Preview: Classical Winter 2020 Arts

/

Apollon Musagète Quartet plays Feb. 9 in a Chamber Music San Francisco presentation.(Courtesy Nicolai Lund/Arts Management Group)

Winter 2020 ArtsPreview: ClassicalVirtuoso performers and dedicated amateurs bringchamber, choral, symphonic, jazz and world music toconcert hallsLESLIE KATZ / Jan. 22, 2020 7:00 p.m. / ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

John Hanrahan Quartet: The drummer and his band — AndrewDixon on saxophone, Dahveed Behroozi on piano and Giulio XavierCetto on bass — perform Wayne Shorter’s classic 1965 jazz album

/

“JuJu.” 8 p.m. Jan. 27, $19-$30. Yoshi’s, 510 Embarcadero West,Oakland, yoshis.com

World Harmony Chorus: The group founded by Daniel Steinbergwith singers of all ages and experience levels performs songs fromBulgaria, Kenya, Iceland, Galicia and 15th-century Spain. 7:30 p.m.Jan. 27, free. Tateuchi Hall, Community School of Music and Arts,230 San Antonio Circle, Mountain View, arts4all.org

Schwabacher Recital Series: Merola Opera Program’s mezzo-soprano Alice Chung, baritone Laureano Quant and pianist NicholasRoehler perform. 7:30 p.m. Jan. 29, $30. Taube Atrium Theater,Veterans Building, fourth floor, 401 Van Ness Ave., S.F.,sfopera.com/srs

Blomstedt, Berwald, & Brahms: San Francisco Symphonyconductor laureate Herbert Blomstedt leads the orchestra inBrahms’ Symphony No. 3 and Franz Berwald’s Symphony No. 1. 8p.m. Jan. 30-31, 2 p.m. Feb. 2. $20-$165. Davies Hall, S.F.,www.symphony.org

California Symphony: Donato Cabrera leads “Brahms Fest” withsoloists Alina Kobialka, violin, and Oliver Herbert, cello. 8 p.m. Feb.1, 4 p.m. Feb. 2. $44-$80. Lesher Center, 1601 Civic Drive, WalnutCreek, californiasymphony.org

/

West Edge Opera, Earplay: “Snapshot 2020” glimpses at new,developing works — “Gilberto,” “Eighteen Melodies for Hujia,”“Moon, Bride, Dogs” and “El Canguro” — by West Coastcomposers. 8 p.m. Feb. 1, $40. Taube Atrium Theater, VeteransBuilding, 401 Van Ness Ave., S.F., www.westedgeopera.org

Guilian Liu plays pipa in San Francisco Symphony’s annual Chinese New Year Concert onFeb. 1. (Courtesy Sam Hsu)

San Francisco Symphony Chinese New Year: On the event’s 20thanniversary, Perry So conducts traditional folk music and works byBright Sheng, Huang Ruo and A-Bing with guest artists: shengplayer Hu Jianbing, pipa player Guilian Liu, pianist Sa Chen and theLoong Mah Sing See Wui dance company; festivities also include a

/

reception and post-show Imperial Dinner. 4 p.m. reception; 5 p.m.concert; 7 p.m. dinner Feb. 1; $95-$145 for concert; $1,000 and upfor dinner. Davies Hall, S.F.; www.sfsymphony.org, (415) 503-5500for dinner information

Lamplighters Music Theatre: Barbara Heroux’s new version ofGilbert & Sullivan’s “Princess Ida” updates the ending with a plot“pleasing to our 21st century views.” 2 and 8 p.m. Feb. 1, 2 p.m.Feb. 2, $21-$70. Blue Shield Theatre at YBCA, 700 Howard St.,S.F., cityboxoffice.com; performances also are Feb. 8-9 in WalnutCreek and Feb. 22-23 in Mountain View,lamplighters.org/princess-ida

/

Left Coast Chamber Ensemble plays music by French composers on Feb. 2-3.(Courtesyphoto)

Left Coast Chamber Ensemble: “French Sublime” includes musicby French composers Lili Boulanger, Claude Debussy, OlivierMessiaen and a new piece by Kurt Rohde, reflecting Messiaen’sinfluence. 7:30 p.m. Feb. 2 at Hillside Club, 2286 Cedar St.,Berkeley, 7:30 p.m. Feb. 3 at S.F. Conservatory of Music, 50 OakSt., S.F., $18-$35, leftcoastensemble.org/tickets

