Jerusalem Quartet Debut with SFP Next Month

The members of the Jerusalem Quartet (courtesy of SFP)

The beginning of next month will see two concerts that will conclude the San Francisco Performances (SFP) Shenson Chamber Series. Both programs will present string quartets, the first making its SFP debut and the other a familiar visitor. The “new arrival” will be the Jerusalem Quartet, whose members are violinists Alexander Pavlovsky and Sergei Bresler, violist Ori Kam, and cellist Kyril Zlotnikov.

The program they have prepared provides three contrasting perspectives on what may be called the “Romantic” style. The program will begin early in the nineteenth century with the second, in the key of E minor, of Felix Mendelssohn’s Opus 44 quartets. It will conclude late in that same century with Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Opus 11 quartet in D major, the first of his three string quartets. Between these two major compositions, there will be a shorter work, which, in many ways, constitutes a “last gasp” of Romanticism. This is one of the earliest compositions of Anton Webern, composed in 1905 and entitled simply “Langsamer Satz” (slow piece).

This concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 5. It will take place in Herbst Theatre, whose entrance is on the ground floor of the Veterans Building at 401 Van Ness Avenue, located on the southwest corner of McAllister Street. This venue is excellent for public transportation, since that corner has Muni bus stops for both north-south and east-west travel.

Ticket prices are $70 (premium Orchestra and front and center Dress Circle), $55 (remainder of Orchestra, all Side Boxes, and center rear Dress Circle), and $45 (remaining Dress Circle and Balcony); and they may be purchased through an SFP secure Web page. As available, single tickets will be sold at the door with a 50% discount for students and a 20% discount for seniors. Single tickets may also be purchased by calling 415-392-2545.