Primary tabs

Jessica Balik

Jessica Balik is a flutist and has a PhD in historical musicology from Stanford University.

Articles by this Author

Chamber Music Review
October 15, 2018
Kate Stenberg and Sarah Cahill Give New Music a Good Name
BY Jessica Balik

The local power violin-piano duo explores contemporary music in a way that everyone should celebrate.

More »
Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
October 7, 2018
Berkeley Symphony Opens With Promising Vitality
BY Jessica Balik

Violinist Benjamin Beilman wows with a powerful rendition of a Jennifer Higdon concerto.

More »
Festival Review
August 7, 2018
William Bolcom and Acolytes Shine in Cabrillo’s “After Dixieland”
BY Jessica Balik

Fascinating compositions and understated virtuosity transcend the program’s ambiguous concept.

More »
Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
May 21, 2018
Thought-Provoking Masterworks Cap Oakland Symphony’s Season
BY Jessica Balik

Peace prevails in a program exploring “the artist’s struggle.”

More »
Recital Review
May 15, 2018
Contemporary Art Songs Dazzle at the Center for New Music
BY Jessica Balik

Two musicians from the Brooklyn Art Song Society perform new works by UC Davis composers and poets.

More »
Modern Classical Review
April 23, 2018
M. Lamar and Living Earth Show Conduct an Ominous Tour of "Lordship and Bondage"
BY Jessica Balik

Edgy, polygenre music underscores Lamar's idiosyncratic philosophy in a 10-song cycle.

More »
Modern Classical Review
April 17, 2018
Other Minds' Sound Poetry Week Wraps With Premieres by Pamela Z and Jaap Blonk
BY Jessica Balik

The accent was on the sounds that words and phonemes make in music that slurs and blurs meanings.

More »
Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
April 10, 2018
The Seattle Symphony Wades Into the Unfathomable Ocean
BY Jessica Balik

Works by Sibelius, Britten, and John Luther Adams celebrate the mysterious power of the sea.

More »
Chamber Music Review
March 19, 2018
New Century Borrows a Chamber Orchestra From Zurich
BY Jessica Balik

Two orchestras, one stage, four centuries of music.

More »
Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
March 12, 2018
S.F. Symphony Steps Out With Dance-Themed Concert
BY Jessica Balik

Edward Gardner provided a firm lead while Simon Trpčeski was rhapsodic on the keys.

More »
Chamber Music Review
February 27, 2018
Decoda Enchants With Clarinet Quintets Between Courses at Town Hall
BY Jessica Balik

Tertulia Chamber Music brings its mix of concert-going and culinary pleasure to San Francisco.

More »
Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
February 13, 2018
An Evasive New Concerto to Match Beethoven’s Hero
BY Jessica Balik

St. Paul Chamber Orchestra and Jonathan Biss commission response pieces to Beethoven’s concertos and Salvatore Sciarrino took the anti-Beethoven role.

More »
Chamber Music Review
February 8, 2018
Four Hands, No Waiting: Visions de l’Amen Springs to Life on Two Pianos
BY Jessica Balik

Eric Zivian and Sarah Cahill shine on Olivier Messiaen’s challenging work.

More »
Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
January 16, 2018
Emanuel Ax Plays With Fire and Grace
BY Jessica Balik

The piano wizard brings out the best in the San Francisco Symphony in a program that ranged from the playful to the cerebral.

More »
Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
December 11, 2017
Berkeley Symphony With Pianist Conrad Tao Leaves the Audience Searching for Their Socks
BY Jessica Balik

Tao’s pyrotechnics were matched by guest conductor Gemma New, who led dynamic readings of works both fresh and familiar.

More »
Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
November 14, 2017
S.F. Symphony Raises Questions While Celebrating “American” Masters
BY Jessica Balik

A curious program pairs Ives with Dvořák and a misplaced serving of Gershwin.

More »
Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
November 7, 2017
Storytime, With an Ambiguous Twist, at S.F. Symphony
BY Jessica Balik

Bernstein’s Age of Anxiety and Strauss’s Ein Heldenleben flirt with storytelling but hold back secrets.

More »
Chamber Music Review
October 31, 2017
Soprano Dawn Upshaw Makes a Powerful Combination With Sō Percussion
BY Jessica Balik

Echoes of 19th-century American music permeate works by George Crumb and Caroline Shaw.

More »
Chamber Music Review
October 24, 2017
Black Cedar Forges a New Repertoire With Flair
BY Jessica Balik

The flute-guitar-cello trio finds surprising new voices in old music and in newly minted commissions.

More »
Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
October 10, 2017
Composers’ First Thoughts and Carneiro’s Return Grace Berkeley Symphony Opener
BY Jessica Balik

BSO’s music director led the orchestra and cello through a program of impressive firsts.

More »

Pages