Chamber Music

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Review

Twin Spirits

Scott Cmiel - March 16, 2009
The twins Peter and Zoltán Katona have created a guitar duo noted for spirited interpretations, amazing virtuosity, and an uncanny ensemble that many attribute to their shared genetic heritage. The brothers from Budapest move and breathe together, and they mark changes of mood with an exchange of glances that highlights their musical decisions.
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Preview

St. Lawrence String Quartet

David Bratman - March 11, 2009
New string quartets inspired by older masterworks in the genre have a long tradition. The latest composer to add to it is John Adams. Hearing the St. Lawrence Quartet perform late Beethoven inspired him to write a new quartet, which the St. Lawrence will give the premiere performance of at this Stanford Lively Arts concert. It's an important new work by a major composer.
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Preview

American String Quartet, Menahem Pressler

Michelle Dulak Thomson - March 11, 2009
The American String Quartet, longtime quartet-in-residence at the Manhattan School of Music, has made relatively few recordings (and those mostly for small labels), and it's likely that most Bay Area chamber music lovers are unfamiliar with it.
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Review

Brother and Sister Act

Lisa Hirsch - February 17, 2009

Classical music has had a few notable sibling acts in its history. Wolfgang and Nannerl Mozart toured as duo pianists; violinist Yehudi and pianist Hephzibah Menuhin performed recitals together.

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Review

Intimate Splendor

Jonathan Rhodes Lee - February 17, 2009

On Valentine’s Day weekend, in four cities, three members of the American Bach Soloists presented a chamber music performance of great variety, including music by such contrasting composers as François Couperin, Heinrich Biber, J.S. Bach, and Arcangelo Corelli. The program selections were a bit disjointed for my taste to say the least, but in the concert I heard Sunday at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in San Francisco the performers managed to tie things together well enough, balancing fireworks with remarkable poise and an elegant intimacy.

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Review

Life Patterns

Be'eri Moalem - February 10, 2009

A concert that features only one composer is a fascinating opportunity, not only to get a thorough picture of that composer’s style, but also to track changes in it over time. San Francisco State University’s 60th birthday retrospective of Richard Festinger presented what, to me, seemed like two different approaches to music — yet still in the same basic style. I later noticed that the two perceived methods came from two different time periods: one from the 1990s, the other from last few years.

Tetzlaff and Andsnes

Janos Gereben - January 29, 2009
Years ago, Ruth Felt’s San Francisco Performances introduced a young violinist and pianist to the Bay Area. By now, Christian Tetzlaff and Leif Ove Andsnes are among the most acclaimed musicians in the world. The German violinist and Norwegian pianist are returning to Herbst Theatre for a much-anticipated concert, performing music by Janáček, Brahms, Mozart, and Schubert.