It might help to dissipate the gloom & frustration of living in a country that apparently cannot make up its mind who would be better as President – an accomplished, compassionate, & seasoned leader or a bullying fascist clown who is clearly sliding into mental decrepitude – by going out & supporting the arts. If the Titanic is sinking, we might as well keep dancing. Stay strong, everyone.
Theatrical
Theater Lunatico presents presents
The Moors. a "bloody punk-rock melodrama" loosely inspired by the Brontë sisters, written by Jen Silverman (whose
Collective Rage: a Play in Five Betties was recently presented by Shotgun) & directed by Tara Blau Smollen & that's 19 October to
3 November at La Val's Subterranean in Berkelely.
The
Oakland Theater Project presents
Ghost Quartet by Dave Malloy (best known for
Natasha, Pierre, & the Great Comet of 1812); this time-traveling ghost-story musical will be directed by William Thomas Hodgson & runs
1 through 24 November.
From
1 to 24 November,
The Marsh Berkeley presents Stephanie Weisman’s
180 Days. To Die. To Live., directed by Robert Kelley, about a woman whose husband & friend, both diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, choose different approaches to the disease, while still ending up choosing assisted suicide, while from
16 November to 15 December,
The Marsh San Francisco presents
Lettere D’Amore (
Letters of Love) by Dacia Maraini, directed & performed by Francesca Fanti, about a daughter who discovers love letters Gabriele D’Annunzio had written to her late mother.
If you want to see some works-in-progress,
Playground hosts the 2024 Innovators Showcase from
4 through 24 November at the Potrero Stage (admission is free, but donations gratefully accepted); works include "
Unplanned, an anthology of shorts about reproductive health, presented by Network Effects Theater Company (Nov 4 & 5 at 7pm),
Abby Normal, a world premiere musical presented by House Theater (Nov 9 at 7pm, Nov 10 at 2pm & 7pm),
Four Seasons Political Landscaping, readings of plays focusing on politics, civil rights, and governance, presented by Oakland Public Theater (Nov 15 at 7pm, Nov 16 at 2pm), and
Desert Wind, the story of a Yemenite Jewish couple, caught in the violence, of the Houthi uprising in Yemen, presented by The American Jewish Theatre (Nov 23 at 7pm, Nov 24 at 2pm & 7pm)."
BroadwaySF presents the national touring company of
Kimberly Akimbo, the winner of last year's Tony for Best Musical, with book & lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire, music by Jeanine Tesori, choreography by Danny Mefford, & direction by Jessica Stone, & that's at the Curran from
6 November to 1 December.
UC Berkeley's Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies Department presents
Everybody, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins's "contemporary and comedic riff" on
Everyman, directed by Susannah Martin, from
7 to 10 November at Zellerbach Playhouse.
Berkeley Rep gives us the west coast premiere of
Jaja’s African Hair Braiding by Jocelyn Bioh, directed by Whitney White, about a Harlem hair salon staffed by West African hair-braiders, & that runs
8 November through 15 December.
Berkeley Playhouse presents
Seussical, the musical (book by Lynn Ahrens & Stephen Flaherty, lyrics by the former & music by the latter), directed by William Thomas Hodgson, from
8 November through 22 December.
ZSpace &
Word for Word present
The Strange Library by Haruki Murakami, directed by Lisa Hori-Garcia & Keiko Shimosato Carreiro, & that's
13 November through 8 December at Z Below.
Golden Thread Productions gives
ALAA: A Family Trilogy by Adam Ashraf Elsayigh, directed by Evren Odcikin, exploring the life & works of the imprisoned Egyptian blogger/activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah, a workshop presentation at Z Space on
16 - 17 November.
Beginning
16 November,
Shotgun Players at the Ashby Stage present
Thirty-Six, a play about contemporary dating, by Leah Nanako-Winkler, directed by Michelle Talgarow.
