Classical Music

The 100-plus-member Asian Youth Orchestra includes musicians from 11 nations and territories. (Courtesy photo)

Asian Youth Orchestra tour hits Bay Area

Nearly 30 years ago, music educator Richard Pontzious wanted to do something…

The 100-plus-member Asian Youth Orchestra includes musicians from 11 nations and territories. (Courtesy photo)
From left, Jennifer Mitchell, Jordan Eldredge and Patricia Westley appear in Pocket Opera’s delightful “Die Fledermaus.” (Courtesy Nicolas Aliaga)

Donald Pippin, Pocket Opera staying strong at 40

As San Francisco’s Pocket Opera is about the conclude its 2016-17 season,…

From left, Jennifer Mitchell, Jordan Eldredge and Patricia Westley appear in Pocket Opera’s delightful “Die Fledermaus.” (Courtesy Nicolas Aliaga)
San Francisco Symphony closes its 2016-17 season with performances of Berlioz’s groundbreaking “Roméo et Juliette.” (Courtesy Stefan Cohen)

SF Symphony’s Berlioz ‘Roméo et Juliette’ c’est magnifique

When Hector Berlioz set out to write “Roméo et Juliette,” he vowed…

San Francisco Symphony closes its 2016-17 season with performances of Berlioz’s groundbreaking “Roméo et Juliette.” (Courtesy Stefan Cohen)
“Hershey Felder, Beethoven” is onstage in a TheatreWorks presentation in Mountain View. (Courtesy Christopher Ash)

Felder takes on diverse tasks portraying great composers

Hershey Felder, in Mountain View this month performing his one-man show about…

“Hershey Felder, Beethoven” is onstage in a TheatreWorks presentation in Mountain View. (Courtesy Christopher Ash)
Arturo Chacón-Cruz and Erika Grimaldi are the love birds in San Francisco Opera’s 2017 production of “La Bohème.” (Courtesy Cory Weaver)

Artistry and love flourish in SF Opera’s ‘La Bohème’

Paris in February can be a city as chilly as it is…

Arturo Chacón-Cruz and Erika Grimaldi are the love birds in San Francisco Opera’s 2017 production of “La Bohème.” (Courtesy Cory Weaver)
Erwin Schrott, left, and Ildebrando D’Arcangelo are excellent in San Francisco Opera’s “Don Giovanni.” (Courtesy Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera)

Dynamic duo rules SF Opera’s ‘Don Giovanni’

Mozart’s masterpiece “Don Giovanni” makes it quite clear it’s a man’s world.…

Erwin Schrott, left, and Ildebrando D’Arcangelo are excellent in San Francisco Opera’s “Don Giovanni.” (Courtesy Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera)
Erwin Schrott is making his San Francisco Opera debut in “Don Giovanni.” (Courtesy Uli Webber)

Erwin Schrott happy to sing Leporello in The City

San Francisco Opera’s announcement that bass-baritone Erwin Schrott would replace the ailing…

Erwin Schrott is making his San Francisco Opera debut in “Don Giovanni.” (Courtesy Uli Webber)
Quinn Kelsey and Nino Machaidze are excellent in San Francisco Opera’s “Rigoletto.” (Courtesy Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera)

SF Opera’s ‘Rigoletto’ regally holds court

Early on in “Rigoletto,” a curse befalls the title character that will…

Quinn Kelsey and Nino Machaidze are excellent in San Francisco Opera’s “Rigoletto.” (Courtesy Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera)
SF Opera Lab presents the local premiere of “The Source,” an evocative multimedia oratorio. (Courtesy Stefan Cohen)

Manning’s Iraq war leaks come to life with modern music

When the news of Chelsea Manning and WikiLeaks first made headlines, the…

SF Opera Lab presents the local premiere of “The Source,” an evocative multimedia oratorio. (Courtesy Stefan Cohen)
Violin great Pinchas Zukerman appears in Chamber Music San Francisco performances in the Bay Area. (Courtesy Cheryl Mazak)

Zukerman calls for arts education, togetherness

Even when he’s not playing an instrument, Pinchas Zukerman is still performing.…

Violin great Pinchas Zukerman appears in Chamber Music San Francisco performances in the Bay Area. (Courtesy Cheryl Mazak)
Jake Heggie, left, and Gene Scheer have been commissioned to write a new piece for Merola Opera Program. (Courtesy Robert Hart Photography)

