19 February 2009

fun stuff I'm probably going to miss

There seems to be a critical mass of interesting stuff I’m most likely going to miss in the next couple of weeks, thanks to previous commitments or general exhaustion, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take advantage of what's being offered. Some of this is stuff I’ve wanted to see since I first heard about it, like the new Swan Lake at the San Francisco Ballet or Sofia Gubaidulina’s residence at the San Francisco Symphony (I’m hearing at least one of these concerts, but I might miss the first one and the chamber performance), so too bad for my poor planning and poverty generally.

The Jack Curtis Dubowsky Ensemble is performing live music to experimental films tomorrow night, Friday February 20, at Artists' Television Access at 992 Valencia Street. I heard Dubowsky's Eisenhower Address last fall and was really impressed by it and would love to hear it again. Go see what he does with Genet, Jarman, and company.

The excellent local chorus Volti is presenting another intriguing program chockfull of world premieres, at St Mark’s (2300 Bancroft Way, Berkeley) on Friday February 27 and at St Gregory of Nyssa (500 De Haro Street, San Francisco) on Saturday February 28. If you too can't make these performances, you can always go to their website and buy their CDs.

The California Symphony is presenting a new orchestral work, White Lies for Lomax (as in Alan Lomax), by their Young Composer in Residence, Mason Bates, who also has a work coming up with the San Francisco Symphony later this season. Also on the program is the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto with a young soloist, Stefan Jackiw, and the Brahms 4. That’s Sunday March 8 and Tuesday March 10 at the Dean Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek.

And the next Other Minds Festival starts Thursday March 5 and continues for the next two days at Kanbar Hall at the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco (3200 California Street at Presidio).

So go, defy the Republican reactionaries by spending what money you have to support the arts, and enjoy. Tell me what I'm missing.

10 comments:

vicmarcam said...

Speaking of things we'll miss: John McGlinn, who conducted the wonderful 1988 recording of Show Boat that you gave me, died on Valentine's Day at age 55.

Patrick J. Vaz said...

I hadn't heard that. Very sad, and surprisingly young.

jolene said...

No Swan Lake??? Not even one? I will definitely report back. :)

Patrick J. Vaz said...

I know! And I love Swan Lake. It's killing me. But I have conflicts every night, with the possible exception of Friday. This was the worst week for them to do this (since of course they need to consult MY schedule). Do you have an opinion on the dancers for next Friday (I think I read in one of your entries that they were listed on the Ballet website)?

jolene said...

Ruben Martin is pretty fabulous - elegant with a satisfying touch of fire - but I'm not the biggest fan of Vanessa Zahorian. Although technically solid, I often find her bland and even looking bored onstage. But her Giselle on tour recently got a rave review from the NY Times. I'm sure it'll still be worth a look, esp with the new staging.

Civic Center said...

"Tell me what I'm missing." I will.

Jack Curtis Dubowsky said...

Thank you for the mention!!!!

Patrick J. Vaz said...

Hey Mike, I can't tell if you're rubbing it in or just offering to help, but in either case, I look forward to your reports.

Hey Jack, Sorry I missed the performance on Friday -- I hope it went well. Keep me posted on upcoming stuff.

Patrick J. Vaz said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Civic Center said...

Dear Patrick: Definitely a bit of both.