SF Performances presents David Requiro and Solon Gordon
2014-03-23
San Francisco Conservatory of Music Concert Hall
50 Oak St, San Francisco, CA
2:00 PM, Sunday, March 23, 2014

[2:01 PM lights down]

Zoltán Kodály (1882-1967): Sonata for Violoncello and Piano, Op. 4 (1910)

1. [2:03 PM] Fantasia: Adagio di molto
2. [2:12 PM] Allegro con spirito
   [2:22 PM; work ends; back onstage after a minute or so]

Pierre Jalbert (b.1967): Sonata for Cello and Piano (2007)

1. [2:24 PM] Mysterious, transcendental
2. [2:25 PM] Rhythmic, precise
3. [2:34 PM] Flexible, soulful
4. [2:39 PM] Marcato
   [2:47 PM; set one ends]

[3:09 PM; back onstage, no introduction, waiting]

Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849): Sonata for Cello and Piano in G minor, Op.65 (1846)

1. [3:10 PM] Allegro moderato
2. [3:21 PM] Scherzo, Trio
3. [3:26 PM] Largo
4. [3:30 PM] Finale. Allegro
   [3:36 PM; Chopin ends; back and forth for ovations]
    
   Encore
5. [3:37 PM] Sulkhan Tsintsadze (1925-1991): Sachidao, from Five Pieces on Folk Themes for cello and piano (1950)
   [show ends 3:40 PM after another ovation or two]

• Solon Gordon: piano;
• David Requiro: cello, electric cello.

I get to SF plenty early after having dim sum at Gourmet Delight. Given that it's not quite 1 PM, I walk over to Biergarten, thinking that an hour is just about righbt for enjoying a beer in the sunshine. Turns out to be a poor choice. As with other visits, the line for ordering is out of control, and the pace of service glacially slow. I spend about 25 minutes inching forward, then abandon my spot once it becomes apparent that while I might get served in the next fifteen minutes, that would hardly leave time for anything but a panicked guzzle. Drat! I waste another ten minutes looking for an alternative spot that might offer instant service, but both Place Pigalle and Suppenkuche are closed, and the other venues that are open are too busy with the brunch crowd. Curses, my plan is foiled again! Plussed (the oppposite of nonplussed, right?), I head over to the Conservatory of Music to meet my mom in the downstairs cafe.

The first set today doesn't really click with me. The Kodály opener has some interesting textures and gestures, but overall, it's too slow to hold my attention and keep me from slipping into somnolence. The following work by J suffers from similar flaws. While not entirely slow, it's not really engaging either.

I was looking forward to the Chopin piece for the second half, but the somewhat disparaging tone of the program notes put a damper on that feeling. In practice, I think the performance was better than hinted at by the notes,, but certainly didn't rank with Chopin's best. For my $0.02, Requiro saved the best for last, the encore, introduced with a quick mumble, was a fast-paced work with rollicking, east-european folk flavoring. Definitely a fun one that I'd like to hear again!

Stephen Smoliar posted a rather positive review at the Examiner website.

Back to the calendar!