September 3, 2014
The New Symphony season
Big names and big plans…
Clever programming and a veritable parade of great violinists mark this as a watershed year for Bay Area symphonies.
Joana Carneiro will lead the Berkeley Symphony...
Younis Raza
August 8, 2014
“Bridging Dvořák” concludes festival for Music@Menlo
Inspired finish for Menlo festival
Music@Menlo held their eighth and final concert of the summer season on Friday, August 8, at the Menlo School’s Stent Family Hall. This intimate venue, like Burlingame’s Kohl Mansion, is an ornate and perfectly proportioned hall, adding sumptuous depths to the sound for those lucky enough to get a seat.
When the performers are of the caliber that routinely fill Music@Menlo’s artist roster, it...
July 31, 2014
“American Visions” at Menlo
Dvořák’s America
On Thursday, June 31, Music@Menlo had its fifth concert program, “American Visions,” at the Menlo-Atherton Center for the Performing Arts. Held in several Peninsula halls, this summer chamber music festival is now midstream in its 12th season, and deservedly achieving fame.
As part of a festival dedicated to Dvořák, this concert followed his early twentieth century travels to America, where he...
July 23, 2014
Escher Quartet at Music@Menlo
Proclaiming a milestone in Menlo Park
As part of the Dvořák fest at Music@Menlo’s summer music festival, the Escher Quartet performed all four string quartets of Alexander Zemlinsky. This remarkable feat was done in one long evening, Wednesday, July 23, but took us on a far longer journey – from the late nineteenth century of Brahms’ lush Romanticism into the slippery twentieth century textures and tone rows of Schoenberg and...
July 16, 2014
Mendocino Music Festival
Hot concerts on a fog-bound coast.
The 28th season of the Mendocino Music Festival is in full swing on the scenic shores of northern California. Held in an enormous white tent that sprawls across the village headlands, this festival celebrates the love and energy of a whole community as much as it does the eclectic blend of music. Musicians travel here, many from the Bay Area, to be hosted by 90 families who house them for as much as three weeks of rehearsals and...
July 15, 2014
Festival del Sole at Weill Hall
Sparkle and polish in Napa…
The normally bucolic Napa Valley refreshed its bid as a cultural icon last week, as the...