Just one night after the Season Opening Night Gala hosted by Washington National Opera, another set of patrons (and the critics of the Baltimore Sun and Washington Post) came together to fill the Kennedy Center Concert Hall to open the National Symphony Orchestra’s season on Sunday night. In terms of funds raised, it was the most successful opening ball in the NSO’s history, according to Stephen Schwarzman, Chairman of the Board of Trustees and Blackstone…

This past weekend’s concerts from the National Symphony Orchestra provided the second opportunity in the last month or so to hear Yundi Li play Liszt’s first piano concerto. The first time was with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra at George Mason (reviewed last month), and the coincidence demands a comparison. On both occasions, Li has played the work with impressive accuracy and grace, with renditions remarkably similar to his recent recording. There were a few negligible…

Things are a little slow this week in classical music, because of Easter and all that. There are still a few good things to be heard, but the list is shorter than normal. Besides, it’s hard to tolerate being indoors when those trees are doing their whole pink thing. >> A concert we are going to have to miss is the most interesting of the week, a program by the 21st Century Consort called Games…

Here are a few highlights for your first full week of classical concerts in March, followed by a respectable list of free events for the small of budget. >> Argentinian pianist Ingrid Fliter won the second prize, after the astounding performance by Yundi Li, at the Chopin Competition in Warsaw in 2000. She will play a free recital at the National Museum of Women in the Arts (1250 New York Ave. NW). You need a…