Next month there will be fewer Beethoven250 programs presented by the San Francisco Symphony (SFS) than were scheduled for this month. In fact there will be only two of them, both to be presented by visiting conductors. However, both of those conductors have great SFS significance, one from the past and the other for the future. Specifics are as follows:
February 7–9: The return of SFS Conductor Laureate Herbert Blomstedt is always a special occasion, and this occasion has already been described in yesterday’s summary of choices for February 7 and 8 and added to the list of choices for February 9. The program itself will consist only of the Opus 36 (second) symphony in D major by Ludwig van Beethoven and the Opus 98 (fourth) symphony in E minor by Johannes Brahms. As previously observed, the Inside Music talk will be given by James M. Keller one hour prior to each concert (7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday). Ticket prices range from $20 to $165, and an event page has been created for online purchase. They may also be purchased by calling 415-864-6000 or by visiting the Davies Box Office, whose entrance is on the south side of Grove Street between Van Ness Avenue and Franklin Street. KDFC’s Rik Malone’s podcast about the Beethoven symphony will be posted to the Program Note Podcasts Web page prior to the first performance of this program. The event page also includes sound clips from previous SFS performances of the Brahms symphony. Flash must be enabled for both streamed content and online ticket purchases. The Box Office is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, from noon to 6 p.m. on Saturday, and two hours prior to Sunday performances.
February 27–29: The final concert of the month will be conducted by Music Director Designate Esa-Pekka Salonen. He will begin the program with the overture to Beethoven’s Opus 117, the commemorative cantata entitled King Stephen. This composition was commissioned by Francis II, the last Holy Roman Emperor, who subsequently became Francis I, the first Emperor of Austria. He had commissioned the construction of a large theater in Pest (before it merged with the city of Buda); and the inauguration of that theater included Beethoven’s cantata to honor King Stephen I, founder of the Kingdom of Hungary.
The full program will follow the usual overture-concerto-symphony format. The concerto will be Salonen’s own violin concerto, which he composed for violinist Leila Josefowicz, who will return as the soloist. (Josefowicz previously performed this concerto with Salonen in Davies for the program he had prepared to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the first SFS performance in December of 2011.) The symphony selection will be Carl Nielsen’s Opus 50 (fifth) symphony.
This program will also be given three performances, all of which will take place at 8 p.m. on Thursday, February 27, Friday, February 28, and Saturday, February 29. The Inside Music talk will be given by Peter Grunberg. Ticket prices range from $20 to $160, and an event page has been created for online purchase. KDFC’s Rik Malone’s podcast about the Nielsen symphony will be posted to the Program Note Podcasts Web page prior to the first performance of this program. In addition the event page includes sound clips from the Nielsen symphony.
In addition, these performances will be preceded by a Katherine Hanrahan Open Rehearsal. This special behind-the-scenes experience begins at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, February 27, with coffee and complimentary doughnuts, followed by a half-hour introductory talk by Grunberg at 9 a.m. The rehearsal itself begins at 10 a.m.; and, of course, the pieces rehearsed are at the conductor’s discretion. General admission is $30 with $45 for reserved seats in the Premier Orchestra section, Rear Boxes and Side Boxes, and the Loge. Tickets may be purchased online through a separate event page.
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