Busy weekends are definitely back! Towards the end of last week, this site accounted for the many choices for the first Saturday and Sunday in November. The following weekend will offer performances on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, making it the first three-day weekend with choices since the first weekend of this past June. Therefore, without any further ado, specifics are as follows (subject, as always, to change “with notice”): [updated 11/3, 8:25 a.m.: The Friction Quartet program has been postponed until January 19:
Friday, November 10, 7:30 p.m., Sunset Music and Arts: There has been a change in programming since this concert was first announced at the end of this past July. Sunset will host a visit by the Friction Quartet, whose members are violinists Otis Harriel and Kevin Rogers, Mitso Floor on viola, and cellist Doug Machiz. As usual, they will perform new works, most (if not all) of which were composed on a commission. The contributing composers will be Jay Lyon, Greg A. Steinke, Adrienne Albert, and Andres B. Robinson. They will also host soprano Amy Foote as a guest artist. She will join in the performances of works by John G. Bilotta, Allen Shearer, Alden Jenks, Davide Verotta, and Molly Axtmann. As of this writing, this will be the only Sunset performance in the month of November.
As usual, the performance 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. 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.]
Friday, November 10, 7:30 p.m., Herbst Theatre: The next event in the 2023/2024 Dynamite Guitars series of concerts, presented by the Omni Foundation for the Performing Arts, and the San Francisco Performances (SFP) Guitar Series is a performance by the Dublin Guitar Quartet. The program will consist entirely of recent compositions, including arrangements of music by Philip Glass and Arvo Pärt. The entrance to Herbst Theatre is on the ground floor of the Veterans Building at 401 Van Ness Avenue 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), $60 (remainder of Orchestra, all Side Boxes, and center rear Dress Circle), and $50 (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.
Saturday, November 11, 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, November 12, 2 p.m., Davies Symphony Hall: The first program to be presented by the San Francisco Symphony (SFS) for the California Festival, entitled To the Edge, will bring the music of Igor Stravinsky together with two currently active composers. The program will conclude with the work that Stravinsky titled simply as “Symphony in Three Movements.” It will begin with the first SFS performances of a composition by Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen entitled “kinēma.” This will be followed by the world premiere of “Drowned in Light” by Jens Ibsen, the product of an SFS commission.
Ticket prices range from $25 to $75. They may be purchased online through the a hyperlink to a single SFS Web site, by calling 415-864-6000, or by visiting the Box Office in Davies Symphony Hall, 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. The Box Office is also open only for tickets to the evening performances two hours before the concert begins.
This will be the first of two Festival programs. The second will be entitled, appropriately enough, From the Edge. It will also be given two performances during the following weekend, both at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, November 17 and Saturday, November 18. This second program will both begin and conclude with Stravinsky. Between the two selections will be the first SFS performances of Gabriella Smith’s “Breathing Forests.” The program will begin with Stravinsky’s octet for eight wind players. This brings four woodwinds (flute, clarinet alternating between B-flat and A, and two bassoons) together with four brass instruments (two trumpets and two trombones). The second half of the program will consist of Steven Stucky’s orchestral arrangement of Stravinsky’s “Les Noces,” originally composed for four pianos and four percussionists, along with four vocal soloists and chorus. Ticket prices will be the same and may be purchased through a different Web site. [added 11/2, 8:05 a.m.:
Saturday, November 11, 7:30 p.m., Bird & Beckett Books and Records: Legendary English saxophonist Trevor Watts will be visiting the Bay Area, joined by his frequent collaborator, percussionist Jamie Harris. They will visit Bird & Beckett for a quartet performance, which will include two major “Bleeding Edge” musicians based here in the Bay Area: guitarist Karl Evangelista and Lisa Mezzacappa on bass. For those that do not already know Bird & Beckett is located at 653 Chenery Street, a short walk from the Glen Park station that serves both BART and Muni. The price of admission is $20 in cash for the cover charge. Students can pay what they can. Given that only a limited number of people will be admitted, reservations are necessary and can be made by calling 415-586-3733. The phone will be answered during regular store hours, which are between noon and 6 p.m. on Tuesday through Sunday. This performance will also be live-streamed for a viewing fee of $10.]
