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!

Streaming Review
November 30, 2020
Friction Quartet Debuts New Works for C4NM
BY Jessica Balik

Four composers tackle the technical challenges of virtual performances and weave solutions into the fabric of their works.

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Recording Review
November 30, 2020
Russian Piano Music From the Silver Age and Beyond
BY Richard S. Ginell

Daniil Trifonov’s latest album celebrates keyboard works by Scriabin, Stravinsky, and Prokofiev.

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Streaming Review
November 23, 2020
Young Artists Have the Cure for Pandemic Blues
BY Steven Winn

SF Girls Chorus and Ars Minerva team up for Juditha Triumphans and works by Barbara Strozzi and Isabella Leonarda.

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Streaming Review
November 23, 2020
Volti and Anne Hege Draw Choral Creativity From Isolation
BY Nicholas Jones

Juxtaposing real-time and recorded choral sections evokes a dreamlike atmosphere contrasting intimacy and isolation.

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Recording Review
November 23, 2020
Shostakovich’s Soundtrack for the Dark Side of the 20th Century
BY Richard S. Ginell

Vladimir Jurowski and the London Philharmonic offer the composer’s underappreciated Symphony No. 11.

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Streaming Review
November 17, 2020
Anonymous Lover Shows Its Mettle
BY Victoria Looseleaf

The only surviving opera by Joseph Bologne has staying power in LA Opera’s production.

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Streaming Review
November 16, 2020
SF Symphony’s “Throughline” Hits the Mark
BY Steven Winn

The hour-long concert takes a cinematic approach to its melding of musical works with insightful commentary by Esa-Pekka Salonen, musicians, and SFS personnel.

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Streaming Review
November 16, 2020
Left Coast Chamber Ensemble Pairs Modern Works With Their Early Antecedents
BY Scott Cmiel

Benjamin Britten elaborates on themes from John Dowland, while Eleanor Alberga was inspired by Bach and Brahms.

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Streaming Review
November 16, 2020
Masked Santa Rosa Symphony Carries On Brilliantly
BY Steve Osborn

Cellist Adelle-Akiko Kearns is outstanding in Max Bruch’s Canzone.

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Recording Review
November 16, 2020
A Dive Into George Lewis’s Pioneering Experiment With Artificial Intelligence
BY Richard S. Ginell

A 1984 recording of Rainbow Family captures a landmark performance event pairing “live” musicians with microcomputers.

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