San Francisco Performances Salon Series: In the second of fourconcerts curated by Venezuelan jazz pianist Edward Simon, theprogram features Simon, violinist Hrabba Atladottir and cellist EricGaenslen playing Astor Piazolla’s “The Four Seasons of BuenosAires.” 6:30 p.m. Feb. 5, $40. Education Studio, Veterans Building,S.F., sfperformances.org

Berkeley Symphony: Joseph Young conducts mezzo-sopranoKelley O’Connor and the San Francisco Girls Chorus in BryceDessner’a “Voy a Dormir,” Mary Kouyoumdjian’s “Become Who IAm” and Brahms’ Symphony No. 1. 8 p.m. Feb. 6. $15-$96.Zellerbach Hall, near Bancroft Way and Dana Street, UC Berkeleycampus, berkeleysymphony.org

/

San Francisco Symphony SoundBox: “Modern Sanctuary”curated by Missy Mazzoli includes contributions from conductorEdwin Outwater, soprano Marnie Breckenridge, lighting designerSeth Reiser and video designer Adam Larsen. 9 p.m. Feb. 7-8. $65.300 Franklin St., S.F., sfsymphony.org

Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra: “The Well-Caffeinated Clavier”features conductor Richard Egarr on harpsichord, soprano NolaRichardson,tenor James Reese and bass-baritone CodyQuattlebaum in four works by Bach. 8 p.m. Feb. 7 at HerbstTheatre, S.F.; 8 p.m. Feb. 8 and 4 p.m. Feb. 9 at FirstCongregational Church, Berkeley; and 7:30 p.m. Feb. 12 at BingConcert Hall, Palo Alto, $32-$120, philharmonia.org

/

Aeron Flutes — from left, Jill Heinke Moen, Meerenai Shim and Kassey Plaha — appearFeb. 8 at the Center for New Music. (Courtesy Diana Maire)

Aeron Flutes, Siroko Duo: The flute ensemble — Jill HeinkeMoen, Kassey Plaha and Meerenai Shim – joins the duo of VictoriaHauk and Jessie Nuch in a concert of new music. 8 p.m. Feb. 8.$15. Center for New Music, 55 Taylor St., S.F.,centerfornewmusic.com/?post_type=event

Dashon Burton: The bass-baritone accompanied by pianist DanielCromeenes performs Beethoven’s vocal music in a concert withcomments by lecturer Robert Greenberg. 10 a.m. Feb. 8. $45.Herbst Theatre, S.F., www.sfperformances.org

/

Talisman: The Stanford a cappella group, noted for music carrying“compelling cultural narratives” appears in a 30th anniversaryconcert. 7:30 p.m. Feb. 8. $30-$50. Bing Hall, Stanford,https://live.stanford.edu/

Apollon Musagète Quartet: The Polish ensemble, which performsstanding up, plays music by Beethoven, Dvorak and Hadyn in thefirst concert of Chamber Music San Francisco’s 2020 series. 3 p.m.Feb. 9. $25-$48. Herbst Theatre, S.F., www.chambermusicSF.org

Harlem Quartet: The ensemble has expanded from classical tojazz, Latin and contemporary works, playing a program of music byDizzy Gillespie, Billy Strayhorn, Wynton Marsalis and more. 2:30p.m. Feb. 9. $35-$55. Bing Hall, Stanford https://live.stanford.edu/

Wooden Fish Ensemble: The group blending music from Asia andcontemporary selections performs Korean folk songs and works byFrederic Rzewski and Hyo-shin Na. 4 p.m. Feb. 9. $5-$25. Old FirstChurch,1751 Sacramento St., S.F., oldfirstconcerts.org

Morrison Chamber Music Center Series: InterMusic SFShowcase features Brass Over Bridges, Curium Trio and The AlayaProject; a 2 p.m. talk precedes the concert. 3 p.m. Feb. 9. Free.Knuth Hall, S.F. State, 1600 Holloway Ave., S.F.,http://morrison.sfsu.edu

/

Polyphonia-Music of the World: Musicians accompanyingperformers in the annual San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festivalpresented by Worlds Art West appear in two concerts, each withdifferent performers/programs. 3 p.m. Feb. 9 and Feb. 16. $15-$25.Presidio Theatre, 99 Moraga Ave., S.F. Presidio, cityboxoffice.com

