Sunday, January 5, 2020

Ronny Michael Greenberg to Give Liszt groupmuse

Ronny Michael Greenberg (photograph by Anna Wu, from the Media Web page of Greenberg’s Web site)

The name of pianist Ronny Michael Greenberg is likely to be familiar to many readers. He is an alumnus of the Merola Opera Program that then “graduated” to become a San Francisco Opera (SFO) Adler Fellow. He is an active member of the SFO Music Staff, serving as rehearsal pianist, vocal coach, and harpsichordist in the orchestra pit when the occasion requires.

He has now announced plans to give a living room groupmuse concert entitled Favorite Liszt. He has prepared a program that will present four original compositions by Franz Liszt, as well as that composer’s piano arrangement of an opera aria by Richard Wagner and a paraphrase on themes from an opera by Giuseppe Verdi. The original works will be “Un sospiro” (a sigh), the third of the three compositions in the Études de concert collection, the third of the six pieces called Consolations, “Funérailles” (funerals) from the Harmonies poétiques et religieuses (poetic and religious harmonies), and “Sonetto 104 del Petrarca” from the second “year” of Années de pèlerinage, a piano arrangement of a song setting for Petrarch’s 104th sonnet. The opera aria is the “Liebestod,” sung by Isolde at the conclusion of Tristan und Isolde; and the paraphrase takes its point of departure from the vocal quartet in the final act of Verdi’s Rigoletto.

This performance will begin at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 16. As is the case with most groupmuse concerts, admission will require a $10 minimum donation for the performers and a $3 registration fee. Specifics are maintained on the groupmuse Web page through which reservations must be made. Those who attend will be invited to bring a bottle of wine or snacks to share with other guests. Note that this venue is not wheelchair-accessible.

No comments: