The Opera Tattler
Reviews of Performances and their Audiences
Category: Uncategorized
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* Notes * Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra and Chorale presented a program entitled Jewish Nightlife: Hebrew Poetry, Kabbalah, and Coffee (ovation pictured) last night at Congregation Emanu-El. This evening of chamber music, led by Maestro Nicholas McGegan, was jaunty and charming. Scholar-in-Residence Francesco Spagnolo took us through the rationale for including the various pieces and conversed…
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* Notes * This week Finnish conductor John Storgårds led the San Francisco Symphony in the U.S. premiere of Outi Tarkiainen’s The Rapids of Life (2023). The concise piece concerns child birth and has all kinds of interesting textures and shapes in it. Tarkiainen (pictured, photograph by Stefan Cohen) learned about the death of fellow…
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* Notes * British conductor Edward Gardner led the San Francisco Symphony in an audience-pleasing concert of Holst’s The Planets and Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor last night. Gardner has a lot of energy and ideas, and the orchestra sounded wonderfully shimmery. I had never heard The Planets live, and the piece…
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* Notes * The 2025 Adler Fellows (pictured, photograph by Kristen Loken) had their concert last Friday at Herbst Theatre in San Francisco. Every season we see and hear these apprentice artists in supporting roles on the main stage of San Francisco Opera, so it is nice to have a program completely focused on them.…
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* Notes * Ercole Amante (ovation pictured, photograph by author) premiered at ODC Theater from Ars Minerva this past weekend. The piece by Antonia Bembo was written in 1707 and features absolutely beautiful music. It is startling that Ars Minerva can keep finding these obscure operas that are all so lovely. The production directed by…
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* Notes * The Monkey King (Act I pictured, photograph by Cory Weaver) had a world premiere last night at San Francisco Opera. Composed by Huang Ruo and with a libretto by David Henry Hwang, this new opera is a spectacular piece of theater. Director Diane Paulus’ production features puppetry, projections, and dancing. Basil Twist’s…
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* Notes * Last night was the fifth and final performance of Parsifal at San Francisco Opera. I attended in balcony standing room and the sound of the orchestra under Maestra Eun Sun Kim was better than ever, lucid and shimmering. The chorus is likewise very powerful and together. The singing was strong though tenor…
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* Notes * Yesterday evening I went to the fourth performance of San Francisco Opera’s Parsifal San Francisco Opera and read the score in standing room. The way Maestra Eun Sun Kim has set up the strings is novel, she has the violins in the middle, the cellos on the outside to her left, and…
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* Notes * The third performance of Parsifal (Act III, Scene 1 pictured, photograph by Cory Weaver) San Francisco Opera was yesterday afternoon. I was lucky enough to attend this opera in Box Z, which is pretty much as close as one can get to the stage. Again, new details revealed themselves, and as always,…
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* Notes * The Fall concert for San Francisco Opera was held last night. It was lovely to hear the orchestra (pictured, photograph by Matthew Washburn) front and center under the baton of Maestra Eun Sun Kim. The sound was clear and buoyant throughout the program of Manuel de Falla and Beethoven. Beethoven’s Fifth was…
The Opera Tattler 