Thursday-Friday: Among the most accomplished of the Minnesota Orchestra's regular guest conductors, the London-born Hungarian Gilbert Varga seems lately to have specialized in beautifully turned programs of tone poems and other shorter pieces. But this week he breaks the mold, leading one of the greatest of romantic symphonies: Dvoràk's glowing Eighth. No less eagerly awaited is William Walton's melancholic Cello Concerto, with principal cellist Anthony Ross as soloist. A Rossini overture (to "The Thieving Magpie") ices the cake. (11 a.m. Thu., 8 p.m. Fri. $22-$84. Orchestra Hall, 11th St. and Nicollet Mall, Mpls. 612-371-5656, or www.minnesotaorchestra.org.) LARRY FUCHSBERG