Younis Raza – Page 24 – Repeat Performances

July 13, 2014

Mark Alburger – interview on a composer’s process

After the premiere of his Abducted by Aliens, Mark Alburger talked by phone to Repeat Performances on his inspirations and interior process. Alburger describes himself as “an eclectic American composer of...

Categories: music

July 11, 2014

Fresh Voices at SF Community Music Center

Vocal works of charm and diversity Fresh Voices XIV, the fourteenth annual festival of new works sponsored by Goat Hall Productions, was held last Friday and Saturday, July 11 – 12, in the Community Music Center in San Francisco’s Mission district. Encouraging short works of contemporary opera and new music theater by local composers, this year’s festival was titled “Taken,” a provocative subject that was used very differently by six...

Categories: opera

July 5, 2014

La Traviata at AT&T Ballpark, Fireworks in Richmond

SF Giants sponsor magic on the field – and a surprise score! One often hears speculation on the relevance of opera in our modern day, an age of information overload and plummeting literacy. According to 26,000 fans at San Francisco’s AT&T Park on Saturday night, July 5, opera is indeed relevant. ...

Categories: opera

June 27, 2014

Peter Grimes at SF Symphony

Extraordinary experience as climax of Britten festivities Some operas need all of the glitter they can find. Such was not the case at Davies Symphony Hall on Friday, June 27, where Michael Tilson Thomas led a concert version of Benjamin Britten’s Peter Grimes that emphasized the powerful music and several extraordinary voices, shunning the usual expectation of costumes, staging, sets and lights. I once saw a Met production of Peter...

Categories: opera

June 19, 2014

Ojai Festival comes to Berkeley

The long-running Ojai Music Festival has partnered with Cal Performances for the last four years to reprise the highlights from their week of concerts in Southern California. On Thursday, June 19 they kicked off Ojai North! at UC Berkeley’s Hertz Hall. What distinguishes this festival from most others is that they change artistic directors every year, an ingenious way to infuse it with fresh vision and energy. Last year dance choreographer Mark Morris directed, showing off his...

Categories: music

June 13, 2014

BCCO performs Elijah at Herbst

Berkeley Community Chorus tackles the Big Book in a tight space Under the baton of conductor Ming Luke, on June 13 the Berkeley Community Chorus and Orchestra (BCCO) performed Felix Mendelssohn’s Elijah, a long oratory that he completed the year before his death. ...

Categories: music