SFP: McGill to Perform with Pacifica Quartet

Pacifica Quartet musicians Simin Ganatra, Mark Holloway, Austin Hartman, and Brandon Vamos (photograph by Lisa-Marie Mazzucco, courtesy of SFP)

San Francisco Performances (SFP) will be presenting only one concert next month, but it definitely promises to be a good one, particularly for those with enthusiasm for chamber music. Clarinetist Anthony McGill will return to San Francisco and will again be joined by a string quartet. The last time he had such an encounter here, it was with the Catalyst Quartet; but this time he will be performing with the Pacifica Quartet, which will also be making a return visit. In the latter case, however, there has been a change of personnel. Simin Ganatra still leads as first violin, and the cellist is still Brandon Vamos. However, the “inner voices” are new ones: Austin Hartman as second violin and Mark Holloway on viola.

As might be expected, the full ensemble will perform Johannes Brahms’ Opus 115 clarinet quintet in B minor, which will account for the second half of the program. However, they will also play “High Sierra Sonata” by Ben Shirley, an alumnus of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. This will be preceded by Antonín Dvořák’s Opus 96, best known as the “American” quartet.

The performance will take place very early in the coming month. As usual, it will begin at 7:30 p.m. on the first Tuesday, December 3. Also as usual, the venue will be Herbst Theatre, which is located at 401 Van Ness Avenue, on the southwest corner of McAllister Street and directly across Van Ness from City Hall. SFP has created its own Web page for online ticket purchases. Tickets for the Boxes and Orchestra ranged between $65 and $75. The remaining tickets are in the Dress Circle and the Balcony, with prices between $55 and $75.