Tuesday, March 12, 2019

Choices for April 6–7, 2019

While the month of March has been comparatively quiet where concert opportunities are concerned, next month will begin with another seriously busy weekend. As will be seen, one of the events has already been taken into account; but it now emerges that it will be up against some highly imaginative competition. Here are the alternatives to consider on the first Saturday and Sunday of April:

Saturday, April 6, and Sunday April 7, 2 p.m., Herbst Theatre: Readers may recall how, in August of 2016, the Lamplighters Music Theatre reworked W. S. Gilbert’s text for The Mikado; or the Town of Titipu into The New Mikado: Una Commedia Musicale!, transplanting the libretto to Renaissance Milan without tinkering with the music of Arthur Sullivan. Director Barbara Heroux is at it again, this time presenting a before-and-after production. The “before” portion will be the first original success by the Gilbert-and-Sullivan partnership, the one-act operetta “Trial by Jury,” which plays fast and loose with the hearing of a breach-of-promise suit. There will then be an intermission, followed by the first performances in San Francisco of “Trial by Jury Duty.” This will repurpose Sullivan’s music for a new libretto that will draw upon literary sources that include Jane Austen, Charlotte Brontë (think Jane Eyre), and Daphne du Maurier (Rebecca). All music will be conducted by Baker Peeples, and Heroux will direct the entire production.

The entrance to Herbst is the main entrance to the Veterans Building at 401 Van Ness Avenue, located on the southwest corner of McAllister Street. Front Orchestra tickets are $60. Those in the Boxes, Dress Circle, and the remainder of the Orchestra are $50. Remaining tickets are $45. The Box Office can be reached by telephone at 415-392-4400. Tickets may be purchased online through the two hyperlinks assigned to the above dates. The Box Office opens 90 minutes prior to each performance.

Saturday, April 6, 7:30 p.m., Heron Arts: Details have now been announced for the annual Gala presented by One Found Sound (OFS). Like the concert season, which concluded at the beginning of February, the theme of the Gala will be “Storytelling.” To this end Sahba Aminikia has fulfilled an OFS commission by composing “Shahmaran,” a tale of both Persian and Kurdish origin that explores the duality between the darkness of evil and the light of goodness. The musical portion of the evening will also include compositions by Joseph Haydn, Felix Mendelssohn, and David Maslanka. Evening socialization will be organized around unlimited free drinks, dancing, and great stories with friends old and new.

Heron Arts is located in SoMa at 7 Heron Street on the block between 7th Street and 8th Street. General admission tickets are being sold for $45. There will be “Silver” tickets that will include food and a special private preview performance. Doors for Silver ticket-holders will open at 6:30 p.m. Tickets may be purchased online in advance through Eventbrite.

Saturday, April 6, 7:30 p.m., Episcopal Church of the Incarnation: The Circadian String Quartet, whose members are violinists David Ryther and Sarah Wood, violist Omid Assadi, and cellist David Wishnia, have now announced the details for their recital in the Chamber Music series presented by Sunset Music and Arts. Readers may recall that this ensemble established itself with The Sound and the Fury: The Rite of Spring Re-imagined, Ryther’s transcription of Igor Stravinsky’s (in)famous ballet score, which required each of the quartet members to double on percussion instruments. For next month’s concert, Ryther has shifted his attention to that composer’s score for the ballet “The Firebird,” arranging it this time for string quartet, piano, and percussion. The quartet will also play arrangements of three of Claude Debussy’s piano preludes, as well as Béla Bartók’s first string quartet. Guest artists will include pianist Keisuke Nakagoshi and violinist Roseminna Watson.

The Episcopal Church of the Incarnation is located at 1750 29th Avenue, about halfway between Moraga Street and Noriega Street. Ticket prices are $20 for general admission with a $15 rate for students and seniors. Because the demand tends to be high, advance purchase is highly advised. Tickets may be purchased online through Eventbrite.

Saturday, April 6, 7:30 p.m., San Francisco Conservatory of Music: As has already been reported, Ensemble for These Times will be performing The Film Noir Project in the Osher Salon.

Sunday, April 7, 3 p.m., Taube Atrium Theater: The next Symphony Parnassus program will again feature a violin concerto. This time the concerto will be by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, and the soloist will be Alex Zhou. Composed in 1945, the concerto provides a more symphonic reflection on themes that had originated in film scores that Korngold had provided for Another Dawn, Juarez, Anthony Adverse, and The Prince and the Pauper. The program will begin with Edward Elgar’s Opus 36 “Enigma” variations and conclude with Emmanuel Chabrier’s “Joyeuse marche.”

Ticket prices are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors, and $10 for students and those under the age of 26, both upon presentation of identification. Tickets may be purchased in advance online from a Brown Paper Tickets event page. The Diane and Tad Taube Atrium Theater is located on the fourth floor of the Veterans Building at 401 Van Ness Avenue on the southwest corner of McAllister Street.

Sunday, April 7, 5 p.m., Noe Valley Ministry: The featured vocalist for the April installment of the LIEDER ALIVE! Liederabend Series organized by Founder and Director Maxine Bernstein will be bass Kirk Eichelberger. He will be accompanied by Russian-born pianist Simona Snitkovskaya. The title of the program will be Mussorgsky and Kandinsky. It will feature Modest Mussorgsky’s cycle of four Songs and Dances of Death. This selection will be complemented by a commissioned work by Canadian composer Veronika Krausas. The songs in her collection, entitled Kandinsky Lieder, were inspired by the paintings of Wassily Kandinsky.

The Noe Valley Ministry is located at 1021 Sanchez Street, between 23rd Street and Elizabeth Street. Single tickets for all concerts in this series are $75 for reserved seating and $35 for general admission. These may also be purchased in advance through Eventbrite. Tickets at the door will be $40 with a $20 discount for students, seniors, and working artists.

Sunday, April 7, 7 p.m., Episcopal Church of the Incarnation: The Jazz/World Music Series presented by Sunset Music and Arts will present a program entitled Sing Sistah Sing! Mezzo Andrea Baker has prepared a celebration of the sound and extraordinary breadth of the African American female voice and a heartfelt retelling of some of the incredible life stories of the vocalists that influenced her work. Sources of those influences include Leontyne Price, Marian Anderson, Donna Summer, Nina Simone and Billie Holiday.

Ticket prices are again $20 for general admission with a $15 rate for students and seniors. Because the demand tends to be high, advance purchase is again highly advised. Tickets may be purchased online through Eventbrite.

Sunday, April 7, 7:30 p.m., Davies Symphony Hall: The San Francisco Symphony Great Performers Series will host the return of violinist Midori to San Francisco. The accompanist for her recital will be another regular visitor to Davies, pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet. Program details have not yet been announced.

Davies Symphony Hall is located at 201 Van Ness Avenue and fills an entire city block. The other boundaries are Grove Street (north), Hayes Street (south), and Franklin Street (west). The main entrance (which is also the entrance to the Box Office) is on Grove Street, roughly halfway down the block. Tickets for this recital will be priced between $35 and $109. Tickets may be purchased in advance online through a Web page on the SFS Web site. Flash must be enabled for online ticket transactions. Tickets may also be purchased by visiting the Box Office or calling 415-864-6000. The Box Office is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, from noon to 6 p.m. on Saturday, and two hours before the beginning of the concert on Sunday.

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