Friday, January 7, 2022

Jean-Yves Thibaudet’s SFS Program Updated

Wu Wei, Esa-Pekka Salonen, and Jean-Yves Thibaudet (courtesy of SFS)

When the first round of subscription concerts for this coming March was planned, pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet, the visiting soloist, was to join the San Francisco Symphony (SFS) and Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen in a performance of Alexander Scriabin’s last orchestral composition. Sometimes referred to as Scriabin’s fifth symphony, the piece was given the title of a tone poem, “Prometheus: The Poem of Fire.” This work required massive resources in addition to the piano, a full orchestra, chorus, organ, and a “clavier à lumières,” which can be translated as a “keyboard for lights,” anticipating what is now known as music visualization technology.

“Prometheus” was scheduled as the major work on the second half of the program. It will be replaced by Scriabin’s fourth symphony, better known by its programmatic title, “The Poem of Ecstasy.” This selection will be preceded by Franz Liszt’s second piano concerto in A major with Thibaudet as soloist.

The first half of the program will remain as originally planned. The opening selection will be Liszt’s fifth “symphonic poem,” entitled “Prometheus.” It will be followed by Fang Man’s “Song of the Flaming Phoenix,” scored for sheng and orchestra. This will be the world premiere of music co-commissioned by SFS. The sheng soloist will be Wu Wei, making his debut in the SFS Orchestra Series.

There will be three performances of this program, all at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 3, Friday, March 4, and Saturday, March 5, respectively. Ticket prices range from $35 to $180, and a single event page has been created for online purchase for all three concerts. 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. The Box Office is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, and from noon to 6 p.m. on Saturday.

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