Ian Scarfe to Return to Century Club

Recently, I have been trying to do my best to keep up with concerts by pianist Ian Scarfe at Monument SF. This past June he used the venue as a platform for the San Francisco performance of music from the Trinity Alps Chamber Music Festival. Later this month, he will return to another venue where I have seen him in action, the Century Club of California.

Cellist Kendra Grittani, who will be giving her first performance with pianist Ian Scarfe this coming September 19

This will be a program entitled Harmonies, Sonorities, and Birdsong. Scarfe will be joined by cellist Kendra Grittani for a “grand finale” performance of Claude Debussy’s (only) sonata for cello and piano. The second half of the program will begin with three compositions by Debussy’s predecessor in France, Gabriel Fauré, only one of which was composed for cello and piano, the Opus 24 “Élégie.” The second half will begin with the Opus 17 “Berceuse,” which was originally composed for violin and piano, followed by the first of the three Opus 7 songs, “Après un rêve.”

The first half of the program will open with two solo piano compositions by Edvard Grieg, the keyboard version of the “Morning” music, originally composed as music for a performance of Henrik Ibsen’s play Peer Gynt. This will be followed by “Småfugl” (little bird), the fourth of the six pieces in Opus 43, the third of the books given the title Lyric Pieces. More birds will appear in the performance of Franz Liszt’s S. 175/1, “St. Francis of Assisi's sermon to the birds,” the first of the two pieces in his Deux Légendes collection. There will then be a final avian appearance in Amy Beach’s Opus 92, “A Hermit Thrush at Eve.” The first half of the program will conclude with the nocturne in G-flat major composed by Ottorino Respighi.

The Century Club is located at 1355 Franklin Street, between Post Street and Sutter Street. However, all arrangements must be made through a Groupmuse Web page. Ticket prices begin at $25, with $5 to hold a reservation. The performance will begin at 2 p.m. on Sunday, September 21; and doors will open at 1:30 p.m. Drinks will be provided (both with and without alcohol). However, the club itself is not wheelchair accessible.