Renee Fleming: The star soprano appears in “One EnchantedEvening,” a gala benefit for Montalvo Arts Center, also with drinks,dining, dancing and an auction. 5 p.m. Feb. 9. $1,000. 15400Montalvo Road, Saratoga, montalvoarts.org

Earplay — Mary Chun, Thalia Moore, Ellen Ruth Rose, Brenda Tom, Tod Brody, PeterJosheff and Terrie Baune — appears in “Sky Dances” on Feb. 10. (Courtesy photo

/

Earplay: The new music ensemble’s 35th season opener includessolos, duos and trios, including two commissioned premieres and aquintet by featured composer Kaija Saariaho. 7:30 p.m. Feb. 10.$10-$35. Herbst Theatre, S.F., earplay.org

Al Di Meola: The newest album by the acoustic and electric guitargreat is “Across The Universe,” a retrospective of his nearly 50-yearcareer in virtuosic arrangements of Beatles’ tunes. 8 p.m. Feb. 11.$35-$65. Palace of Fine Arts, 3301 Lyon St., S.F.,palaceoffinearts.org

Kronos Quartet: The San Francisco new music group provides liveaccompaniment to a screening of “A Thousand Thoughts,” SamGreen and Joe Bini’s comprehensive documentary about theensemble; the evening also includes a panel moderated byRebecca Solnit and a celebration of composer Terry Riley’s 85thbirthday. 8 p.m. Feb. 13. $48-$68. Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeleycampus, www.calperformances.org

/

Musica Pacifica plays baroque and traditional music of Scotland and England on Feb. 14-16. (Courtesy photo)

Musica Pacifica: San Francisco Early Music Society presents theensemble in “Airs of Caledonia: Baroque and Traditional Music ofScotland and England.” 8 p.m. Feb. 14 at First Presbyterian Church,1140 Cowper St., Palo Alto; 7:30 p.m. Feb. 15 at St. John’sPresbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave., Berkeley and 4 p.m. Feb.16 at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, S.F. $15-$50, sfems.org

Opera San Jose: Verdi’s “Il trovatore,” led by music directorJoseph Marcheso, features soprano Kerriann Otaño, mezzo-soprano Daryl Freedman and tenors Mackenzie Gotcher and

/

Alexander Boyer, Feb. 15- March 1. $55-$195. California Theatre,345 S. First St., San Jose, operasj.org

Voices of Music: In “Stylus Phantasticus,” the ensemble performsvirtuoso Italian and German music of the 17th century. 8 p.m. Feb.15. $5-$50. St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, S.F., voicesofmusic.org

AB West 8+1: The new music ensemble performs to honor the 75thbirthday of influential avant-garde multi-instrumentalist andcomposer Anthony Braxton. 5 p.m. Feb. 16. $12-$14. Berkeley ArtMuseum and Pacific Film Archive, 2155 Center St., Berkeley,bampfa.org

/

Catherine Cook portrays Julia Child in Opera Parallèle’s “Bon Appetit” at Hayes StreetGrill Feb. 16-17. (Courtesy photo)

Opera Parallèle: “Bon Appetit,” Lee Hoiby’s one-act comic opera,a benefit event, stars mezzo soprano Catherine Cook as Julia Childand includes dinner and specially-paired wine. 5 p.m. Feb. 16, 6p.m. Feb. 17. $300. Hayes Street Grill, 320 Hayes St., S.F.,brownpapertickets.com

The Choral Project: The Silicon Valley-based choir’s “Art of Sound:Oceans of Song” includes the Northern California premiere of “TheOcean Between Us” by Matthew Lyon Hazzard for choir, piano,strings and tuned wine glasses. 7 p.m. Feb. 22. $10-$25. MissionSanta Clara de Asis, 500 El Camino Real, Santa Clara,www.brownpapertickets.com

/

Imani Winds appear in “(Im)migration: music of change” on Feb. 22 at Hammer TheatreCenter in San Jose.(Courtesy Shervin Lainez)

Imani Winds, Catalyst Quartet: The ensembles join for“(Im)migration: music of change,” which includes JessieMontgomery’s composition inspired by the migration of AfricanAmericans across the U.S. in the 19th century. 7:30 p.m. Feb. 22.$30-$45. Hammer Theater Center, 101 Paseo De San Antonio, SanJose, hammertheatre.com

