SFCM Students to Perform Ramón Sender “Opera”

This is a last-minute announcement; but it involves one of those occasions that is far too adventurous to be overlooked. In 1962 Ramón Sender, described by Other Minds as “a central figure in the history of the greater Bay Area counterculture,” composed a piece entitled “Tropical Fish Opera.” In spite of the title, this piece was neither vocal nor narrative. It was scored for four instruments without any further specification. The basic idea is that the performers would be placed in front of one or more fish tanks, which would then be interpreted as score pages with the fish themselves corresponding to the notes.

The Steinhart Aquarium at the California Academy of Sciences (from the Facebook Events Web page for this performance)

Working with Terry Riley, a colleague dating back to the days of the San Francisco Tape Music Center in the Sixties, Sender has recruited a string quartet of students from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music to perform his composition at the California Coast tank in the Steinhart Aquarium at the California Academy of Sciences. The members of the quartet will be violinists Shaina Pan and Kay Nakazawa, both Class of ’20, violist Natalia Badziak, and cellist Nick Denton, both Class of ’19. As may be expected, improvisation will figure heavily in the performance. The piece is of indeterminate length, and the concert is expected to last less than two hours.

That concert will begin at 3 p.m. tomorrow, March 7. Those wishing to attend will only have to show up at the California Coast Tank. Naturally, this will require admission to the Academy. Adult (age eighteen and older) tickets are sold for $35.95. Children between the ages of four and eleven are admitted for $25.95. There is also a $30.95 rate for youth between the ages of twelve and seventeen, students aged eighteen and older with identification, and seniors aged 65 and older, also with identification. A 15% discount is available to those who provide a Sales Code, but the use of a Sales Code requires either having or creating an account. Those two options may be implemented by following the two hyperlinks in the preceding sentence. The Sales Code is SFCM; and, for those creating an account, it must be entered on the first Web page of the creation process. The Sales Code is case sensitive. The California Academy of Sciences is located in the heart of Golden Gate Park at 55 Music Concourse Drive.