By Tracy Zwick
February 20th through 22nd
Silence and Sound: Arvo Pärt’s Music for Strings at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, Friday, February 20th at 7:30pm and Saturday, February 21st, at 3:30 p.m.: 1047 Amsterdam Avenue at West 112th Street; tickets $100
It’s the 90th birthday year of Arvo Pärt, the Estonian composer and conductor of contemporary classical music whose work has been used in films like “There Will be Blood” and “Gravity.” As part of a city-wide celebration of this milestone, conductor James Blachly will lead an immersive program for strings and percussion that includes two U.S. premieres. The New York Times has called Pärt’s music “reserved, contemplative, often reverential” and noted that it lends itself to reflection. The Friday performance will be preceded by a pre-concert talk at 6:30 p.m. by Pärt’s son, Michael, and theologian and author Peter Bouteneff, who has written about Pärt and his roots in Christianity.
Mandy Patinkin at Symphony Space: Saturday, February 21st at 7 p.m., 2537 Broadway at West 95th Street; tickets start at $50
Broadway legend and longtime UWS denizen Mandy Patinkin became an Emmy-winning TV star, but music has always been central for him. This Saturday he’ll be in concert at Symphony Space. Patinkin’s “Being Alive” will have him performing a collection of his favorite Broadway and classic American tunes.
Celebrate Lunar New Year at Lincoln Center: Sunday, February 22nd from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at David Geffen Hall, 10 Lincoln Center Plaza; free
Join the free family party at Lincoln Center this Sunday in honor of the Year of the Horse. There’ll be themed storytime sessions, the rock-fusion sounds of Korean group Insun Park & Generals, and a performance by the Tai Look Lion Dance Company. Arts and crafts and treats will also be available.
“Holding Liat” at New Plaza Cinema: Sunday, February 22nd at 5 p.m., 35 West 67th Street; tickets start at $13
This documentary film about a family torn apart by the October 7th attacks “complicates any simple view of the Israel-Gaza war in its portrait of one family’s agonizing divisions,” according to The Guardian. “Holding Liat” premiered last year at the Berlin International Film Festival, where it won the top prize for documentary. It was recently shortlisted for the 2026 Academy Awards. Producer Lance Kramer will participate in a post-screening discussion.
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