Play, Orchestra, Play! Upcoming NYC Events for Music Lovers

By Troy Segal

We must have music, we must have music, to drive our fears away, as Noel Coward once sang. Whether you crave classical sounds or revel in rock, some sweet sounds — in the form of a performance, activity or lecture/demonstration — are coming your way over the next few weeks.

Disco-music diva Gloria Gaynor chats about the way “I Will Survive” became the mantra for her own life with radio announcer Valerie Smaldone at the 92nd Street Y on July 7.

Acclaimed vocalist Falu performs a concert of songs that feature her patented Hindu-rock style at the Rubin Museum on July 11.

Vive la France! Live musicians performing a variety of Gallic tunes are part of the French Institute Alliance Francaise’s Bastille Day on 60th Street, its annual celebration of French culture, crafts, and food on July 13.

Composer Leonard Bernstein’s score for West Side Story, with its unique use of jazz and Latino musical elements, brought a new sound to Broadway in the 1950s (and still sounds pretty cool today). Learn about the making of the masterpiece at the 92nd Street Y on July 14.

A flutist and a pianist demonstrate how we can feel free via Handel’s Flute Sonata in F at the Aesthetic Realism Foundation, July 27.

Nirvana in 1993. Photo: Anton Corbijn

Some say Nirvana was the greatest band of the ‘90s; some say it was the greatest band ever. Mull the matter over at the Museum of Arts and Design’s Nirvana Night tribute on July 31, which includes a documentary about the group and a live performance by a mystery guest.

Come summer, Lincoln Center’s performing halls are alive with the sound of the Mostly Mozart Festival — including a panel discussion about the wunderkind composer’s operas at the Stanley H. Kaplan Penthouse on August 16.