Just because New Year's is associated with midnight-countdown booze-fests and headache-addled bowl-game-watching doesn't mean there aren't more cerebral events, too.Consider Sunday's New Year Concert by the Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra at the Garde Arts Center. The sister organization to the Connecticut Lyric Opera, the orchestra features 22 world-class chamber musicians under the direction of artistic director Adrian Sylveen.

Consider Sunday's New Year Concert by the Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra at the Garde Arts Center. The sister organization to the Connecticut Lyric Opera, the orchestra features 22 world-class chamber musicians under the direction of artistic director Adrian Sylveen.The outfit will kick off 2010 with this presentation that will include waltzes by Strauss, famous arias, and works by Mozart. Clarinetist Tom Labadorf and soprano Trina Reney are featured performers.

The outfit will kick off 2010 with this presentation that will include waltzes by Strauss, famous arias, and works by Mozart. Clarinetist Tom Labadorf and soprano Trina Reney are featured performers.

New Year's Concert with the Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra, 6 p.m. Sunday, Garde Arts Center, 325 State St., New London; $25-$50; (860) 612-4371, thevirtuosi.org.