Thursday, October 24, 2024

SFCM Highlights: November, 2024

Readers probably know by now that the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM) contributed to both days in the first weekend of next month, which is, as I observed, the first “busy weekend” of the new season. However, next month will be relatively busy at SFCM with three other major events worth considering. Here is a summary of all five events with the summaries for the first two hyperlinked above and event page hyperlinks from the remaining three:

Saturday, November 9, 7:30 p.m., Caroline H. Hume Concert Hall: This is the first performance of the season by the New Music Ensemble led by Nicole Paiement, featuring the music of Elinor Armer.

Sunday, November 10, 4 p.m., Caroline H. Hume Concert Hall: This is the performance by the Conservatory Chorus performing in partnership with the Chanticleer vocal ensemble.

Tuesday, November 12, 7:30 p.m., Barbro Osher Recital Hall: Next month’s Chamber Music Tuesday will feature tenor Nicholas Phan as guest artist. (He cannot be classified as a “visiting artist” since he is now based in San Francisco, having previously founded the Collaborative Artist Institute of Chicago.) He will perform a selection of songs by Rebecca Clarke followed by Gabriel Fauré’s Opus 61 song cycle, La Bonne Chanson. The program will begin with the world premiere performance of “Diār,” a string quartet composed by Shahab Paranj, winner of the SFCM Hoefer Prize.

Kalena Bovell, guest conductor for the SFCM Orchestra

Saturday, November 16, 7:30 p.m., Caroline H. Hume Concert Hall: Panamanian-American Kalena Bovell will visit as guest conductor of the SFCM Orchestra. The program will begin with another prize winner, the world premiere performance of “Hear Her Sing,” composed by Alex Malinas, the latest winner of the Highsmith Award. This will be followed by selections from Sergei Prokofiev’s score for the four-act ballet Romeo and Juliet, first choreographed by Ivo Váňa-Psota for the Kirov Ballet. The remainder of the program will be devoted to two of the three “Roman” tone poems by Ottorino Respighi, “Fountains of Rome” and “Pines of Rome.” (The latter will conclude the evening with no shortage of bombastic spectacle!)

Thursday, November 21, and Friday, November 22, 7:30 p.m., Caroline H. Hume Concert Hall: The Fall Opera for the season will be Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s K. 588 Così fan tutte (women are like that). Staging will be directed by Heather Mathews, and each of the two performances will have a separate cast. As Is usually the case, the conductor will be Curt Pajer.

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