Sunset Music and Arts: October, 2023

As this site begins to account for subscription series dates worth bearing in mind, it turns out that Sunset Music and Arts will be presenting only one concert during the coming month of October. That will be a solo piano recital, for which Leah Kang has prepared a strikingly imaginative program. The “core” of that program will showcase two significant female composers from two different countries.

The first of those composers will be the American Florence Price. Kang will perform Snapshots, a suite of three “visual impressions,” each associated with a specific date: October 13, 1952, July 17, 1949, and January 14, 1949. This will be coupled with the Trois pièces romantiques by the French composer (and conductor) Marguerite Canal. These two compositions will be preceded by the fifth of nine collections by Takashi Yoshimatsu given the title Pleiades Dances, each consisting of seven movements organized around a common subject matter. For the fifth collection (Opus 51, composed in 1992), that subject matter is the time of day.

Leah Kang performing Alexander Scriabin’s Opus 19 “Sonata-Fantasy” at the Hamel Music Center in Madison, Wisconsin (screen shot from the YouTube video of her performance)

The second half of the program involves a coupling of Maurice Ravel and Alexander Scriabin. The former will be represented by another collection, Valses nobles et sentimentales. It will be followed by Scriabin’s Opus 19, his second piano sonata composed in the key of G-sharp minor. This coupling reminded me that, about ten years ago, I had encountered two albums released around the same time, both of which involved albums with overall “programs” that were devoted entirely to works by Ravel and Scriabin.

As usual, this recital will take place in the Sunset district at the Episcopal Church of the Incarnation, located at 1750 29th Avenue, about halfway between Moraga Street and Noriega Street. It will begin at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 7. Ticket prices are $25 for general admission with a $20 rate for students and seniors. Because the demand tends to be high, advance purchase is highly advised. Tickets may be purchased online through Eventbrite. Further information may be obtained by calling 415-564-2324.