It's a lot easier to find a good concert than a good course this week Soprano Lucy Shelton is offering an ambitious racital of 20th Century songs including Schoenberg's Book of the Hanging Gardens in this year of his 101st birthday. The excellent Music From Mariboro is in town again with chamber music of Hayden, Mozart, and Sir Donald Tovey whose compositions are being revived in his centennial year.

Looking ahead to next week, the From Foundation will present its usual collection of first birthdays with 1974 compositions of by Donald Sur and Earl Kim of the Music Faculty. And without any birthdays to spice up their program, the talented Cantata Singers will perform works of Bach and Stravinsky on Wednesday.

Friday:

Lucy Shelton, soprano and David Abramovitz, planist; songs of Schoenberg, Messiaen, Britten, and Rachmaninoff; Currier SCR; 8:30 p.m.; free.

Music from Marlboro; a Haydn planotrio, a Mozart Divertimento, and Tovey's Horn Trio; The Longy School at 1 Follen St.; 8:30 p.m.

John Ferris; Organ racital; Memorial Church; 8:30 p.m.; free.

Maryse Carlin; harpsichord music of Morley, Farnaby, Bach, Couperin, and Scarlatti; Eliot House Library; 8:30 p.m.; free.

Sunday:

A Brandenburg Party; an open sight-reading of three Mozart Symphonies, the Linz, the G minor, and the Jupiter; Dunster Library; 3:00 p.m.

Monday:

Fromm Foundation Concert; Intonation before Sotoba Komachi by Donald Sur, Pianissimo by Donald Martino, and "Eh Joe" (a musical version of a Beckett television play) by Earl Kim; Sanders, 8:30 p.m.

Wednesday:

The Cantata Singers and Ensemble, Phillip Kelsey conductor; choral works of Bach and Stravinsky; Sanders; 8:30 p.m.