Saturday, November 11, 8 p.m., Grace Cathedral: San Francisco Contemporary Music Players (SFCMP) will begin its 53rd concert season with a program entitled RE:voicing. That title was inspired by Raven Chacon’s “Voiceless Mass,” which won last year’s Pulitzer Prize in music and will be receiving its Bay Area premiere. Chacon was the first Native American (Diné) to receive this award and currently holds the 2023 MacArthur Fellowship. The program will also include music by Olivier Messiaen (“Apparition de l’Église Éternelle”), Chinary Ung (“Luminous Spirals”), and George Crumb (“Ancient Voices of Children”). As usual, the program will be preceded at 7 p.m. by a How Music is Made discussion with Artistic Director Eric Dudley in conversation with Chacon. Grace Cathedral is located at 1100 California Street at the top of Nob Hill. General admission will be $35 with a $60 VIP rate, $20 for rear seating, and $15 for students. Tickets may be purchased online through a City Box Office event page. [added 10/24, 9:10 a.m.:
Sunday, November 12, 2 p.m., Century Club of California: Pianist Ian Scarfe will present his next Groupmuse concert. This will be a duo performance with violinist Mats Tolling, who will offer up his own original compositions and arrangements at the conclusion of the program. The duo will begin the program with selected movements from the four concertos by Antonio Vivaldi known collectively as The Four Seasons. This will be followed by a selection of duos by Fritz Kreisler and movements from Edvard Grieg's Opus 35 set of four Norwegian dances. The other dance on the program will be the tango by Jacob Gade entitled “Jalousie.” This will be coupled with the “Graceful Ghost Rag” by William Bolcom. Tolling's own compositions will be preceded by selected favorites from the repertoire of Frank Sinatra. This is a Groupmuse event, so all specifics about attending must be arranged through a Groupmuse Web page.]
Sunday, November 12, 4 p.m., St. Gregory of Nyssa Episcopal Church: As is the case with SFCMP, this weekend will mark the beginning of the Clerestory season. The title of the program will be A Many Splendored Thing. Those familiar with the tune will recognize that this program will explore love in all its forms and facets. The contributing composers will include Gerald Finzi, Abbie Betinis, and Richard Rogers. Whether or not Sammy Fain (composer of “Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing”) will be included has not yet been announced.
St. Gregory’s is located at 500 De Haro Street, at the foot of Potrero Hill. Tickets may be purchased in advance through an Eventbrite event page. General admission tickets are $15 with a rate of $10 for tickets purchased for ten or more. Reserved seating tickets are $35 with a senior rate of $25. Students will be admitted for $5.
Sunday, November 12, 4 p.m., Noe Valley Ministry: The third program in the 31st season of Noe Music will present the San Francisco debut of the Dior String Quartet. Final details have not yet been announced, but the highlight of their program will be a performance of Dmitri Shostakovich’s Opus 117, his ninth quartet, composed in the key of E-flat major. The other composers on the program will be Joseph Haydn, Leoš Janáček, and Kevin Lau. The Noe Valley Ministry is located at 1021 Sanchez Street, between 23rd Street and Elizabeth Street. Tickets may be purchased through a Web page with prices of $45 for general admission $60 for reserved seating, and $15 for students. [added 10/28, 9:10 a.m.:
Sunday, November 12, 4 p.m., Chez Hanny: The first jazz house concert hosted by Frank Hanny for next month will be a performance by the Marina Albero Trio. Her last performance for Chez Hanny was a duo with flutist Rebecca Kleinman. This time she will lead a straight-ahead jazz trio, whose other members will be Giulio Xavier Cetto on bass and drummer Xavier Lecouturier. The venue is Hanny’s house at 1300 Silver Avenue, with the performance taking place in the downstairs rumpus room. Those planning to attend should think about having cash for a donation of $25. All of that money will go to the musicians. There will be two sets separated by a potluck break. As a result, all who plan to attend are encouraged to bring food and/or drink to share. Seating is first come, first served; and the doors will open at 3:30 p.m. Reservations are preferred by sending electronic mail to jazz@chezhanny.com. Masks are optional, but attendees should be vaccinated. Vaccination will be based on the honor system. Finally, volunteer efforts for cleaning up after the show are always appreciated.] [added 11/6, 8:55 a.m.:
Sunday, November 12, 8 p.m., Bird & Beckett Books and Records: [Note: The Bird & Beckett Web page lists this event for a starting time of both 7:30 p.m. and 8 p.m.!] Drummer Gerald Cleaver will present a program of new compositions by renowned improvisers entitled Insect Life. He will lead a quintet whose other members are Ben Davis (cello), Ben Goldberg (clarinet), Raffi Garabedian (tenor saxophone), and Danny Lubin-Laden (trombone). Like the Saturday performance, the price of admission is $20 in cash for the cover charge. Students can pay what they can. Given that only a limited number of people will be admitted, reservations are necessary and can be made by calling 415-586-3733. The phone will be answered during regular store hours, which are between noon and 6 p.m. on Tuesday through Sunday. This performance will not be live-streamed.]
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