San Francisco Playhouse revives
Waitress, the Broadway musical based on the movie by Adrienne Shelly about a waitress with dreams of opening her own pie shop, with music & lyrics by Sara Bareilles & book by Jessie Nelson; the show will be directed by Susi Damilano with music direction by Dave Dobrusky & it runs
21 November to 18 January 2025.
Theater Rhinoceros presents the Kander & Ebb classic,
Cabaret, from 21 November to
15 December.
In a meta twist on their traditional presentation of
A Christmas Carol,
ACT presents
A Whynot Christmas Carol by Craig Lucas, directed by Pam MacKinnon, about a small-town theater troupe struggling to stage
A Christmas Carol, & that's at the Toni Rembe Theater from
26 November through 24 December.
Operatic
The
San Francisco Opera has two final performances of
Tristan this month, on
1 & 5 November, & this production is not to be missed; then Francesca Zambello's production of Bizet's
Carmen, conducted by Benjamin Manis & starring Eve-Maud Hubeaux as Carmen, Jonathan Tetelman as Don José (except 26 November, when Thomas Kinch will take the part), Christian Van Horn as Escamillo, & Louise Alder as Micaëla, will play on 13, 16, 19, 22, 24, 26, & 29 November & 1 December. On
21 November there is something the Opera calls the
Carmen Encounter, in which only the first act of the opera is performed & then there's a party – not my kind of thing, but this is the third time they're doing something like this, so someone must like it.
Opera Parallèle presents
Everest: Opera in the Planetarium on
8, 9, 10, 13, & 17 November; using a graphic-novel-type visual style, a film will play over a recording of
Everest (music by Joby Talbot, libretto by Gene Scheer) at the Planetarium at the California Academy of Sciences.
The Future Is Now, the annual concert by San Francisco Opera's
Adler Fellows, will take place at Herbst Theater on
15 November.
Opera San José presents Puccini's
La Bohème, conducted by Joseph Marcheso & directed by Michelle Ainna Cuizon, featuring WooYoung Yoon as Rodolfo, Kearstin Piper Brown as Mimi (on 16 & 24 November & 1 December), Mikayla Sager as Mimi (on 17, 22, & 30 November), Kidon Choi as Marcello, & Melissa Sondhi as Musetta, &, as you can tell from the Mimi dates, the engagement goes from
16 November to 1 December.
Ars Minerva gives us its latest revival of a forgotten opera,
La Flora by Antonio Sartorio & Marc'Antonio Ziani, conducted by Matthew Dirst & directed by company head Céline Ricci, from
15 to 17 November at the ODC Theater.
The
San Francisco Conservatory of Music presents Mozart's
Così fan tutte, directed by Heather Mathews & conducted by Curt Pajer, on
21 &
22 November.
Choral
21V, a choral group of soprano & alto voices of all genders led by Martín Benvenuto, joins with the
Cantabile Youth Singers of Silicon Valley on
3 November at the First Unitarian Universalist Society in San Francisco to perform
Reclaiming Radical 2.0, a program featuring new works by Chris Castro & Stacy Garrop that honor the legacies of César Chavez, Dolores Huerta, & Ruth Bader Ginsburg, along with works by Trevor Weston, Alexandra Olsavsky, & others; admission is free but donations are welcome.
The San Francisco Choral Society, led by Robert Geary, presents
A Rose Is All My Song: Music of Mary, featuring pieces by John Rutter, Verdi, Heinrich Isaac, Franz Biebl, & Pekka Kostiainen, with soprano soloist Rabihah Dunn & organist Christopher Keady, & that's
9 - 10 November at Trinity + Saint Peter's Episcopal in San Francisco.
On
10 November at the
San Francisco Conservatory of Music,
Chanticleer will join with the Conservatory Chorus, led by Eric Choate, to perform William Byrd's
Non Nobis Domine, Orlando Gibbons'
The Silver Swan, Thomas Weelkes'
When David Heard, Ralph Vaughan Williams'
Rest, Bach's
Jesus bleibet meine Freude, Cantata BWV 147, Fauré's
Cantique de Jean Racine, Opus 11, & Barber's
Sure on this Shining Night.
Sweet Honey in the Rock celebrates a half-century of music-making with appearances at the SF Jazz Center on
14 - 17 November.
The men's chorus
Clerestory presents
Bridges: Music Connecting Places & Times, a program ranging from Josquin, Byrd, Purcell, Sigismondo d’India, & Tiburtio Massaino to Rachmaninoff, Pärt, Stucky, Jung Jae-Il, & Abbie Betinis, & you can cross the bridges on 16 November at Noe Valley Ministry in San Francisco & 17 November at Saint Mark's Episcopal in Berkeley.
