Soundadvice

Get Out!

On paper, it's a pairing that borders almost on the nonsensical: Steve Reid, a veteran drummer whose résumé ranges from Martha and the Vandellas to Archie Shepp, Miles Davis to Peggy Lee; and Kieran Hebden, the young British electronic musician best-known under his Four Tet moniker. But the two have collaborated fairly regularly over the past several years, creating fractured cosmic grooves that call to mind a post-rock gloss on another former Reid employer, Sun Ra.

—Kevin Pearson

Sun., Dec. 14, 8 p.m., $25, International House, 3701 Chestnut St., 215-387-5125, arsnovaworkshop.com.

Philly Brotherly Love Concert

Free hip-hop show alert! A bunch of Philly's most famous rappers — some of whom are better known for their personal and legal troubles than their music in recent years — are coming together at the TLA. Host Beanie Sigel (pictured) welcomes Freeway, Joey Jihad, Reed Dollaz and E. Ness to the stage. Now let's see how many of them actually show up.

—Deesha Dyer

Thu., Dec. 11, 6 p.m., free tickets available at Sneaker Villa stores, with Beanie Sigel, Freeway, Joey Jihad, Reed Dollaz, E. Ness and Vodka, TLA, 334 South St., ruvilla.com.

My Brightest Diamond

More accessible than the lengthy ballads of Joanna Newsom and less idiosyncratic than Regina Spektor's wordy indie-cabaret, the music of Brooklyn's My Brightest Diamond is wine in a box — classy but not too classy. Shara Worden's operatic vocals emerge triumphantly over harps and vibraphones into a folklore landscape of lovers, laundry and outer space. In support of their sophomore release, A Thousand Shark's Teeth (Asthmatic Kitty), MBD is hitting the road with "string quartet events." Expect the edginess of indie rock with the finesse of chamber music.

—Dianca Potts

Fri., Dec. 12, 8 p.m., $12, all ages, with Clare & the Reasons, First Unitarian Church, 2125 Chestnut St., 866-468-7619, r5productions.com.

Legend has it that Mozart was the greatest of prodigies, but there are really only a handful of works in his pre-adult output that even approach the glory of his mature music. A better candidate for the gold prize might be Felix Mendelssohn, who hit his stride as a full-blown genius before he was shaving regularly. The Octet for Strings, penned at age 16 in 1825, is as dazzling a work as exists in the chamber music repertoire, and it is the featured work on this splendid program. There is music by Janacek as well, and as a poetic counterpoint, the great Quintet in E flat of Mozart, written in the last year of the master's life.

—Peter Burwasser

Thu., Dec. 11, 8 p.m., $23, Independence Seaport Museum, 211 S. Columbus Blvd., 215-569-8080, pcmsconcerts.org.

Pianist Pandelis Karayorgis has long delighted in adding sharp edges to repertoire that is already dangerously angular, making saw blades out of pieces by Monk and Wayne Shorter. Betwixt (Hatology), the latest by his trio with Boston-based drummer Curt Newton and bassist Nate McBride, finds him adopting the Fender Rhodes for the first time, adding even more grit and friction to the mix.

—Shaun Brady

Thu., Dec. 11, 8 p.m., $12, Philadelphia Art Alliance, 251 S. 18th St., arsnovaworkshop.com.