My only rule for this space is this: If it happens at night, it's fair game. So this time, I'm taking a break from the late-night scene in favor of covering something a little more ... classic.

Last Friday evening, on an invitation from a friend who sings with the Honolulu Symphony Chorus, I left my club shoes in the closet and donned my adult duds for an evening of classical music, courtesy of The Honolulu Symphony and its accompanying vocal body, the Honolulu Symphony Chorus.

Somewhere between the first romantic note of Gabriel Faure's version of the Roman Catholic Mass for the Dead and that intense chicken-skin part in Maurice Durufle's version of "Domine Jesu Christe," it dawned on me that there are worse ways to spend a Friday evening.

THE HONOLULU SYMPHONY

Where: All Honolulu Symphony concerts take place in the Blaisdell Concert Hall (unless the orchestra is displaced by bigger crowd-bringers like "The Lion King").

When: The Honolulu Symphony's performances are split into two seasons, the MasterWorks season and the pops season. The next MasterWorks concert is tomorrow. The next pops concert is April 25, with Keali'i Reichel.

Parking: The Blaisdell lot is more than big enough to accommodate all the symphony concertgoers. There's no need to arrive early, either. Parking is $6 per vehicle.

Meet the conductors: Andreas Delfs is the symphony's principal conductor and specifically directs the MasterWorks series.

Matt Catingub is the symphony's pops conductor.

The appeal: There isn't another gig in town that's a better representation of pure musical talent. To be so close to such well orchestrated entertainment is, at the very least, humbling; at the most, divine. Nothing but nothing can rival the intense resonant warmth of the music that's created by a band of classical musicians on a stage. The cleanest recording played over the best sound system can't do the live stuff justice.

But isn't it just for intellectuals, senior citizens and music geeks? Yes and no. There's no question that sitting in row E, seat 38, you're probably surrounded by people who could be any of the following: your grandparents, your college professor, your tuba-blowing next-door neighbor. But come ON! This is really amazing music we're talking about. There's no reason every seat in the concert hall shouldn't be filled with people — all kinds of people — who just really love music.

The symphony for beginners: So you want to give this whole classical music thing a shot, but you don't know where to start? Start with what you know. Maybe it's Dvorak's 8th, Beethoven's 9th or Haydn's "London." Or if you've managed to avoid ever listening to any kind of classical music and you just don't think you can jump in blind, start with the pops series and work your way back to the more traditional stuff.

The pops season — the symphony's more contemporary side — is the perfect way to break in symphony novices.

Eat, drink and be cultured: Like any other respectable venue, the Blaisdell offers concertgoers a full bar, a coffee kiosk and a few things to nosh on pre-show, but all at prices that might leave a bad taste in your mouth (though it's no more expensive than, say, the movie theater). Your best bet is to grab something to eat before the concert, and since the shows never start before 8 p.m. (to allow patrons to enjoy the dinner-and-symphony tradition), there's plenty of time for a good sit-down meal.

Up next: A pair of concerts this weekend titled "Heroes and Lovers," a medley of grand operas performed by renowned baritone Thomas Hampson, with Andreas Delfs conducting. Saturday's show starts at 8 p.m.; Sunday's show starts at 4 p.m. Tickets start at $21.

Pops conductor Matt Catingub and Keali'i Reichel lead the symphony in three concerts next weekend that will feature Reichel's hula, chant and poetry. The concerts on April 25 and 26 start at 8 p.m. The April 27 concert is scheduled for 3 p.m. Tickets start at $14.

Tickets for all shows are available at the Blaisdell box office, at all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com or charge by phone at 877-750-4400.

For a schedule of upcoming events or for more information on the Honolulu Symphony, see www.honolulusymphony.com.