The
International Orange Chorale presents
Voices Unbound, a program featuring (first) "aleatoric works immersing audiences in the exploration of different musical themes", (second) "a capella pieces inspired by improvisatory singing"; (third) pieces highlighting IOCSF soloists, & (fourth) "new improvisation developed by IOCSF members, featuring melodies sourced from choir members", & you can hear that 16 November at First Presbyterian in Berkeley & 17 November at Saint Matthew's Lutheran in San Francisco.
Chora Nova, under new artistic director John Kendall Bailey, will perform Mozart's
Requiem & his
Solemn Vespers on
16 November at First Church in Berkeley.
On
17 November at the Taube Atrium Theater,
San Francisco Opera Chorus Director John Keene leads the Opera's chorus, accompanied by Associate Chorus Master Fabrizio Corona at the piano (repertory has not yet been announced).
Volti presents
Electronics & New Music, a program featuring a premiere from Anne Hege as well as pieces by Angélica Negrón & Kaija Saariaho, & that's 16 November at Saint Paul's Episcopal in Walnut Creek, 17 November at the Church of Christ, Scientist in Berkeley, & 18 November at the Noe Valley Ministry in San Francisco.
Vocalists
Baritone Zachary Gordin, General & Artistic Director of
Festival Opera, will join with pianist Daniel Lockert (& some special surprise guest artists) to present
Muses and Musings of an Impresario, in which Gordin will discuss his lifetime in music, with performances of pieces by Schumann, Mahler, Reynaldo Hahn, & Jake Heggie, & others; that's
17 November at the Piedmont Center for the Arts.
Lieder Alive! presents
Each Moment Radiant: a Liederabend with soprano Heidi Moss Erickson & pianist John Parr; they will perform works by Ravel, Fauré & Richard Strauss, along with excerpts from Kurt Erickson’s
Each Moment Radiant, celebrating his tenth year as the group's Composer-in-Residence, & you can hear that
17 November at Old First in San Francisco &
24 November at the Maybeck First Church of Christ Scientist in Berkeley.
On
19 November in Herbst Theater,
San Francisco Performances presents countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo with pianist Bryan Wagorn, performing pieces by Handel, Joel Thompson, Gregory Spears, Liszt, Berlioz, Verdi, Duparc, Philip Glass, & songs associated with Barbra Streisand. (Roth Costanza will be offering a Masterclass at the SF Conservatory of Music on
20 November.)
Marina Crouse sings Ernestine Anderson’s
Never Make Your Move Too Soon at the
SF Jazz Center on
21 November.
The Stella Heath Sextet performs music
From Billie Holiday to Edith Piaf at the
SF Jazz Center on
23 - 24 November.
Orchestral
David Milnes leads the
UC Berkeley Symphony Orchestra in Schumann's Cello Concerto in A minor (with soloist Sarah Kave) & the Shostakovich 8 on
1 and
2 November in Hertz Hall.
The
San Francisco Symphony will celebrate Día de los Muertos on
2 November with a Latin American-centered concert, led by Carlos Miguel Prieto & featuring Pacho Flores on trumpet, Héctor Molina on cuatro, & the Casa Círculo Cultural as well as the Symphony; the program includes Carlos Chávez's
Symphony #2, Sinfonía india; Paquito D’Rivera's
Concerto Venezolano; Juan Pablo Contreras's
Mariachitlán; Gabriela Ortiz's
Antrópolis, & José Pablo Moncayo's
Huapango; the lobby will feature art installations & altars by local artists.
Urs Leonhardt Steiner leads the
Golden Gate Symphony in the world premiere of
Elijah’s Call: An Oratorio for an Abolitionist by Allison Lovejoy (with libretto by Gary Kamiya), commemorating her ancestor Elijah Parrish Lovejoy, an abolitionist "who sacrificed his life in the fight against slavery", with Walter Riley as narrator & vocal soloists Michael Desnoyers (tenor), Melinda Martinez-Becker (mezzo-soprano), & Bradley Kynard (bass); the program also includes the
Symphony #4 by Florence Price & "a selection of spirituals led by the Men’s Choir of Oakland’s Acts Full Gospel Church of God in Christ, directed by Chris Poston", & that's
3 November at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco.
On
2 - 3 November at Walnut Creek's Lesher Center, Donato Cabrera leads the
California Symphony in Britten's
Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra,
Philharmonia Fantastique: The Making of the Orchestra by Mason Bates, & the Brahms 4.
