SFCM: January, 2019

Since next month will be relatively quiet, it is not too soon to start planning for when the concert season gets back in gear after New Year’s Day. Performances at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) will not kick in until the end of the second full week of January. The beginning of a new semester means that there will be a relatively slow start-up period. However, there will still be a few interesting offerings taking in diverse approaches to music-making.

The SFCM building is located at 50 Oak Street, between Van Ness Avenue and Franklin Street, a short walk from the Van Ness Muni Station. Readers are encouraged to consult the Performance Calendar Web page at the SFCM Web site for the most up-to-date information about any of these offerings. Unless stated otherwise, all concerts are free. Nevertheless, reservations are recommended; and, where necessary, a hyperlink to a Google Forms Web page will be provided for making them. Here is a chronological listing of events likely to be of interest to serious and attentive listeners:

Friday, January 11, 7:30 p.m., Concert Hall: Those familiar with SFCM know that it supports a variety of competitions, not only for instrumental soloists but also for composers through the annual Jim Highsmith Award. This year four competition winners will be honored in a single program. Furthermore, in a break with past tradition, the orchestral ensemble for the performances will be the Berkeley Symphony under the baton of Martin West. The instrumental competition winners will be trombonist Nicole Hillis (’18), playing the concerto by Henri Tomasi, guitarist Ji Hyung Park (’19), playing Manuel Ponce’s “Concierto del sur,” and violinist Boxianzi Ling (’20), playing Felix Mendelssohn’s Opus 64 concerto in E minor. The Highsmith winner will be Daniel de Togni (’18), whose “Tsuioku: On the Internment of Japanese Americans” will be given its world premiere. Reservations may be arranged through a Google Forms Web page.

Friday, January 25, 7:30 p.m., Recital Hall: The Persephone Chamber Ensemble is an all-female chamber group dedicated to programming music that highlights the integration of both traditional and contemporary vocal and instrumental chamber music. Two SFCM alumnae are members, mezzo Kindra Scharich (’03) and violist Wendy Clymer (’05). They will use the slot to highlight the work of a female composer, who is also a member of the SFCM faculty, Elinor Armer. Scharich will sing her “Nocturnes,” scored for mezzo and piano quartet. Clymer will be joined by violinist Ilana Blumberg Thomas, cellist Amy Brodo, and pianist Lois Brandwynne. Scharich will also sing Gabriel Fauré’s Opus 61 cycle La bonne chanson and Ernest Chausson’s Opus 37 “Chanson perpétuelle.” The piano quartet will perform Fauré’s Opus 45 (second) quartet in G minor. Reservations may be arranged through a Google Forms Web page.

[added 1/8, 3:50 p.m.:

Sunday, January 27, 7:30 p.m., Recital Hall: There will be a special Chamber Music Faculty Concert to celebrate the birth of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart on January 27, 1756. The program will feature the SFCM quartet-in-residence, the Telegraph Quartet, whose members are violinists Eric Chin and Joseph Maile, violist Pei-Ling Lin, and cellist Jeremiah Shaw. They will play the K. 575 quartet in D major. In addition Chin will join violinist Ian Swensen in a performance of Sergei Prokofiev’s Opus 56 sonata for two violins in C major. Swensen’s Mozart contribution will be a performance of the K. 423 duo in G major with violist Dimitri Murrath. Reservations may be arranged through a Google Forms Web page.]

Monday, January 28, 7:30 p.m., Recital Hall: The recitalist for the first Faculty Artist Series concert of the New Year will be clarinetist Jeff Anderle. He will be joined by the members of the Delphi Trio, violinist Liana Bérubé, cellist Michelle Kwon, and pianist Jeffrey LaDeur, for a performance of Olivier Messiaen’s “Quatuor pour la fin du temps” (quartet for the end of time). The remainder of the program has not yet been announced. Reservations may be arranged through a Google Forms Web page.