Classical Music Reviews

Every week, our professional critics attend concerts throughout the Bay Area to let you know what went well...and occasionally what didn't. Let their insights enrich your musical experiences, and feel free to share your own views!

Recording Review
July 3, 2020
Ludovico Einaudi’s 12 Songs From Home Is Gloriously Low-Tech
BY Lou Fancher

The Italian composer/pianist recorded his moving, tuneful originals on an iPhone.

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Chamber Orchestra/Orchestra Review
June 29, 2020
Michael Tilson Thomas’s Streamed Farewell From SF Symphony
BY Janos Gereben

The orchestra and a host of guest artists send off MTT in grand, virtual fashion.

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Recording Review
June 28, 2020
A Winning Goat Rodeo Sequel With Yo-Yo Ma and Chris Thile
BY Steven Winn

Ma reunites with a trio of expert bluegrass players on a new CD.

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Recording Review
June 28, 2020
James MacMillan Pulls Out the Stops For His Choral Fifth Symphony
BY Richard S. Ginell

The composer’s latest major work is a symphony on par with Mahler’s Eighth.

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Recording Review
June 22, 2020
Véronique Gens’s Nuits Graced by Warmth and Light
BY Jason Victor Serinus

The superb soprano is in her prime on this charming collection of French art songs.

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Recording Review
June 21, 2020
A Concerto for Turntables From Composer/DJ Gabriel Prokofiev
BY Richard S. Ginell

Prokofiev delights in blurring boundaries in his quest to bring classical music into the 21st century.

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Recording Review
June 15, 2020
Paradise Lost Is Our Gain
BY Jason Victor Serinus

Soprano Anna Prohaska and pianist Julius Drake make devilishly great music inspired by the Adam and Eve myth.

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Recording Review
June 15, 2020
Enjoy the Music, Mind the Hype: Philip Glass’s Music In Eight Parts
BY Tysen Dauer

Fans and scholars will appreciate this premiere recording of a long-lost composition from the composer’s early days.

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Recording Review
June 15, 2020
Seong-Jin Cho Simulates a Concert Recital in the Studio
BY Richard S. Ginell

Three single-movement sonatas highlight the pianist’s formidable range on a sparkling new recording.

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Book Review
June 8, 2020
Music for Women Provides Practical Steps for Healing and Growth Through Listening to and Making Music
BY Lou Fancher

Written especially for women survivors of violence, the interactive e-book provides lessons and ideas of value to anyone.

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