On
7 - 9 November, Nicholas Collon leads the
San Francisco Symphony in the
Three-piece Suite from Powder Her Face by Thomas Adès, the Tchaikovsky
Piano Concerto #1 (with soloist Conrad Tao), & Elgar's
Enigma Variations (there is also an open rehearsal on the morning of 7 November).
On
8 November at the Paramount, Kedrick Armstrong leads the
Oakland Symphony in Shawn Okpebholo's
Zoom! as well as his
Two Black Churches (an Oakland Symphony co-commission), along with, for some reason, Orff's
Carmina Burana (with soprano Meechot Marrero, tenor Ashley Faatoalia, & baritone Will Liverman).
On
10 November in Zellerbach Hall, Joseph Young leads the
Berkeley Symphony in the
Redes Suite by Revueltas, Barber's
Knoxville: Summer of 1915 (with soprano soloist Lisa Delan),
For a Younger Self by Kris Bowers (with violin soloist Charles Yang), & Bernstein's
Symphonic Dances from West Side Story.
Concertmaster & violinist Daniel Hope leads the
New Century Chamber Orchestra in Samuel Coleridge-Taylor's
Allegro Moderato from
Four Novelletten for String Orchestra, David Bruce's
Lully Loops for Violin and String Orchestra, & Max Richter's
Vivaldi: Recomposed – The Four Seasons, & you can
hear it all 14 November at First Congregational in Berkeley, 15 November at the Empress Theater in Vallejo, 16 November at Herbst Theater in San Francisco, & 17 November at Saint Stephen's Episcopal in Belvedere.
On
15 November in Hertz Hall, Thomas Green & Noam Elisha leads the
UC Berkeley Philharmonia Orchestra in
Strum by Jesse Montgomery as well as the Beethoven 2 & the Brahms 1.
On
15 - 17 November, Kazuki Yamada leads the
San Francisco Symphony in
Entwine by Dai Fujikura, the Ravel
Piano Concerto in G major (with soloist Hélène Grimaud), & the Fauré
Requiem, with soprano Liv Redpath & baritone Michael Sumuel as well as the SF Symphony Chorus led by Jenny Wong.
On
16 November at the
San Francisco Conservatory of Music, guest conductor Kalena Bovell leads the SFCM Orchestra in
Hear Her Sing by Alex Malinas, selections from
Romeo & Juliet by Prokoviev, & both the
Fountains of Rome & the
Pines of Rome by Respighi.
The
Cantata Collective presents Nicholas McGegan in an evening of Haydn & Mozart; the evening in question is
17 November, at First Congregational in Berkeley; the Haydn is the
Scena di Berenice & the aria
Deh Scoccorri Un’infelice from
La Fideltà Premiata, featuring soprano Dominique Labelle, & the Mozart is the
Concertone K 190 for 2 violins, oboe, cello & orchestra & the Symphony #40.
On
21 - 23 November, Bernard Labadie leads the
San Francisco Symphony in an all Mozart program, featuring the Overture to
La clemenza di Tito,
Giunse alfin il momento…Al desio di chi t’adora (this & all other vocal pieces feature soprano Lucy Crowe),
Ruhe sanft mein holdes Leben from
Zaide, the
Masonic Funeral Music,
Schon lacht der holde Frühling, Venga la morte…Non temer, amato bene, & the Sympony #39.
On
23 November at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Sixto Montesinos Jr leads the
Bay Area Rainbow Symphony in Quinn Mason's
Toast of the Town Overture, Charles Tomlinson Griffes'
Poem, & the Tchaikovsky 5.
