Two Seasonal Handel Performances from SFS

Members of the SFS Chorus (from the SFS event page for this concert)

As was the case last year, the San Francisco Symphony (SFS) will present two performances of George Frideric Handel’s HWV 56 oratorio Messiah. The conductor will be Jane Glover, who, according to my records, last came to Davies to conduct a subscription concert of Johann Sebastian Bach and Handel in May of 2012. Once again Ragnar Bohlin will prepare the SFS Chorus, which will perform with soloists Ying Fang (soprano), Elizabeth DeShong (mezzo), Nicholas Phan (tenor), and Joshua Hopkins (baritone).

The two performances of Messiah will both begin at 8 p.m. on Friday, December 14, and Saturday, December 15. There will be an Inside Music talk given by Scott Foglesong, which will begin one hour before the performance; and doors to the lobbies open fifteen minutes before the talk begins. Ticket prices range from $65 to $225. They may be purchased online through the event page for this program on the SFS Web site, by calling 415-864-6000, or by visiting the Box Office in Davies Symphony Hall, whose entrance is on the south side of Grove Street between Van Ness Avenue and Franklin Street. The Box Office is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, and from noon to 6 p.m. on Saturday. The Box Office is also open only for tickets to the evening’s performance two hours before the concert begins. Readers should note that this is a popular annual event, meaning that tickets in some of the sections of the hall may be limited or sold out. Finally, the event page has a hyperlink for a free podcast about Messiah hosted by KDFC’s Rik Malone. There is also a hyperlink for sound clips from the oratorio. Both of these hyperlinks require Flash for listening, as well as for online seat selection.