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Month: February 2024

OLD-NEW FORMS IN STRAVINSKY, HURDLING RIGHT OVER THE ROMANTICS

OLD-NEW FORMS IN STRAVINSKY, HURDLING RIGHT OVER THE ROMANTICS

Charging out of the symphony starting gates was a tumultuous burlesque-theater from Stravinsky. Fasten seat belts NOW! The SF Symphony spotlighted a pair of composing bedfellows, separated by a canyon of musical evolution and comportment. Stravinsky, OK. But it was the veteran German soloist Julia Fischer in the great Brahms Violin Concerto that brought about the sold-out house. Our misfortune it is that she rarely ventures this far west from her home bailiwick. Stravinsky’s complete “Pulcinella” (1920), also rarely heard…

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COULD ‘SWAN LAKE’ BE AN ALLEGORICAL TALE??

COULD ‘SWAN LAKE’ BE AN ALLEGORICAL TALE??

A wondrous night unfolded at the Opera House as the S.F. Ballet’s swans floated in gracefully and flew off to the cheers of a sold-out house. For many, “Swan Lake” is the pinnacle of all ballet love-drama fantasies, a fairy tale that grips the heart with great endearment. This time led by a very promising ballerina out of Sweden, Nikisha Fogo. The fairy-tale plot: innocent maidens are scooped up by the evil winged sorcerer Von Rothbart, transformed magically into swans,…

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 BALLET PACKAGE: A LONDON-TO-S.F. VALENTINE

 BALLET PACKAGE: A LONDON-TO-S.F. VALENTINE

Without question, the S.F. Ballet is flying high with the love duo Valentine, “Marguerite and Armand.” It was flying into the troposphere Saturday when danced by SFB superstar Yuan Yuan Tan in a farewell performance. The Opera House was sold out wall-to-wall for the Feb. 10 show, vibrant with repeated bows for the ovations at the final curtain. How apt for the Opera House, where many patrons recognize right away the synopsis of Verdi’s opera “La Traviata,” both drawn from…

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IT ISN’T JUST YOUR OLD BALL GAME 

IT ISN’T JUST YOUR OLD BALL GAME 

BERKELEY—Dramatize the ancient Mayan saga, and do so at your own risk. The intrepid and ageless faculty composer Cindy Cox is a risk-taker, creating a dazzling oratorio-like version of the epic Mayan myth “Popol Vuh,” a generous concert portion of which was unveiled at Hertz Hall by the Eco Ensemble Feb. 3. It’s an animist story of man versus the evil forces of the Lords of Death that threaten to wipe out every one. This could well be the oldest…

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