The
San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra, led by Radu Paponiu, will perform Bernstein's
Overture to Candide, Takashi Yoshimatsu's
Cyber Bird Concerto (with saxophone soloist Harry Jo), & the Tchaikovsky 4 at Davies Hall on
24 November.
Chamber Music
If you're near Old Saint Mary's in San Francisco on a Tuesday near lunchtime, here's what's happening at
Noontime Concerts: on
5 November, Basma Edrees (violin)Amelia Romano (Lever Harp), & Kendra Grittani (cello) play
Modern Minds, a program featuring works by living female composers originally written for solo harp & arranged for string trio for this program; the composers include Romano & Edrees as well as Tamsin Dearnley, Lucy Hendry, Nadia Birkenstock, Ailie Robertson, & Sumula Jackson); on
12 November, Jennifer Choi (violin) Angela Lee (cello), & Marc Teicholz (guitar) will perform Bach's
Sonata in C Major, BWV 1033, Dušan Bogdanović's
Five Balkan Miniatures, & Paganini's
Terzetto in D Major, Opus 66 for Violin, Cello, and Guitar; on
19 November, Chloe Tula (harp) & Elizabeth Prior (viola) will perform
Bach to Bax (Back-to-Back), a program featuring Bach's
Sonata for Viola and Harpsichord, Marcel Granjany's
Rhapsodie for Harp, & Arnold Bax's
Fantasy Sonata for Viola and Harp.
The Saturday morning lecture series at Herbst Theater, presented by
San Francisco Performances, featuring musicologist Robert Greenberg & the Alexander String Quartet (Zakarias Grafilo & Yuna Lee, violins; David Samuel, viola; Sandy Wilson, cello), continues its exploration of
The String Quartets of Papa Joe & Wolfgang on
2 November, with Mozart's
String Quartet #2 in D Major, the
String Quartet #8 in F Major, & the
String Quartet #12 in B-Flat Major.
Cal Performances presents the Dover Quartet (Joel Link & Bryan Lee, violins; Julianne Lee, viola, & Camden Shaw, cello), performing Jessie Montgomery's Strum, the west coast premiere of a Cal Performances co-commission; Abokkoli Taloowa (Woodland Songs) by Jerod Impichchaachaaha Tate,
Rattle Songs by Pura Fe as arranged by Tate, & Dvořák’s
Quartet in F major, Opus 96, the
American, & that's on
3 November at Hertz Hall.
San Francisco Performances presents the Jerusalem Quartet (Alexander Pavlovsky & Sergei Bresler, violins; Ori Kam, viola; Kyril Zlotnikov, cello) on
7 November at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music's Hume Concert Hall (rather than the usual HerbstTheater), where they will perform Haydn's
Quartet in B-flat Major, Opus 50, #1, the
Prussian, Shostakovich's
Quartet #12 in D-Flat Major, Opus 133, & Dvořák’s
String Quartet in G-Major, Opus 106.
Taste of Talent celebrates El Día de los Muertos with cuisine & music from Mexico, with soprano Marlen Nahhas, pianist Ronny Michael Greenberg, & violinist Elizabeth Castro Greenberg on
6 November at the SF Clocktower Lofts.
The
Berkeley Hillside Club's Chamber Music Sundaes series continues on
10 November with Sarn Oliver & Mariko Smiley (violin), Amy Hiraga (viola), & Peter Wyrick (cello), & mezzo-soprano Shauna Fallihee performing Sarn Oliver's
The "CAT" (Contemporary Artful Tonalities) String Quartet & Beethoven's
String Quartet in A minor, Opus 132.
On
10 November (afternoon) at Davies Hall, a chamber group of
San Francisco Symphony musicians will perform Bach's
Goldberg Variations (arranged for string trio),
Till Euelenspiegel einmal anders! by Richard Strauss & Franz Hasenöhrl, Ravel's
Introduction and Allegro, & Mozart's
Variations on “Ah vous dirai-je, Maman".
On
10 November (evening) at Davies Hall, violinist
Itzhak Perlman, along with pianists
Jean-Yves Thibaudet &
Emanuel Ax, & the
Juilliard String Quartet, will perform Jean-Marie Leclair's
Sonata for Two Violins in E minor, Opus 3 #5, Mozart's
Piano Quartet #2 in E-flat major, & Chausson's
Concert for Violin, Piano, and String Quartet.
