Robin Cox Ensemble with Amy X Neuberg and Pamela Z

Musician-composers (and local institutions) Amy X Neuberg and Pamela Z join the LA-based Robin Cox Ensemble at Pamela Z’s infamous Room Series, where classical meets experimental and everyone gets those musical horizons broadened. Featuring violin, cello, clarinet, percussion, piano, electronics, and video, the Robin Cox Ensemble is a smart post-classical sextet that integrates multimedia with classically leaning instrumentals. 

July 8-9. Royce Gallery, 2901 Mariposa Street. Tickets are $10 at brownpapertickets.com.

Midsummer Mozart Festival Program One

Mozart fans, saddle up. Because this icon of an event - North America’s only all-Mozart festival - is coming to San Francisco this month and is well worth the ticket, even if you can’t drink beer on the grass. (Contrary to usual midsummer festival expectations, it's performed at the grand and entirely grass-free Herbst Theater.) Soloists include pianist Jon Nakamatsu, clarinetist Mark Brandenburg, soprano Christina Major, and tenor Chrisopher Bengochea.

July 17. Herbst Theater, 401 Van Ness Avenue. Tickets are $20-65 at 415-627-9141.

Cypress Quartet at the de Young

In celebration of the current Picasso exhibit, the Cypress Quartet will set up temporary shop at the de Young museum to play a special program with pieces that correspond to all those Picasso masterpieces never seen outside Paris. The exhibit exists because the famous Musee National Picasso is undergoing extensive renovations and why stuff stunning paintings in storage when you can give them a nice world tour instead? The Cypress String Quartet will play selections from Schulhoff’s rarely-performed Five Pieces for String Quartet (influenced by both Dadaism and Argentine tango), Barber’s String Quartet Op. 11, and selections from Ravel’s String Quartet in F Major.   

July 29, de Young Museum 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive. Free with museum admission.