CLASSICAL MUSIC Promising season runs the gamut

Even without a crystal ball, it’s not hard to see that the classical musical schedule taking shape for 2019 is full of promise and possibility. From major undertakings to more modest or intimate offerings, there should be something to please every taste.

Here is a quick sampling of five upcoming events that particularly stand out in the new year.

Esa-Pekka Salonen: The Finnish conductor won’t take the reins at the San Francisco Symphony until 2020, but that doesn’t mean we have to wait until then to catch him in action. Salonen will be guest-conducting in Davies Symphony Hall on Jan. 18-20 and then comes to Berkeley with the London-based Philharmonia Orchestra for a March 15-17 weekend residency with Cal Performances. www.sf symphony.org, www.calperformances. org

Pivot: Politics and music will commingle during San Francisco Performances’ vibrant four-concert festival of new and unusual music. Over the course of one long weekend, Jan. 2427, pianist Ran Dank will play Frederic Rzewski’s epic masterpiece “The People United Will Never Be Defeated!” and vocalists Paula West, Gabriel Kahane and Dashon Burton hold forth in separate solo recitals. www. sfperformances.org

“Rusalka”: Dvorák’s fairy-tale opera about a lovelorn water nymph returns to the San Francisco Opera on June 16-28 for the first time in more than 20 years. It’s a production by David McVicar new to San Francisco, with debuting conductor Eun Sun Kim and an all-star cast led by soprano Rachel Willis-Sørensen in the title role, along with Brandon Jovanovich, Jamie Barton and Ferruccio Furlanetto. www.sf opera.com

“The Magic of Youth”: Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony conclude their season June 27-30 with a pair of semistaged dramatic works focusing on the lives of children. “Noye’s Fludde” (“Noah’s Flood”) by Britten is paired with the exuberant charm of Ravel’s “L’Enfant et les Sortilèges” (“The Child and the Magic Spells”). www.sfsymphony.org “Breaking the Waves”: Missy Mazzoli’s acclaimed 2016 opera, based on the 1996 Lars von Trier film, finally gets its first local production thanks to West Edge Opera. The August production features soprano Sara LeMesh in the central role of Bess, created onscreen by Emily Watson. www.westedgeopera.org.

Joshua Kosman is The San Francisco Chronicle’s music critic. Email: jkosman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JoshuaKosman

Todd Rosenberg / Lyric Opera of Chicago / © Todd Rosenberg Photography Dvorák’s “Rusalka” is coming to San Francisco Opera this season.