Nigel Kennedy [Nicolas Hudek]

WHATEVER else you could say about Nigel Kennedy – and there’s plenty – he’s one of classical music’s great survivors. It was back in 1984 when, still a clean-cut young man in his 20s, he made maybe the finest recording of Elgar’s violin concerto ever committed to disc. And five years later, in 1989, he graduated to rock star status with an LP of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons that sold millions and ensured that not a day goes by without the piece turning up on Classic FM, Radio 3 and TV ads for everything from cars to healthcare.

In the process, some would say, he compromised his genius. The sharp-tongued Controller of Radio 3, John Drummond, famously dismissed him as the Liberace of the violin. And his career did seem to go off the rails, with at least one announced retirement from classical performance. But all these years later, with Kennedy getting close to 70, he’s still in the game. As you’ll find when he appears at the Festival Hall, June 1, with the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra playing – what else? – Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.

It’s billed as “The Real Deal”, which begs questions about the reality of all the other Four Seasons he’s done over the decades. But it will be interesting to see if he can still deliver the magic, the charisma, the notes. Let’s hope. southbankcentre.co.uk

• Less of a survivor is Sir Michael Tippett, who suffered the fate of many a great composer (as he certainly was) in disappearing off the radar after his death. That was a long time ago, in 1998, and you’d have thought the wheel would have turned by now, bringing him back into regular performance. But it hasn’t. So make the most of a rare outing for his Concerto for Double String Orchestra at Smith Square, May 31, played by the enterprising Outcry Ensemble. It’s a heartstopper of a piece: a true classic that should be up there with Vivaldi’s Seasons. And Outcry are programming it alongside the comparable beauty of Aaron Copland’s Clarinet Concerto. Must-hears. sinfoniasmithsquare.org.uk

• As a celebrated “period-performance” band, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment used to focus on music of the 18th/early 19th centuries. But these days its repertoire creeps ever closer to modern times. And on June 4 at the Queen Elizabeth Hall it plays an all-Elgar programme including his deathless Enigma Variations. southbankcentre.co.uk

But another feature of the OAE is that it’s based at Acland Burghley School in Tufnell Park, where it runs projects for children. And there’s an interactive workshop on June 1 for very small children, aged 2 to 5, with accompanying grown-ups. A chance to get up close and personal with baroque music, it’s advertised as “even better than pizza”. And who’s to argue with that? oae.co.uk

• For 75 years now, the admirable semi-pro organisation that is Chelsea Opera Group has been doing concert performances of rarely heard stageworks, giving opportunities to up-and-coming young conductors (Colin Davis, Simon Rattle…) in the process. On June 1 at Cadogan Hall it turns its attention to La Straniera, an opera by Bellini about a mysteriously reclusive woman – the “Stranger” of the title – who turns out to be a former queen of France. Expect romance, drama, and bel canto singing. cadoganhall.com