Center for New Music: October, 2021

As this article is being written, the Center for New Music (C4NM) has announced three concerts for next month. The first two of these will be streamed via the C4NM YouTube channel. The third is a dance recital. Since there is no link for arranging for a streamed connection, I assume that, at least for now, the program will be performed in the presence of an audience. There is at least some possibility that this will also be true of the first two events. C4NM is located at 55 Taylor Street, half a block north of the Golden Gate Theater, which is where Golden Gate Avenue meets Market Street. All tickets and donations may be processed in advance through the C4NM Events page. Specifics are as follows with hyperlinks for the respective event pages, each of which has a “Buy Tickets Online” hyperlink to the appropriate Eventbrite event page:

Saturday, October 2, 7:30 p.m.: Just before the pandemic nine Bay Area composers joined forces to present new string quartets for the Friction String Quartet (violinists Otis Harriel and Kevin Rogers, violist Lucia Kobza, and cellist Doug Machiz) in a cycle of two concerts originally planned for the summer of 2020. Instead, at the end of last November, the C4NM YouTube channel streamed a pre-recorded performance of the first of the two planned concerts. The composers were Allan Crossman, Monica Chew, Davide Verotta, and Shawne Workman, all of whom had created works written for remotely located players. This concert will conclude that cycle with new compositions by Mark Alfenito, Allan Crossman, Jacob E. Goodman, Kyle Hovatter, Steve Mobia, Martha Stoddard, and Davide Verotta. There will be no charge for admission, but donations are encouraged. Registration will be handled by Eventbrite, which will then arrange to send the URL for the streamed performance.

Monday, October 4, 7 p.m.: Following up on this past Thursday, saxophonist Larry Ochs will return to C4NM, this time for a duo performance with drummer Don Robinson. They will present tracks from their second duo recording, A Civil Right. Admission will be by a contribution of an amount between $8 and $15. Again, that donation will be handled by Eventbrite, along with arrangements for streamed viewing.

Sunday, October 17, 7 p.m.: Finding a Way is the title of a set of five dances choreographed and performed by Christina Braun. Created under pandemic conditions, the title refers to the dancer’s efforts to find a way through different life struggles. That “way” will lead to solution, resolution, reconciliation, and self-actualization. The music for this performance will be played by Tom Nunn. His performance will draw upon four types of instruments that he has invented: the Giant Skatchwheel, the Skatchplate, the Crustacean, and the Chaseplate. Nunn’s work with Braun was last seen at C4NM this past November, when they performed What are the Chances; and that performance was captured for streaming on YouTube. General admission will be $15 with a $10 rate for C4NM members, purchased through the hyperlink on the event page.