Saturday, January 20, 2018

San Francisco Conservatory of Music: March 2018

Perceptive readers probably noticed that there was not one of these articles for February. This is because, with one exception, all of the February events were folded into “busy weekend” articles; so they could be compared fairly in the context of all the other things that were happening. The exception was the San Francisco Performances presentation of Philip Glass’ “Music with Changing Parts,” whose account made due mention of the participation of brass and woodwind students from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM). Since February has now been pretty much taken into account, this article will provide readers with an opportunity to get the jump on March, whose highlighted offerings turn out to be pretty modest.

The SFCM building is located at 50 Oak Street, between Van Ness Avenue and Franklin Street, a short walk from the Van Ness Muni Station. Readers are encouraged to consult the Performance Calendar Web page at the SFCM Web site for the most up-to-date information about any of these offerings. (As of this writing, two of the events that were to be announced on this site have been cancelled.) Here is a chronological listing of events likely to be of interest to serious and attentive listeners:

Saturday, March 3, 7:30 p.m., Concert Hall: For the next performance by the Conservatory Orchestra, Conductor Eric Dudley has arranged for one of his students, John Masko, to conduct the opening selection, which will be the overture to Carl Maria von Weber’s Opus 77 opera Der Freischütz. The program will follow the usual overture-concerto-symphony structure with a slight variation. The Weber overture will be followed by Jean Sibelius’ Opus 47 violin concerto in D minor with student Kaiyuan Wu as soloist. The second half of the program will present the composition that Béla Bartók called “Concerto for Orchestra,” which is basically a five-movement symphony with passages that highlight all of the different instrument types in the performing ensemble. Tickets will be required for this performance, $20 for general admission and $15 for seniors, students, and SFCM members. Tickets may be purchased online through a Click4Tix event page, which displays a seating chart showing which seats are available (with a special marker for those that are wheelchair accessible).

Monday, March 5, 7:30 p.m., Recital Hall: The only Faculty Artist Series concert for the month of March will be given by guitarist Judicaël Perroy. Program details have not yet been announced. This recital will be free, and neither tickets nor reservations will be required.

Friday, March 9, 7:30 p.m., Recital Hall: On the other hand March will offer the next concert in the Alumni Artist Insights series. This will feature a piano recital by alumnus Jeffrey Kahane, who graduated in 1977. Here, too, program details have not yet been announced. This recital will also be free, requiring neither tickets nor reservations.

Saturday, March 10, 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, March 11, 2 p.m., Concert Hall: This will be the annual Baroque Opera performance presented by the Historical Performance Department. Department Chair Corey Jamason will conduct a concert performance of George Frideric Handel’s HWV 19 opera seria Rodelinda. Reservations will be required for this free concert, but there will not be reserved seating. Reservations made be made online through separate Google Forms pages for the Saturday and Sunday performances.

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