Old First Concerts: June, 2019

Yesterday’s mail brought the latest calendar brochure from Old First Concerts (O1C), covering the months of June and July. As of this writing, the contents of the brochure seem to align with what can be found on the O1C Web site. As usual, this site will try its best to keep up with any source that has authoritative value. If necessary, updates to this article will be made online with notifications appearing on the shadow page for this site on Facebook.

All O1C events take place at the Old First Presbyterian Church, located at 1751 Sacramento Street on the southeast corner of Van Ness Avenue. If purchased in advance online from an O1C event page, general admission will be $23 with a discounted rate of $18 for seniors aged 65 or older. Hyperlinks for online purchase through specific event pages will be attached to the date-and-time information given below. Tickets for full-time students showing valid identification will be $5; and children aged twelve and under will be admitted for free. There is also a discount available for those parking at the Old First Parking Garage at 1725 Sacramento Street, just up the street from the church. Here are the specifics for the month of June:

Sunday, June 2, 4 p.m.: Guitarist Grant Ferris is based in Nashville. However, he received a scholarship to study under David Tanenbaum at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, which culminated in his receiving a master’s degree in Classical Guitar Performance. Much of his program will be devoted to English guitarist Ernest Shand, who will be represented by three compositions, his Opus 65 “Tsigane,” his Opus 60 “Air for the Guitar,” and his Opus 77, “The Gnomes.” The program will begin with Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s “Tonadilla for guitar on the name of Andrés Segovia,” followed by three Spanish pieces composed by Joaquín Rodrigo. Ferris will conclude with his own “Sketches for a King & Rasputin,” preceded by the Opus 41 suite for solo guitar by Jacques Hétu. There will also be a guest appearance by flutist Courtney Wise.

Friday, June 7, 8 p.m.: Pianist Allegra Chapman and cellist Laura Gaynon, Artistic Directors of Bard Music West, have formed the Ensemble Illume trio with violist Jessica Chang. This trio will play Kaija Saariaho’s “Je sens un deuxième coeur” (another heart beats), preceded by Johannes Brahms’ Opus 114 trio in A minor. Brahms originally composed this for clarinet, cello, and piano; but, as was the case for his clarinet sonatas, he subsequently prepared a viola part to replace the clarinet. Chang and Gaynon will begin the program with an arrangement for viola and cello of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s K. 423 duo in G major, composed for violin and viola.

Sunday, June 9, 4 p.m.: Amos Yang, Assistant Principal Cello for the San Francisco Symphony (SFS) and SFS bassist Charles Chandler will come together for another non-standard combination of instruments. They call they pairing 2LOW. They will perform the world premiere of Andrès Martin’s “Synchronicity.” They will also perform a duo arrangement of Johann Sebastian Bach’s BWV 1008 suite for solo cello prepared for them by Shinji Eshima, who plays bass in the orchestras for both the San Francisco Opera and the San Francisco Ballet.

Friday, June 21, 8 p.m.: This will be a more conventional duo program performed by Le Due Muse, whose members are cellist Sarah Hong and pianist Makiko Ooka. They have prepared a full evening of music by Franz Schubert, beginning with his D. 821 sonata in A minor, originally composed for arpeggione and piano. They will be joined by violinist Heeguen Song for a performance of the D. 898 trio in B-flat major. The duo will also play a selection of Schubert’s songs with Hong playing the vocal line.

Sunday, June 23, 4 p.m.: The repertoire will shift to jazz with a performance by the Golden Circle Sextet. This group was founded by Dan Neville on vibraphone and Rebecca Kleinmann on alto flute. The other members are Destiny Muhammad on harp, Gaea Schell on piano, Shimpei Ogawa on bass, and Pepe Jacobo on drums. This is clearly a non-standard collection of instruments for jamming, and their book consists of unique blends of Colombian sources with an Afro-Cuban style.

Sunday, June 30, 4 p.m.: Following the world premiere of Kanta Judezmo at Congregation Emanu-El at the end of this past April, composer Sascha Jacobsen will bring his resources to Old First Presbyterian Church. As can be seen in the above photograph, those resources include mezzo Melinda Becker (foreground),  violinists Jory Fankuchen and Michele Walther, violist Charith Premawardhana, cellist Lewis Patzner, percussionist Edgardo Cambon, and guitarist Carlos Caminos. The program will also include dancers Andrea Fuchilieri and Emanuel Colombo (behind the musicians). The libretto was prepared by Bobby Coleman, who will serve as narrator.