Michael Zwiebach is the senior editor/content manager for SFCV. He assigns all articles and content, manages the writing staff, and does editing. A member of SFCV from the beginning, Michael holds a Ph.D. in music history from the University of California, Berkeley.
The Target Summer Pops Festival, featuring the Symphony Silicon Valley starts the final weekend in July. It’s a premier South Bay event, which takes place outdoors on the San Jose State campus, and features a variety of old-fashioned pops fare.
Eric Kujawsky is not intimidated by big pieces: He likes organizing big concerts with his Redwood Symphony. And this week he’s taking on Berlioz — not the puny Symphonie Fantastique, but the full Requiem Mass, performed in Davies Symphony Hall with soloists and over 200 choristers.
The Midsummer Mozart Festival finishes up with a performance of the composer’s unfinished “Great” Mass in C Minor. The Pacific Mozart Ensemble joins George Cleve’s orchestra and four strong soloists for this passionate, gorgeous music.
It’s the 100th anniversary of John Cage’s birth, and a very few organizations are celebrating with retrospectives of the work of this challenging, odd composer. The festival with the most to offer is the one by sfSound at Old First Concerts.
Opera fans have a good few weeks ahead if they haven’t decamped for summer vacations. First up, this weekend, is the Merola Opera Program with Dominick Argento’s quirky, imaginative Postcards From Morocco.
The little Midsummer Mozart Festival will be in full swing this weekend, with pianist Audrey Vardanega, now an experienced soloist at the advanced age of 16, playing the delightful Piano Concerto in G Major, No. 17.