The Sharp Quartet (Robin Sharp & Natasha Makhijani, violins; Ben Simon, viola; & Eric Gaenslen (cello) play (unspecified) string quartets by Mozart & Beethoven for Classical at the Freight (that's
Freight & Salvage in Berkeley) on
11 November.
For this month's
12 November Chamber Music Tuesday at the
San Francisco Conservatory of Music, tenor Nicholas Phan will join with faculty & student musicians to give the world premiere of
Diār, a string quartet by SFCM Hoefer Prize Winner Shahab Paranj, as well as pieces by Rebecca Clarke & Fauré that combine singing with chamber ensembles.
Instrumental
On
10 November at Hertz Hall,
Cal Performances presents pianist Behzod Abduraimov playing Franck's
Prélude, Fugue, and Variations, Opus 18 (as arranged by Bauer), Mussorgsky's
Pictures at an Exhibition, Florence Price's
Fantasie nègre #1 in E minor, &
Ten Pieces from Romeo and Juliet, Opus 75, by Prokofiev.
On
10 November at
Old First Concerts, pianist Lynn Schugren performs
The Voice of the Piano, a program featuring music by American women: Amy Beach's
5 Improvisations, Opus 148; Louise Talma's
Sonata; Frances Brouwer's
Flight & her
Fear of the Deep; Miriam Gideon's
Sonata; Joan Tower's
Ivory and Ebony; & the world premiere of Alexis Alrich's
The Caryatids.
San Francisco Performances presents pianist Natasha Paremski at Herbst Theater on
13 November, performing Quinn Mason's
Falling Slowly, Chopin's
Berceuse in D-Flat Major, Opus 57 & his
Sonata #2 in B-Flat Minor, Opus 35, selections from Prokofiev's
Romeo and Juliet & Stravinsky's
Three Movements from Petrushka.
Cal Performances presents pianist Igor Levit on
19 November at Zellerbach Hall, when he will play Bach's
Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue in D minor, the Brahms
Ballades, Opus 10, & the Beethoven 7 as arranged by Liszt.
Ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro gets a jump on the celebrations with
Holidays in Hawaii at the
SF Jazz Center on
21 - 24 November.
On
23 November in Zellerbach Hall,
Cal Performances presents violinist Maxim Vengerov with pianist Polina Osetinskaya, performing
Three Romances for Violin and Piano, Opus 22 by Clara Schumann, the
Scherzo from the
F-A-E Sonata by Brahms, the
Violin Sonata #3 in A minor by Robert Schumann, & Prokofiev's
Five Melodies, Opus 35 & his
Violin Sonata #2 in D major, Opus 94a.
Early / Baroque Music
Tactus SF, led by Sven Edward Olbash, marks the Day of the Dead with a
program of Spanish music contemplating death & the afterlife, featuring the traditional Roman Catholic Office for the Dead, as well as music by Cristóbal de Morales, Tomás Luis de Victoria, Fernando Franco, & Juan Vásquez, & you can hear it all on 2 November at Saint Matthew's Lutheran in San Francisco (near Mission Dolores) & 3 November at Saint Paul's Episcopal in Oakland.
Philharmonia Baroque, led at these performances by mandolinist Avi Avital & joined by soprano Estelí Gomez, celebrates
Vivaldi & Venice with performances of his
Concerto in G minor for Strings and Basso Continuo, the aria
Lo seguitai felice from
L’Olimpiade, traditional Venetian songs, &, of course,
The Four Seasons, & you can hear it all 7 November at Herbst Theater in San Francisco, 8 November at Bing Concert Hall at Stanford, & 9 November at First Congregational in Berkeley. (Avital will conduct a Master Class at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music on
15 November.)
The
San Francisco Early Music Society presents Christophe Rousset & Les Talens Lyriques, joined by mezzo-soprano Ambroisine Bré, for
The Sound of Music in Versailles, highlighting music by Lambert, de Montéclair, Couperin, & Lully, on
12 November at First Church in Berkeley.
Cal Performances presents violinist Leonidas Kavakos performing Bach's
Complete Sonatas & Partitas for Solo Violin in Zellerbach Hall; on 15 November, he will play
Partita #3 in E major,
Sonata #2 in A minor, &
Sonata #3 in C major, & on 16 November the
Sonata #1 in G minor, the
Partita #1 in B minor, & the
Partita #2 in D minor.
