Area is a treasure trove of creative music talent, as well as a favored destination for artists from elsewhere. Here’s some of what will be worth going outside classical conventions to get to, during the first half of 2011.

By design, chamber music can be performed anywhere. Bay Area musicians like to perform it everywhere. Here, SFCV’s premier chamber music maven takes on the task of winnowing down this gorgeous superfluity to just five (well, and a few more) hot tickets you can’t afford to miss.

The venues may range from hither to yon, but the early-music concerts on offer this season around the Bay Area will field a dazzling array of stars and novel musical experiences.