Tuesday, January 22, 2019

Red Poppy Art House: February, 2019

As we near the end of the month, this is a good time to initiate an article with the schedule of concerts at the Red Poppy Art House. As was the case when the January preview article was launched in December, the current schedule for February is limited. There are only three concerts on the February portion of the Upcoming Events Web page. Following my usual incremental approach, I shall post to my “shadow” Facebook site to put out the word whenever this page is updated.

The Red Poppy is located in the Mission at 2698 Folsom Street on the southwest corner of 23rd Street. Tickets are now being sold in advance online through Eventbrite. As a result, the dates provided below will be hyperlinked to the Eventbrite event pages for purchasing tickets.

Given the demand for these concerts, it is likely that only a limited number of tickets will be available at the door. Remember, the Poppy is a small space. Even those who have purchased their tickets in advance should probably make it a point to be there when the doors open one half-hour before the performance is scheduled to begin. Here are the specifics for the two events that have been posted thus far:

Saturday, February 9, 7 p.m.: The Sibarg Ensemble is a quartet that explores creative intercultural music by combining the sounds of traditional Iranian melodies with jazz. Hesam Abedini is the vocalist of the quartet, accompanied by Niloufar Shiri on the bowed kamancheh with rhythm provided by Kyle Motl on bass and Josh Charney on piano. The repertoire includes original compositions, arrangements of classical and folk songs, and structured improvisations. Admission will be on a sliding scale between $20 and $25.

[added 1/28, 10:05 a.m.:

Monday, February 11, 6:30 p.m.: As part of Noe Valley Chamber Music‘s informal SNAPSHOTS series, the Poppy will host a one-hour concert given by the Omer Quartet, which will be making its San Francisco debut fresh on the heels of its debut in New York. The performers are violinists Mason Yu and Erica Tursi, violist Jinsun Hong, and cellist Alex Cox. The program will include Claude Debussy's only string quartet, Ludwig van Beethoven's Opus 133 “Große Fuge,” originally intended as the final movement of his Opus 130 quartet in B-flat major, a quartet by Chris Rogerson, and Joseph Haydn's Hoboken III/32, the second in his set of six Opus 20 “Sun” quartets. Admission will be $25.

Saturday, February 16, 7:30 p.m.: Master West African kamale ngoni player and fingerstyle guitar wizard Mamadou Sidibe and guitarist Walter Strauss perform as the Fula Brothers. The title of their program is West African Grooves & Global Guitar. Admission will be on a sliding scale between $20 and $25.]

Friday, February 22, 7 p.m.: Folk singer Ionela Guzic will present a special program of traditional Romanian music. She will be accompanied by the Orchestra Euphonos, whose members are Peter Bonos on trumpet, Balder ten Cate on cimbalom, Zina Pozen on accordion, Asaf Ophir on clarinet, Travis Hendrix on bass, and Ivan Velev on percussion. Between Guzic’s songs they will play traditional Romanian folk dances. Admission will be on a sliding scale between $20 and $25.

Saturday, February 23, 7:30 p.m.: The Janam ensemble will follow up on Valentine’s Day with a program entitled Dark Side of Love. The performers are Dan Auvil (percussion and vocals), Tom Farris (laouto, guitar, and percussion), Juliana Graffagna (vocals and accordion), Gari Hegedus (oud, saz, mandocello, and mandolin) and Shira Kammen (violin, harp, and vocals). Their program will consist of “dark love songs from Bulgaria, Greece, West Virginia, and beyond.” Admission will be on a sliding scale between $15 and $20.

[added 1/28, 10:20 a.m.:

Sunday, February 24, 2 p.m.: This will be the next installment of the free Monthly Community Rumba, with music provided by Rumberos de Radio Habana. While this is a free event, donations are warmly accepted. All donated money goes to the performing musicians, and a recommended amount is between $5 and $10.

Sunday, February 24, 7:30 p.m.: This will be the Bay Area premiere of the Daniel Rotem Ensemble. Saxophonist Rotem leads a quartet of horn players, the other three being Steven Lugerner on alto saxophone, Henry Hung on trumpet, and Danny Lubin-Ladin on trombone. Rhythm is provided by Alex Boneham on bass and Roberto Giaquinto on drums. The ensemble will perform new original compositions and arrangements by Rotem, as well as music off his second album, Serenading the Future. Admission will be on a sliding scale between $15 and $20.]

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