Modern / Contemporary Music
Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, joined by soprano Nikki Einfeld, performs Schoenberg's
Pierrot Lunaire, Tomàs Peire-Serrate's
Five Haiku (the LCCE 2022 Composition Contest Winner), & Maria Schneider's
Carlos Drummond de Andrade Stories on
2 November at Noe Valley Ministry in San Francisco & 3 November at the Berkeley Hillside Club.
On
3 November at
Old First Concerts, Orphic Percussion (Sean Clark, Michael Downing, Divesh Karamchandani, & Stuart Langsam) will perform Alexis Alrich's
Muse of Fire, Gary Heaton-Smith's
Rendezvous I, Marc Mellits'
Gravity, Alejandro Vinao's
Stress and Flow, Shaun Tilburg's
Series of Accidents, David Skidmore's
Donner, & Kenneth Froelich's
Stuck in Loops (all but the Mellits & the Skidmore were commissioned by Orphic Percussion).
The Bent Frequency Duo Project (saxophonist Jan Berry Baker & percussionist Stuart Gerber) will perform music written for them by Amy Williams, Emily Koh, George Lewis, Ken Ueno, & Pamela Madsen (the latter two works are premieres) at the
Center for New Music on
8 November.
On
8 November at
Old First Concerts, Ensemble for These Times (pianist Margaret Halbig with guests Laura Reynolds, English horn & oboe; Lylia Guion, violin; & Megan Chartier, cello) will perform I
n Motion, a program featuring the world premieres of
Oboe Meets Piano by Mary Bianco;
And I Made My Own Way, Deciphering That Fire by Ursula Kwong-Brown; &
ubi lux floret by Darian Donovan Thomas as well as the
Moto Perpetuo from Britten's
Cello Sonata, Opus 65;
Moto Perpetuo from
Suite Mignonne, Opus 39 by York Bowen;
Synopsis #10: I Know This Room So Well by Lisa Bielawa;
Ominous Machine by Vivian Fung;
Composure by Sage Shurman, &
Majestic Bells by Zhou Tian; there will be a preconcert talk with composers Bianco, Vivan Fung, & Kwong-Brown, moderated by E4TT’s Brennan Stokes.
On
9 November at the
San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Nicole Paiement leads the New Music Ensemble in selections from Elinor Armer's
A Book of Songs, David Garner's
Viñetas Flamencas, Darioush Mackani's
It Disappears, Aleksandra Vrebalov's
Cosmic Love III, & Milhaud's
Symphonie de chambre numbers 1, 2, 3.
San Francisco Performances presents composers Caroline Shaw (performing on vocals & viola this evening) & Gabriel Kahane (vocals & piano) in
Hexagons, a new piece they've created inspired by Borges's
The Library of Babel; there will also be additional works, & you can hear them all on
14 November at Herbst Theater.
The
San Francisco Contemporary Music Players present
Myths & Muses on
24 November at the Brava Theater in San Francisco, featuring the world premiere of an SFCMP commission,
Mother Eve by Emma Logan, featuring mezzo-soprano Kindra Schirach, along with local premieres of Laura Schwendinger's
The Artist’s Muse, Mary Kouyoumdjian's
Moerae (
The Fates), & Augusta Read Thomas's
Terpsichore’s Box of Dreams, for 13 Virtuosi; the concert is preceded by an "under the hood" conversation among SFCMP Artistic Director Eric Dudley & composers Logan, Schwendinger, & Read Thomas.
Jazz / Roots / Blues
Vijay Iyer brings his Trio (Iyer on piano, Linda May Han Oh on bass, & Tyshawn Sorey on drums) & music from their latest release,
Compassion, to the
SF Jazz Center on
2 - 3 November.
Aki Kumar, vocalist & harmonica player, "known as 'the only Bombay Blues Man' for his blending of traditional Indian music with Chicago blues", celebrates Diwali, along with guest musicians to be named later, at the
SF Jazz Center on
3 November.
Saxophonist / vocalist Stephanie Chou brings her Stephanie Chou Quintet, which combines traditional Chinese music & classical influences with American jazz & pop, to the
SF Jazz Center on
8 November.
On
10 November Freight & Salvage hosts the fourth annual
Black Women's Roots Festival, celebrating "powerful, pioneering Black women in blues, jazz, folk, gospel, classical, and Afro-Cuban music" performers include The Dynamic Miss Faye Carol, Linda Tillery, Bobi Céspedes, Bishop Yvette Flunder, Miko Marks, Vicki Randle, the All Black Women String Quartet (Christina Walton & Yeri Caesar, violin; Nansamba Ssensalo, viola; Mia Pixley, cello), Avotcja, & Miss Faye's Babies (students of Faye Carol).
