Tuesday, July 30, 2024

Plans for the SFP 2024–25 Chamber Series

Having already accounted for the 45th Season Gala of San Francisco Performances (SFP), I have now reached a point where the opening performances of the different recital series will alternate with the different categories of performances presented by the San Francisco Symphony (SFS). Thus, the second of the two SFS performances led by conductor Thomas Wilkins, discussed yesterday, will overlap with the first concert in the SFP Chamber Series. As has been the case for at least the last two seasons, each of the programs in the coming Chamber Series will feature a string quartet. However, unlike last season, none of the programs will include guest artists. All of these events will take place at 7:30 p.m. on three different days of the week.

As usual, all of the concerts will take place in Herbst Theatre. The entrance to Herbst is the main entrance to the Veterans Building at 401 Van Ness Avenue, located on the southwest corner of McAllister Street. The venue is excellent for public transportation, since that corner has Muni bus stops for both north-south and east-west travel. The specific dates and their related performers are as follows:

Saturday, October 26: The members of the Esmé Quartet are violinists Wonhee Bae and Yuna Ha, violist Dimitri Murrath, and cellist Ye-Eun Heo. The program will be framed by two “late” quartets from the Classical period. It will begin with Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s K. 575 in D major, the first in his Opus 18 collection of three quartets, often known as the “Prussian” quartets. The conclusion will be Franz Schubert’s final quartet, his D. 887 in G major. These two “bookends” will serve as “monuments” overlooking the first string quartet composed by György Ligeti.

Saturday, March 8: The Calidore Quartet consists of violinists Jeffrey Myers and Ryan Meehan, violist Jeremy Berry, and cellist Estelle Choi. They have prepared a program, which will alternate Classical selections with those from the recent past. Thus, the program will begin with Ludwig van Beethoven, presenting the Opus 74 (“Harp”) quartet (the tenth), one of the major efforts from his middle period. The second half of the program, on the other hand, will begin with another encounter with late Schubert, D. 703 in C minor, known as “Quartettsatz,” since it consists of only a single movement. This brief offering will be coupled with Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s Opus 34, his third quartet. The pizzicato “plucking of Beethoven’s harp,” on the other hand, will be coupled with Jessie Montgomery’s “Strum.”

Friday, March 21: For those that do not already know, the Tetzlaff Quartet is a “brother/sister act.” The outer voices are taken by Christian Tetzlaff on first violin and Tanja Tetzlaff on cello. The “inner voices” will be taken by violinist Elisabeth Kufferath and violist Hanna Weinmeister. The core of the program will be the second string quartet composed by their colleague Jörg Widmann. This will be framed by more conventional music from the nineteenth century. The program will begin with Felix Mendelssohn’s Opus 13 quartet in A minor and conclude with Antonín Dvořák’s Opus 105 quartet in A-flat major, which was completed after his visit to America.

The members of the Isidore String Quartet (from the event page for the program they will present)

Wednesday, April 16: The Isidore String Quartet is the “youngest” ensemble in this season’s series. They are scarcely five years old, and the core of their program will be a string quartet that was only completed in 2015. The title of this quartet is “Unrequited,” and it is the third quartet composed by Billy Childs. This selection will be framed by two far more familiar Classical quartets, each with its own adventurous twists. The program will begin with Mozart’s K. 465 quartet in C major, known as the “Dissonance” quartet. The final selection will be one of Beethoven’s “late” quartets, Opus 127 in E-flat major. The members of the ensemble are violinists Adrian Steele and Phoenix Avalon, violist Devin Moore, and cellist Joshua McClendon.

Subscriptions are now on sale for $275 for premium seating in the Orchestra, the Side Boxes, and the front and center of the Dress Circle, $235 for the center rear of the Dress Circle and the remainder of the Orchestra, and $195 for the remainder of the Dress Circle and the Balcony. Subscriptions may be purchased online in advance through an SFP Web page. Orders may also be placed by calling the SFP subscriber hotline at 415-677-0325, which is open for receiving calls between 9:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. When single tickets go on sale, they may be purchased by visiting the specific event pages. The above dates provide hyperlinks to the appropriate Web pages.

No comments: