Favorite Puccini
Despite pandering to what some view as the feeblest of operatic stereotypes — a beautiful, impoverished young woman falls hopelessly in love but is denied happiness before dying of illness — Puccini's "La Bohème" remains one of the most popular operas. Minnesota Opera's latest staging, originally seen at San Francisco Opera, has the starry soprano Nicole Cabell as a unique selling point for five of the nine performances. Add a string of Puccini's ripest romantic arias — including "Che gelida manina" and "O soave fanciulla" — and you'll want a handkerchief at the ready. (7:30 p.m. Sat., through May 21, Ordway Music Theater, St. Paul; $25-$200, 612-333-6669 or mnopera.org)
Twin Cities composers
The Spitting Image Collective is a composer-run project that fosters the creation of new classical music in the Twin Cities. And now it's partnering with the music ensemble Zeitgeist to present premieres by Spitting Image members Katherine Bergman, Joshua Clausen and Daniel Nass, plus a 2012 commission by Cambodian-American composer Chinary Ung. (7:30 p.m. Thu., Fri., Sat.; Studio Z, St. Paul; $10-$15, zeitgeistnewmusic.org)
SPCO plays Sibelius
Twin Cities audiences hear plenty of Sibelius' orchestral music thanks to the Minnesota Orchestra, but his chamber music is less familiar. St. Paul Chamber Orchestra artistic partner Pekka Kuusisto addresses the imbalance with "Intimate Voices," a program named after Sibelius' String Quartet, performed in a version for string orchestra. The program includes the suite "Rakastava" along with an arrangement for violin and strings of the "Five Rustic Dances." A Finn like Sibelius, Kuusisto has this music in his bloodstream. And his penchant for spontaneity in live performances should make for gripping listening. (7:30 p.m. Thu., Trinity Lutheran Church, Stillwater; 8 p.m. Fri. & Sat., Ordway Concert Hall, St. Paul; 2 p.m. Sun., Benson Great Hall, Arden Hills; $13-$53, 651-291-1144 or thespco.org)
'Carnival of the Invasive Species'
The sights and sounds of nature are front and center in "Music in the Wild," the final 2016-17 season concert for the MacPhail Spotlight Series. The program features music by Saint-Saëns and Vaughan Williams as well as the intriguingly titled "Carnival of the Invasive Species" by MacPhail faculty member Sarah Miller. Bonus: Former Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak narrates Saint-Saëns' "Carnival of the Animals." (8 p.m. Sat., MacPhail Center for Music, Mpls.; $15-$25, 612-767-5250 or macphail.org)
Bach cantatas
Sacred cantatas by J.S. Bach for bass ("Ich will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen") and bass and soprano ("Selig ist der Mann") provide the backbone for this Minnesota Bach Ensemble concert. Bach's Concerto for Two Harpsichords (BWV 1061) is also in store, with vocal soloists Linh Kauffman and Philip Zawisza. (3 p.m. Sun., MacPhail Center for Music, Mpls.; $10-$25, mnbach.org)
TERRY BLAIN
