Consider the start-up event of the new classical music season to be the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra’s opening weekend, which arrives right at the end of September this year. Invariably, the VSO goes out of its way to make the event memorable.

Months ago, while maestro Bramwell Tovey and I talked about his stepping down as music director at the end of the 2017/18 season, we touched on the complications of a steady stream of guest conductors test-driving the orchestra. Tovey candidly discussed the programming challenges, ending with a confession: “I want to keep some of the good stuff for myself.”

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