Merola commissions new work on 60th anniversary

San Francisco composer Jake Heggie and librettist Gene Scheer are embarking on…

Jake Heggie, left, and Gene Scheer have been commissioned to write a new piece for Merola Opera Program. (Courtesy Robert Hart Photography)
The award-winning Telegraph Quartet appears in a San Francisco Performances concert at Herbst Theatre. (Courtesy photo)

2017 Winter Arts Preview: Classical Music

Berkeley Symphony: Christian Reif guest conducts cellist Joshua Roman in the local…

The award-winning Telegraph Quartet appears in a San Francisco Performances concert at Herbst Theatre. (Courtesy photo)
Composer John Adams, left, and librettist-director Peter Sellars are working on San Francisco Opera’s world premiere “Girls of the Golden West.” (Courtesy Scott Wall)

SF Opera’s 95th season: familiar stories, timeless motifs

San Francisco Opera will tell stories of humanity, individuals, society and mythical…

Composer John Adams, left, and librettist-director Peter Sellars are working on San Francisco Opera’s world premiere “Girls of the Golden West.” (Courtesy Scott Wall)
“On the Waterfront” with Eva Marie Saint and Marlo Brando screens at Davies Symphony Hall, with live accompaniment by the San Francisco Symphony. (Courtesy San Francisco Symphony)

Dec. 8-9: On The Waterfront with SF Symphony, Embarcadero Ice Rink, SF Vintage Paper Fair, Marisa Huff, Museums on Us, Carousel, Slow Caves, Commissary Open Kitchen Dinner

SUNDAY, JAN. 8 On the Waterfront: The 1954 movie classic with Marlon…

“On the Waterfront” with Eva Marie Saint and Marlo Brando screens at Davies Symphony Hall, with live accompaniment by the San Francisco Symphony. (Courtesy San Francisco Symphony)
Music director Valérie Sainte-Agathe conducts the San Francisco Girls Chorus’ “A Highland Holiday” on Dec. 19 in Davies Symphony Hall. (Courtesy photo)

Sing along to Christmas carols, winter songs

There is no shortage of holiday choral concerts in 2016; here are…

Music director Valérie Sainte-Agathe conducts the San Francisco Girls Chorus’ “A Highland Holiday” on Dec. 19 in Davies Symphony Hall. (Courtesy photo)
From left, Ekaterina Semenchuk, Brian Jagde, Leah Crocetto, George Gagnidze, Raymond Aceto Anthony Reed and the San Francisco Opera Chorus appear in Verdi’s “Aida” at the War Memorial Opera House. {Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera)

SF Opera’s ‘Aida’ looks a bit like ‘Evita’

Director Francesca Zambello’s new San Francisco Opera production of “Aida” -- boasting…

From left, Ekaterina Semenchuk, Brian Jagde, Leah Crocetto, George Gagnidze, Raymond Aceto Anthony Reed and the San Francisco Opera Chorus appear in Verdi’s “Aida” at the War Memorial Opera House. {Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera)
Nadja Michael, center, is captivating in San Francisco Opera’s production of Leoš Janáček’s “The Makropulos Case.” (Courtesy Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera)

Nadja Michael gives timeless performance in SF Opera’s ‘Makropulos Case’

German soprano Nadja Michael, singing the lead role of San Francisco Opera’s…

Nadja Michael, center, is captivating in San Francisco Opera’s production of Leoš Janáček’s “The Makropulos Case.” (Courtesy Cory Weaver/San Francisco Opera)
Mahan Esfahani opens San Francisco Performances’ Pivot series at the Strand Theater. (Courtesy Bernhard Musil/Deutsche Grammophon)

Mahan Esfahani brings modern sounds to the harpsichord

Plucky virtuoso Mahan Esfahani is seeking to change the perception that the…

Mahan Esfahani opens San Francisco Performances’ Pivot series at the Strand Theater. (Courtesy Bernhard Musil/Deutsche Grammophon)
Maurizio Muraro, left, and Lucas Meachem are in fine voice and humor in San Francisco Opera’s “Don Pasquale.” (Courtesy Cory Weaver)

SF Opera’s ‘Don Pasquale’ an uproarious delight

There’s no fool like an old fool, and few old fools endure…

Maurizio Muraro, left, and Lucas Meachem are in fine voice and humor in San Francisco Opera’s “Don Pasquale.” (Courtesy Cory Weaver)
Michael Tilson Thomas led an insightful performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 on Sunday. (Courtesy Kristen Loken)

SF Symphony rocks Beethoven’s Fifth with vivid MTT commentary

Throughout the beginning of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, the piccolo and trombone players…

Michael Tilson Thomas led an insightful performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 on Sunday. (Courtesy Kristen Loken)