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!

Chamber Music Review
June 14, 2019
Common Desperation: Koan Quartet Paints a Deliberately Unsettling Picture
BY Tamzin Elliott

Three quartets explore the underlying poetics of a famous filmmaker.

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Opera Review
June 14, 2019
Lifting Atlas at the LA Phil
BY Jim Farber

Yuval Sharon and the LA Phil revive Meredith Monk’s visionary opera.

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Jazz Review
June 11, 2019
Sheldon Brown and Darren Johnston Quintet Evoke Legendary Five Spot Sessions
BY Andrew Gilbert

Eric Dolphy and Booker Little’s famous gigs together inspire another generation of artists.

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Opera Review
June 11, 2019
Handel’s Orlando Is Riveting at S.F. Opera
BY Ilana Walder-Biesanz

The production and music make a long evening engrossing.

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Festival Review
June 11, 2019
Barbara Hannigan Ignites the Ojai Music Festival
BY Jim Farber

The soprano/conductor’s musical versatility dominated the festival’s evening concerts.

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Festival Review
June 10, 2019
The Diverse Playboy Jazz Festival Blasts Through Hollywood Bowl
BY Richard S. Ginell

The annual festival is a load of fun, despite persistent over-amplification.

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Opera Review
June 8, 2019
San Francisco Opera Plays Carmen With a Heavy Hand
BY Nicholas Jones

The production is at its best when it gives the singers space to do what they do best.

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Opera Review
June 6, 2019
Chunky in Heat Bristles With Hallucinatory Energy
BY Brin Solomon

A.M. Homes’s new opera, with music from a half-dozen composers, boasts a strong cast and a sentient tree.

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Festival Review
June 4, 2019
Kronos Festival Thrives Despite Missing Soloist
BY Michael Zwiebach

Kronos Quartet continues to do important work, and their commissioning projects leave an unmatched legacy.

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Modern Classical Review
June 4, 2019
The Most Elaborate “Noon to Midnight” Yet at Disney Hall
BY Richard S. Ginell

This treasure trove of adventurous new music is a steal for anyone with open ears.

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