Esa-Pekka Salonen conducts the San Francisco Symphony
Davies Symphony Hall
201 Van Ness, San Francisco, CA 94102 USA
7:00 PM, Thursday, June 24, 2021

Back to the previous event! ☸ Up to the 2021 yearbox! ☸ Up to the 2021 event list! ☸ On to the next event!

[7:05 PM] {lights down, announcements, tuning, wild applause, pause for EPS to enter, more applause}

Giovanni Gabrieli (ca.1554-57–1612): selections from Sacrae Symphoniae (1597), arr. Timothy Higgins, featuring members of the SFS brass section

1. [7:07 PM] Canzon per sonar septimi toni a 8, No. 2
   {pause to change players. Now on L: trumpet, 2 x horn, trombone; and on R: tuba, 2 x bass trombone, 2 x tenor trombone}
2. [7:10 PM] O magnum mysterium
   {pause to change players. Now on L: 2 x trumpet, tenor trombone, bass trombone; and on R: 2 x trumpet, 2 x tenor trombone}
3. [7:15 PM] Canzon per sonar septimi toni a 8, No. 1
   [7:19 PM] {section ends; pause for the string section to enter and get set up onstage}

[7:21 PM] {applause for reentry of EPS}

1. [7:22 PM] Richard Strauss (1864–1949): Metamorphosen (1944)
   [7:49 PM] {section ends; applause for a minute or so, then long pause to rearrange the stage seating}

Robert Schumann (1810–1856): Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, Op. 97, “Rhenish” (1850)

[8:00 PM] {tuning; applause for reentry of EPS}

1. [8:01 PM] Lebhaft
2. [8:10 PM] Scherzo: Sehr mäßig
3. [8:16 PM] Nicht schnell
4. [8:21 PM] Feierlich
5. [8:27 PM] Lebhaft
   [8:33 PM] {show ends; much applause, done after 2-3 minutes}

San Francisco Symphony

• Esa-Pekka Salonen: conductor, music director;
• symphony members vary by program; see the current list.

For the three Gabrieli pieces, the performers were split into two groups of four to six, playing from the aisle behind the Stage R and Stage L side terrace seating. The first piece began with very emphatic call (Left) and response (Right) playing that echoed nicely across the room. It didn't seem all that loud – just bright – but my ears were ringing when I went to sleep tonight. Dang! Guess I should have worn ear plugs!

Strangely, EPS made no announcements or comments whatsoever. Maybe the health department warned him that it wasn't safe to talk yet? Kinda weird! And being new (to my experience), I had a fairly hard time following his conducting style: it was visually expressive, but I had a hard time connecting his gestures to any sort of response that I could hear. Guess that will take more attendance sessions!

No photos today, sorry!

Whoa! This section is incomplete for now, sorry!

program notes

Back to the previous event! ☸ Up to the 2021 yearbox! ☸ Up to the 2021 event list! ☸ On to the next event!