chamber music Reviews
May 13, 2008
Of Fairy Tales and Love Songs
Delightful pairings make for enchantment in Gold Coast Chamber Players' performance.
Three Hits and a Little Miss
Sunny repertory works bedeck a Mother's Day concert in the Avedis Chamber Music Series.
April 22, 2008
Truly Historic
San Francisco bids a fond farewell to the Beaux Arts Trio after 52 years of glorious playing.
April 15, 2008
March 25, 2008
Legends Befit Legends
Vocal legends, plus a sterling newcomer, honor one of music's greats, the mezzo Pauline Viardot.
March 18, 2008
Trio From the Winner’s Circle
The Janaki String Trio explores the tiny but remarkably high-quality repertoire for violin, viola, and cello.
Miracle on Third Street
The Cypress String Quartet mesmerizes schoolkids and older folks alike with a new Rohde work, plus Haydn and Bartók.
March 11, 2008
Subtly Rethinking the Music
The Brentano String Quartet brings introverted intensity to familiar works, and plays a bright new, bravura piece.
March 4, 2008
Winning Ways
The Mandelring Quartet treats its Mill Valley audience to bedrock pieces played with a fierce focus.
Sweet Reveries on a Sunny Day
The estimable Miró Quartet dives into Mozart, Beethoven, Takemitsu, and Debussy.
February 19, 2008
Playing of Gleaming Perfection
The Tokyo String Quartet provides a little something for everyone in its predictably superb recital.
Coltrane’s Love Crosses Boundaries
The Turtle Island Quartet fearlessly presents its interpretations of a jazz master.
February 12, 2008
White-Hot, and New
The Emerson String Quartet plays two intense commissioned works, plus Bartók and Martinů.
Brahms: It’s What’s for Dinner
The Capuçon–Angelich Trio serves up a three-course feast, with superlative playing.
February 5, 2008
Walking a Tightrope
The Belcea Quartet returns to San Francisco to play an intense, strikingly polished program.
Illuminating Inspirations
The Alexander String Quartet and Robert Greenberg brighten a morning recital with quartets of Maurice Ravel and Lou Harrison.
Honoring Vaughan Williams
The Basically British series commemorates the 50th anniversary of the death of an English giant.
January 15, 2008
A Musical Conversation
The Pacifica Quartet offers a first-rate preview of its studio interpretation of Elliott Carter's Quartet No. 5.
January 8, 2008
Variations on the Quartet
Even on an off night, the Alexander String Quartet offers something to like.
December 18, 2007
Doing Well What Comes Naturally
The FOG Trio serves up old standards, and makes them sound new again.
Fast Ride on a Lean Quartet Machine
The Jupiter String Quartet spotlights the diabolically difficult Bartók Quartet, with handsome results.
December 11, 2007
December 4, 2007
November 20, 2007
Percussive Power
Bartók’s imposing Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion is the highlight of the San Francisco Symphony's Chamber Music Series.
November 13, 2007
Weird, Wonderful Quartet
The Zehetmair Quartet, still the real thing, demonstrate the power and pitfalls of interpretation.
November 6, 2007
Bracing Performance From a Young Quartet
Afiara String Quartet joins the Bay Area's constellation of accomplished ensembles.
October 30, 2007
Still Hungry for Brahms
All in one sitting, the Emerson Quartet tackles the late-Romantic intensity of the composer's string quartets.
October 23, 2007
Brilliant Bay Area Debut
The Talich Quartet delivers bold yet subtle playing in its first Northern California appearance.
October 16, 2007
Subtle Beethoven, Comic Adams
The St. Lawrence String Quartet trade places in a eclectic and effective performance.
October 2, 2007
The Haydn Chronicles
The New Esterházy Quartet traverses the glories of Haydn's string-quartet opus.
July 10, 2007
Delightful Effervescence
American Bach Soloists' SummerFest offers irresistible atmosphere, as well as first-rate chamber music at its Friday and Saturday concerts.
The Race (and the Dinner) Goes to the Swift
American Bach Soloists, Zivian-Tomkins Duo, and Clerestory serve up a musical feast at SummerFest on Sunday.
Henze Bonanza
Worn Chamber Ensemble fetes the oft-neglected German composer Hans Werner Henze.
July 3, 2007
Hail the New Esterházys
The New Esterházy Quartet inaugurates a Haydn series to make the composer proud.
May 15, 2007
Gold Coast Magic
Chamber music done right: The Gold Coast Chamber Players celebrate the Magic Flute.
Discovery Night
Avedis Chamber Music series spotlights the Stanford Wind Quintet, Jon Nakamatsu, and globe-trotting repertoire to draw a full house.
April 10, 2007
Beaux Arts: Très Beau
Beaux Arts Trio counts down to its bittersweet farewell.
April 3, 2007
Rich Drama in Santa Rosa
Mack McCray and Joseph Edelberg perform in the penultimate chamber music concert of the Santa Rosa Symphony's Early Romantics Festival.
March 27, 2007
Setting the Bar in Beethoven
Takács Quartet shine as individuals and as a whole at an all-Beethoven Cal Performances presentation.
Neoclassical Temperaments
New Century Chamber Orchestra, violinist Stephanie Chase, and pianist William William Wolfram can seemingly do it all.
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