Clerestory (Again) Announces Return to Concerts

The Clerestory vocalists (from the gallery on the Clerestory Web site)

Clerestory, the professional all-male vocal ensemble, had originally planned to return to live, in-person concerts in January. They had prepared a program for the occasion given the apposite title Phoenix Rising. Unfortunately, that concert had to be cancelled, due to the surge in coronavirus cases at the beginning of this year. Last month the ensemble announced that the return would take place this month with a program entitled Into the West.

As the title suggests, the program will explore the identity and shared sense of place that we experience in the American West. The program has not yet been finalized, but it will feature composers that have come to make their homes on this side of the continent after having been born and/or matured in many different corners of the globe. One of those composers will be Reena Esmail, who lives in Los Angeles and is currently the composer-in-residence at the Los Angeles Master Chorale and Seattle Symphony. Her contribution to the program will be “Quarantine Madrigals.” This will be a set of short meditations on pandemic isolation, which are, at once, humorous and moving, offering many moments for a knowing nod from the listener.

The San Francisco performance of this program has been scheduled for 5 p.m. on Sunday, May 15. It will be presented as part of the Candlelight Concert Series at The Episcopal Church of St. Mary the Virgin. The church is located in Cow Hollow at 2325 Union Street. Thanks to the generosity of many donors, all of the concerts in this series are offered without charge. Nevertheless, there will be a request for free-will donations, all of which, regardless of size, are gladly received and are tax-deductible. It is still the case that all concert attendees will be required to show proof of a COVID-19 booster shot; and masks must be worn while inside the church.