SFGate: Classical Music

S.F. Symphony review: Blomstedt's grand Bruckner

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST2012-02-10T00:32:26UTC

Herbert Blomstedt has been having a productive reunion with the San Francisco Symphony, leading his old ensemble for two weeks as part of the orchestra's centennial season. And what better way to go out than with the music of Bruckner? Wednesday's rendition...

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Honoring Julius Eastman's music in Berkeley

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST2012-02-09T08:07:29UTC

In the annals of American contemporary music, Julius Eastman stands as one of the shadowy lost souls. A brilliant pianist and vocalist and the composer of fiercely cantankerous minimalist scores, he cut a memorable swath through New York's musical circles in...

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Stellar lineup for Stern Grove's 75th anniversary

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST2012-02-07T08:07:45UTC

Since 1938, the Stern Grove Festival has played host to a range of free cultural events - everything from staged opera and symphonic concerts to pop, jazz and world music. Now this venerable institution, which bills itself as the nation's longest-running free...

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Joyce DiDonato, Alexander quartet concert review

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST2012-02-06T08:07:44UTC

The story of the French sculptor Camille Claudel is a heartbreaker by any reckoning. An artist of great gifts - perhaps even genius - she produced a slew of arresting works before a tempestuous romance with her mentor, Rodin, along with betrayal by her family...

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CD review: Simone Dinnerstein

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST2012-02-05T11:03:06UTC

RATING: (POLITE APPLAUSE) Classical Pianist Simone Dinnerstein follows up her entrancing Bach CD from last year, "A Strange Beauty," with an effort very much in a similar vein. As before, there is a poetic epigraph - the title "Something Almost Being Said"...

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'Great Gatsby' by John Harbison revived

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST2012-02-05T11:01:46UTC

F. Scott Fitzgerald famously said that there are no second acts in American life - an adage that is usually cited only in order to refute it. Now "The Great Gatsby" is poised to offer the latest counterexample to the rule. Not Fitzgerald's novel itself, of...

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San Francisco Symphony review: Blomstedt elegant

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST2012-02-04T08:07:43UTC

For a former music director, I would imagine that conducting your old orchestra is probably not unlike riding a bicycle. You get back on that familiar podium and everything snaps right into place as if no time had passed. That, at any rate, was the impression...

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Trio di Clarone review: Deft with Mozart and Bach

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST2012-02-03T08:07:41UTC

It's safe to say that Trio di Clarone, which gave an enjoyable recital in Herbst Theatre on Wednesday night, is one of the only three-clarinet ensembles on the scene. So part of the pleasure in this event, presented by San Francisco Performances, lay in the...

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Guest conductors bring a grandfatherly love

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 PST2012-02-02T08:08:05UTC

Herbert Blomstedt has seven grandchildren of his own, so he speaks with a certain authority when he compares the position of conductor laureate - which he has held with the San Francisco Symphony since the advent in 1995 of Music Director Michael Tilson...

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