Gregory Taboloff to Showcase Work at Herbst

Composer and pianist Gregory Taboloff (photograph by Lara George Photography)

Gregory Taboloff will make his orchestral debut as both composer and pianist this coming September. For the second half of the program, he will serve as soloist in his own first piano concerto, which he has named “The Mystic.” The title was inspired by the eight-stanza poem “The Mystic Trumpeter,” which Walt Whitman included in his Leaves of Grass collection. The concerto was also influenced by The Mystic, a painting by Taboloff’s wife, Ann Marie Taboloff. It was given its world premiere under the title “The Russian” in 2000 at the Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek. “The Mystic” is the title of a revised version, also premiered at the Lesher Center in 2017. September will mark the work’s first performance in San Francisco.

In the first half of the program Taboloff will also serve as soloist, this time in a performance of Ludwig van Beethoven’s Opus 37 (third) piano concerto in C minor. The accompanying ensemble, calling itself the Taboloff Philharmonic, will consist of professional musicians from across the Bay Area. It will also begin the program with the overture to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s K. 620 opera The Magic Flute.

This performance will take place at 3 p.m. on Sunday, September 8, in Herbst Theatre. 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. The venue is excellent for public transportation, since that corner has Muni bus stops for both north-south and east-west travel. Tickets are on sale for $75 for premium seating, $60, and $45. They may be purchased online in advance through a City Box Office event page, which includes information about the locations associated with each of the price levels. Orders may also be placed by calling 415-392-4400.