The
San Francisco International Boogie Woogie Festival, featuring Luca Sestak, Lluis Coloma, Chase Garrett & Emilie Richard, Carl Sonny Leyland, & “Blue Lou” Marini. takes place at the SF Jazz Center on
10 November.
The Erik Jekabson Stringtet, joined by vocalist Jackie Ryan, will play music by Duke Ellington, as arranged by Jekabson, at the
Berkeley Hillside Club on
22 November.
The
SF Jazz Center hosts Blues Blowout, "a cross-section of artists representing the living soul of Texas, the deep Chicago blues tradition, and the signature sound of West Coast blues", including vocalists Diunna Greenleaf, Oscar Wilson, & Mark Hummel (who also plays harmonica), guitarists Anson Funderburgh, Junior Watson, & others; & that's
29 November - 1 December.
Dance
Oakland Ballet celebrates Dia de los Muertos with
Luna Mexicana at the Paramount on
2 November.
Cal Performances presents Step Afrika! in
The Migration: Reflections on Jacob Lawrence, based on Jacob Lawrence's series of paintings chronicling the Great Migration & using music that includes works by Nina Simone & John Coltrane as well as gospel & West African drumming, & that's at Zellerbach Hall on
2 - 3 November.
La Rumba No Para (
The Rumba Doesn’t Stop), directed and choreographed by Andrea Rodriguez, a "salsa love story" that combines film, dance, & spoken word to tell a story about growing up in San Francisco, plays at
ODC Theater on
8 - 10 November.
Smuin Ballet gets an early
jump on the holidays with the return of
The Christmas Ballet, playing 23 - 24 November at the Lesher Center in Walnut Creek, 5 - 8 December at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, & 13 - 24 December at the Yerba Buena Center in San Francisco (20 December is LGBTQ+ Night with special guest Lady Camden).
Cal Performances presents Pilobolus in
re:CREATION from
30 November to 1 December at Zellerbach Hall.
Art Means Paintins
Born of the Bear Dance: Dugan Aguilar’s Photographs of Native California, showing contemporary (1982 to 2018) Indigenous California life, opens at the
Oakland Museum on
8 November.
Dress Rehearsal: The Art of Theatrical Design opens at the
Legion of Honor on
9 November & runs through 11 May 2025.
In honor of the museum's centennial,
Celebrating 100 Years at the Legion of Honor will open at, of course, the
Legion of Honor on
9 November (it runs until 2 November 2025).
Amy Sherald: American Sublime, a comprehensive exhibit of the artist best known for her portrait of Michelle Obama, opens at
SFMOMA on
16 November & runs through 9 March 2025.
Cinematic
On
3 November, the
Roxie in San Francisco celebrates the 25th anniversary of
69 Love Songs with a showing of
Strange Powers: Stephin Merritt and the Magnetic Fields; Merritt himself, along with co-director Gail O’Hara & Daniel Handler (also known as Lemony Snicket, also known as the accordionist for the Magnetic Fields) will appear in person & in conversation after the movie.
BAM/PFA have a couple of enticing series this month:
Sergei Parajanov: Centennial Celebration, featuring the poetic works of the great Armenian director, runs
1 - 22 November, &
Jia Zhangke: Filmmaker in Residence will feature the Chinese director in person with his films, & that runs
7 - 30 November; BAM/PFA's
Special Screening series also has lots to offer, including a new digital restoration of Jean-Pierre Melville's
Le samouraï (
The Godson) starring Alain Delon;
Ryuichi Sakamoto: Opus, a final concert film from the late composer; a digital restoration of
The Stranger and the Fog (
Gharibeh va meh) by Bahram Beyzaie, an Iranian film banned for decades after the Iranian Revolution; & the new restoration of Kurosawa's
Seven Samurai.
The S
an Francisco Transgender Film Festival plays at the Roxie from
13 to 16 November.