Old First Concerts: June, 2021

Once again, Old First Concerts (O1C) has scheduled two performances for the following month (again with the possibility that further concerts will be added at a later date). As usual, if there are any changes in these plans, readers will be informed through updates to this article and notification of those updates through the Facebook shadow site. The event pages for both of these concerts include hyperlinks to YouTube, meaning that both performances will be live-streamed. However, these will also be hybrid concerts with seating limited to 100 tickets, all being sold for $25 (no reduced rate for seniors or students). Presumably, program notes will be available for both concerts; but the hyperlinks tend to appear shortly before the performances. The best way to keep track of additional information and ticketing will be through the O1C event pages. Hyperlinks to those pages will be attached to the date and time of performances as follows:

Friday, June 11, 8 p.m.: The title of this program will be close & personal | chamber music among friends and generations. The performers will include three of the sfSoundGroup musicians, clarinetist Matt Ingalls, pianist Hadley McCarroll, and cellist Monica Scott. However, they will be joined by a “next generation” piano trio called the Nautilus Trio, whose members are violinist Magali Pelletey, cellist Raquel Matthews, and pianist Estella Zhou. The program will include new and recent works by both Ingalls and Scott, as well as Paul Dresher. The program will also present rarely-heard gems by George Antheil and Bohuslav Martinů, a new transcription of Igor Stravinsky’s “Ebony Concerto” for clarinet/bass clarinet and piano, and “Rigmarole” for bass clarinet and cello, one of Elliott Carter’s late works, performed at his 103rd birthday. The program will conclude with Dmitri Shostakovich’s Opus 67 (second) piano trio in E minor.

Sunday, June 20, 4 p.m.: Soprano Breanna Sinclairé has prepared a recital program that will include opera arias, art song, and selections from musical theater. For a least one of her selections, she will be joined by tenor Christopher Craig. The accompanying pianist has not yet been announced. Sinclairé made her debut with San Francisco Symphony on December 31, 2018 as the first transgender singer to perform with the orchestra.