Oakland Symphony: Michael Morgan leads Vivaldi’s Concerto in FMajor for Three Violins and Strings, Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 andSteve Martland’s “Crossing the Border” featuring Oakland Ballet

/

dancers. 8 p.m. Feb. 22. $25-$90. Paramount Theatre, 2025Broadway, Oakland, oaklandsymphony.org

Ensemble Draca: Historically informed local musicians AlexaHaynes-Pilon, Katina Mitchell, Arthur Omura and Catherine Stilesplay music from 17th-century Italy, including pieces by Caccini,Merula, Rossi and Strozzi. 1 p.m. Feb. 23. $30. Filoli, 86 CañadaRoad, Woodside, filoli.org/event/ballroom-cultural-series

S.F. Symphony Chamber Music Series: The concert, featuringviolins played by Jews during the Holocaust, includes works byMalcolm Arnold, Gideon Klein, Hans Krasa and Johannes Brahms,2 p.m. Feb. 23. $40. Davies Hall, S.F., sfsymphony.org

San Francisco Symphony, with Essa-Pekka Salonen: Theconductor-composer leads violinist Leila Josefowicz playingSalonen’s Violin Concerto on a program with Beethoven’s Overtureto “King Stephen” and Nielsen’s Symphony No. 5. 8 p.m. Feb. 27-29.$20-$160. Davies Hall, S.F., www.sfsymphony.org

Dynamite Guitars, 3rd Edition: Acoustic virtuosos Frank Vignola,Vinnie Raniolo and Joe Robinson play jazz “accompanied by rapidright-hand picking.” 7:30 p.m. Feb. 29. $45-$60. Herbst Theatre,S.F., cityboxoffice

/

Schola Cantorum: “Into the West,” the choral group’s concertinspired by the America’s West Coast, includes Eric Whitacre’s“Goodnight Moon,” “Come to the Woods” by Jake Runestad basedon writing by John Muir and the premiere of a work by Eric Tuan.7:30 p.m. Feb. 29 at First Congregational Church, 1985 Louis Road,Palo Alto; 3 p.m. March 1 at Los Altos United Methodist Church 655Magdalena Avenue, Los Altos, $28, scholacantorum.org

Noe Valley Chamber Music hosts Aizuri Quartet — from left, Karen Ouzounian, MihoSaegusa, Emma Frucht and Ayane Kozasa — on March 1. (Courtesy Shervin Lainez)

Aizuri Quartet: Noe Valley Chamber Music presents the ensemble— Karen Ouzounian, Miho Saegusa, Emma Frucht and AyaneKozasa — in “Songs and Echoes of Home” with music by Dvorak,

/

Sibelius and Gidden. 4 p.m. March 1. $34-$40. Noe Valley Ministry,1021 Sanchez St., S.F., http://nvcm.org

Louis Lortie: The French Canadian pianist plays Franz Liszt’sRomantic suites, “Années de pèlerinage.” 3 p.m. March 1. $26-$53,Hertz Hall, UC Berkeley campus, www.calperformances.org

Pocket Opera: The audience-friendly chamber troupe stagesMozart’s “Don Giovanni” in English with Anders Froehlich in the titlerole. 2 p.m. March 1 at Hillside Club, 2285 Cedar St., Berkeley; 2p.m. March 8 at Legion of Honor, 100 34th Ave., S.F.; 5 p.m. March15 at JCC, 3921 Fabian Way, Palo Alto. $15-$60, pocketopera.org

/

Violinist Michael Barenboim appears with the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, an ensembleof Arab and Israeli musicians, at Stanford and in S.F. in March.(Courtesy photo)

Michael Barenboim & West-Eastern Divan Orchestra: Theviolinist appears with an ensemble of Arab and Israeli musicians“defying fierce political divides in the Middle East.” 7:30 p.m. March4 at Bing Hall, Stanford University; 2 p.m. March 8 at Davies Hall,S.F., $25-$89. live.stanford.edu/, sfsymphony.org

Schwabacher Recital Series: Mezzo-soprano Simone McIntosh,baritone Timothy Murray and pianist Robert Mollicone performmusic by Claude Debussy, Jonathan Dove and Olivier Messiaen.7:30 p.m. March 4. $30. Taube Atrium Theater, Veterans Building,S.F., sfopera.com/srs

