> The Handel + Haydn Society busts out some Bach to launch its season on Sept. 28 and 30 at Symphony Hall. Well-regarded pieces such as Mass in G Major and the Third Brandenburg Concerto will be among the handful of works played, but the highlight is expected to be the Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor in which concertmaster/violinist Aisslinn Nosky and violinist Susanna Ogata will likely have the audience on a string.

T.S. Monk. Photo: Jean Francois Laberine

>  Thelonious Monk would be 100 years old if he were alive today. In the decades that have passed since the jazzman died, his son T.S. has carried on his legacy while forging his own way with a few musical hits and a lot of time and money invested in jazz education. Nearing 70 years old, T.S. Monk stops into Scullers Jazz Club for two shows on Oct. 6.

> J. Cole knows how to craft a chart-topper: All five of the rapper’s studio albums have reached the top spot on Billboard’s Top 200. His latest, KOD, debuted in that spot when it was released in the spring, spurring the 33-year-old to hit the road to promote it. His North American tour with Young Thug, Jaden Smith and others concludes on Oct. 10 at TD Garden.

Nella Rojas. Photo: Eva Marques

> It’s been a big year for Berklee College of Music grad Nella Rojas. She lent her vocals to the soundtrack for the Penelope Cruz-Javier Bardem flick Everybody Knows, while also securing a record deal for her debut album to be released in 2019. And now the Venezuelan folk singer is embarking on a tour that hits City Winery on Oct. 15.

> Local devotees of Chvrches are blessed with two shows from the trio this fall when they stop at the Orpheum on Oct. 20-21. The Scottish band is touring in support of their third album, Love Is Dead, which frontwoman Lauren Mayberry describes as more aggressively pop than previous records. With the first show already sold out, you might have to pray to get tickets.

Boston Symphony Orchestra. Photo: Marco Borggreve

> Guitarist John Scofield made his bones at Berklee College of Music in the ’70s before setting off on a Grammy-winning jazz career. So it’s only fitting that Andris Nelsons conducts the Boston Symphony Orchestra in the U.S. premiere of a piece paying tribute to Scofield’s late son, Evan, who died of sarcoma in 2013. Co-commissioned by the BSO, Berlin Philharmonic and London Symphony Orchestra, Remembering: In Memoriam Evan Scofield was written by English composer Mark-Anthony Turnage, a collaborator of the elder Scofield. The piece runs at Symphony Hall on Nov. 1-6.

Lake Street Dive. Photo: Shervin Lainez

> Lake Street Dive is coming home, but this time with an extra set of hands. Keyboardist Akie Bermiss joined the band—which formed at the New England Conservatory in 2004 before moving to Brooklyn—for its new album, Free Yourself Up, which dropped this spring. The newly formed quintet stops by the Boch Wang Theatre on Nov. 17 before returning for a Dec. 31 show that promises to ring in the new year with sweet sounds.

Poppy. Photo: Titanic Sinclair

> Poppy seemed to pop out of nowhere this decade, gaining fame with millions of YouTube followers for her entrancing-yet-befuddling videos such as a clip where she simply repeats “I’m Poppy” for 10 minutes. But where she really came from is Boston, and she returns to the city on Feb. 4 at the House of Blues to promote her Poppy Church project as well as her new album, Am I a Girl, which features a Diplo collab on “Time Is Up.”

20 songs in the set list for OK Go’s Live Video Tour, which stops at Berklee Performance Center on Nov. 2. With the inventive music videos playing behind them, the band will perform all the songs in sync with the visuals. And audiences can also take part in a Q&A session that sounds more than simply OK.

UPDATE: Poppy’s performance was moved from Nov. 19 to Feb. 4

2018 FALL ARTS PREVIEW: DANCE | BOOKS | COMEDY | MUSIC | PERFORMING ARTS | PODCASTS | VISUAL ART