Maurizio Pollini’s recital at Strathmore last night was one of a limited number of appearances he is making in the United States this year, after Boston, Carnegie Hall, and Chicago. Thank you again, Washington Performing Arts Society! If you love the piano and its greatest repertory — by the twin masters of the 19th century, Fryderyk Chopin and Franz Liszt (the good and evil twin, respectively?) — you may not think that Pollini is necessarily…

This is going to be a good week. There are so many things to hear, concerts that promise great delights. We’ll start with the best of the best and go from there. RECOMMENDED: >> For many serious fans of the piano, especially those who prize accuracy of technique and intellectual craft, there is only Maurizio Pollini. The last time that he played in Washington, I leapt at the chance to hear him, as I have…

We hope that some of you classical music fans heeded our advice in last Sunday’s Classical Music Agenda and went to hear renowned pianist Alfred Brendel at the Kennedy Center last night. I was there, enjoying two hours of concentrated musical bliss, thanks to the Washington Performing Arts Society, which had brought him to Washington for twelve concerts before this one. Brendel is one of the most widely recorded pianists of all time, and he…