/

Bandini-Chiacchiaretta Duo plays music from Argentina on March 7 at St. Mark’s Church.(Courtesy photo)

Bandini-Chiacchiaretta Duo: Decca recording artists GiampaoloBandini, guitar, and Cesare Chiacchiaretta, bandoneon, playingtango and more, make their San Francisco debut. 7:30 p.m. March7. $45-$55. St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, S.F., cityboxoffice.com

Livermore Valley Opera: Alexander Zemlinsky’s “A FlorentineTragedy” and Puccini’s “Gianni Schicchi,” marking the beginningand end of 19th century Romanticism, are on the program. 7:30p.m. March 7 and March 14, 2 p.m. March 8 and March 15.$20-$90. Bankhead Theater, 2400 First St., Livermore, lvopera.com

/

Ensemble for These Times: “Mothers & Daughters” featuresguests Laura Reynolds, English horn, and Ilana Blumberg, violin,playing three commissioned works by Elinor Armer, David Garnerand Brennan Stokes and instrumental works. 7 p.m. March 8.$5-$30. Noe Valley Ministry, 1021 Sanchez St., S.F.,www.e4tt.org/calendar.html

Left Coast Chamber Ensemble: “Fairytale Pieces” includesSchumann’s “Fairytale Pieces” for viola, Chris Castro’s renditions ofmyths about Coyote and Old Man Farmer and the premiere of CarlSchimmel’s “Ladle Rat Rotten Hut,” a “topsy-turvy Little Red RidingHood for the 21st century.” 7:30 March 8 at Hillside Club inBerkeley, 7:30 p.m. March 9 at S.F. Conservatory, 50 Oak St., S.F.,$18-$35, leftcoastsensemble.org

/

Saint Michael Trio: In “Debussy: France’s Master Impressionist,”the group offers slides, commentary and demonstrations of thecomposer’s delicate, refined compositions. 3 p.m. March 8.$20-$38. Montalvo Arts, 15400 Montalvo Road, Saratoga,montalvoarts.org

Quatuor Danel: Chamber Music San Francisco presents theFrench-Belgian ensemble in a program of works by Beethoven,Debussy and Tchaikovsky. 8 p.m. March 14. $25-$48. HerbstTheatre, S.F., cityboxoffice.com

/

San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra: Daniel Stewartconducts works by Haydn, Smetana, Britten and Mason Bates. 2p.m. March 15. $20-$55. Davies Hall, S.F., www.sfsymphony.org

BEET250VEN Akademie Gala: Old First Concerts offers a specialthree-hour performance featuring leading Bay Area musiciansplaying movements from Beethoven piano sonatas, arias and shortworks, followed by a Brats & Biergarten reception. 2 p.m. March 15.$5-$25. Old First Church, S.F., www.oldfirstconcerts.org

Valley Concert Chorale: “Celebrate the Night: Dreams, the Moonand Stars” includes music by Beethoven, Brahms, Foster and more.3 p.m. March 15, $10-$25.Our Savior Lutheran Church, 1385 S.Livermore Ave., Livermore, brownpapertickets.com

David Russell: The guitarist plays music by Assad, Bach, Barrios,Couperin, J. Se Saint-Luc and Regondi, presented by SanFrancisco Performances and Omni Foundation. 7:30 p.m. March21. $45-$60. Herbst Theatre, sfperformances.org

Field Day at Community Music Center: The annual fundraisingextravaganza includes a five-hour “performathon” featuring CMCstudents and alumni and an open house from 3 to 5 p.m. March 22.11 a.m. to 5 p.m. March 21-22. Free. 544 Capp St., S.F., sfcmc.org

/

Rotterdam Philharmonic: Lahav Shani conducts pianist NelsonFreire in Beethoven’s “Emperor” Piano Concerto and Bartok’sConcerto for Orchestra. 3 p.m. March 22. $19-$110. ZellerbachHall, UC Berkeley, calperformances.org

San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus: “Penned in Pink” features AlexNewell and the Palo Alto High School Festival Choir in a program ofmusic by queer composers and the premiere of “@QueerZ” byJulian Hornik. 8 p.m. March 26. Davies Hall, S.F., www.sfgmc.org

CALENDAR CLASSICAL MUSIC

If you find our journalism valuable and relevant, please considerjoining our Examiner membership program.Find out more at www.sfexaminer.com/join/