For January I’ve written several articles pertaining to George Benjamin’s visit to the San Francisco Symphony. They’re online now on the SFS website, for your perusal, reading pleasure, edification, intoxication, etc.
First up is a long article about Benjamin himself plus two works being performed this week—Dance Figures and Jubilation. The commentary on Dance Figures is a bit unusual for me in that I perform a blow-by-blow description of the work, unlike my usual practice of focusing on history, biography, sociology, and the like. But Dance Figures is sure to be unknown to 99.999% of the SFS audience, and a bit of guidance is definitely in order. For Jubilation I have remained on more familiar footing, giving more the placement of the work and some very general guidelines.
Second is a program note that I particularly enjoyed writing, on Olivier Messaien’s Oiseaux exotiques. I was utterly fascinated by the piece itself, and by its placement within Olivier’s output, falling as it does during a critical period in which he began incorporating his idiosyncratic serialistic technique into a language increasingly inspired by bird songs. But the work is far from being either an ornithological catalog or a dry-as-dust serialist screed; it glows, sparkles, and glitters with imaginative sounds, beautiful harmonies, and clear forms.
In addition, my long article about music on the Web came up on the SFS website rather late in December (it was in Playbill for the entire month), but it’s there now.
Later this season, I will feature three more articles in Playbill (and the SFS website), the first on the Bruckner Sixth, then the Chopin 2nd Piano Concerto, and finally near the end of the season, the Villa-Lobos Bachianas brasileiras No. 9.
And if you’re interested in guitar music, my program notes for Pavel Steidl’s recital at Herbst Theater are also available online, as a PDF download, courtesy of those fine folks at SF Performances.