SFJAZZ presents Michael Abels: At War With Ourselves – 400 Years of You (CA premiere) featuring Kronos Quartet with a choir directed by Valérie Sainte-Agathe; text by poet Nikky Finney
Robert M. Miner Auditorium
SFJAZZ Center, 205 Franklin St, San Francisco, CA 94102 USA
7:00 PM, Sunday, May 8, 2022

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[7:00 PM] {lights down; no announcement; enter Kronos}

1. [7:01 PM] (instrumental overture)
   [7:08 PM] {add chorus, NF, VSA}
2. [7:09 PM] At War With Ourselves (chorus)
   [7:13 PM] {applause}
3. [7:12 PM] You are given 10 square feet (NF) »
4. [7:13 PM] You are given 10 square feet (chorus)
5. [7:16 PM] You are the new country's newest (NF)
6. [7:16 PM] You are the new country's newest (chorus)
7. [7:18 PM] The rest of you (NF)
8. [7:19 PM] The rest of you (chorus)
9. [7:22 PM] In a flash of slave schooner moonlight (NF) »
10. [7:23 PM] In a flash of slave schooner moonlight (chorus)
11. [7:25 PM] Alongside despite these contributions (NF)
12. [7:26 PM] They will dismiss your love (chorus)
13. [7:30 PM] Yes, your heart beats (NF) »
14. [7:31 PM] Yes, your heart beats (chorus) »
    [7:35 PM] {applause; add SF Girls chorus nonet}
15. [7:35 PM] Before the eyes of their children (chorus)
    [7:42 PM] {applause; drop SF Girls chorus nonet}
16. [7:42 PM] Skin is the largest organ (NF)
17. [7:43 PM] The skin the skin the skin (chorus)
18. [7:49 PM] You have re-attached the legs (NF)
19. [7:50 PM] You have re-attached the legs (NF)
20. [7:56 PM] Your indefatigable zest & quiet (NF)
21. [7:56 PM] Your indefatigable zest has a heart beat (chorus)
22. [8:00 PM] With the laws and codes (NF)
23. [8:01 PM] With the laws and codes (chorus)
24. [8:04 PM] Refusing to halt their haunting laughter (NF)
25. [8:05 PM] Refusing to halt their haunting laughter (chorus)
26. [8:10 PM] Now is the great 400th anniversary (NF) »
27. [8:11 PM] Now is the great 400th anniversary (chorus)
    [8:19 PM] {applause; bows; off & back for more bows}
    [8:21 PM] {no encore tonight; all done}

Kronos Quartet

• Hank Dutt: viola;
• David Harrington: violin;
• John Sherba: violin;
• Sunny Jungin Yang: cello.

• Michael Abels: composer;
• Nikky Finney: poet, reader;
• Valérie Sainte-Agathe: conductor.

• Joseph Bates: tenor vox;
• Kristina Blehm: alto vox;
• Joel Chapman: bass vox;
• Yuhi Aizawa Combatti: soprano vox;
• Rabihah Davis Dunn: soprano vox;
• Johnnie J. Felder: tenor vox;
• Glenn Healy: bass vox;
• Katja Heuzeroth: alto vox;
• Avi Jacobson: bass vox;
• Malcolm X Jones: bass vox;
• Ginger Jones-Robinson: soprano vox;
• Thomas Kim: tenor vox;
• Bradley Kynard: bass vox;
• Christabel Nunoo: soprano vox;
• Edward Nunoo: bass vox;
• Ryan S. Peterson: tenor vox;
• Sidney Ragland: tenor vox;
• Khris Sanchez: tenor vox;
• Colby Smith: soprano vox;
• Nia Spaulding: alto vox;
• Susan Thampi: alto vox;
• Alexis Walker: alto vox;
• Heidi L. Waterman: alto vox;
• Daniel Yoder: bass vox.

• Ava Gaughan: soprano vox;
• Adela Kelemen: soprano vox;
• Charlotte Kelly: alto vox;
• Sarah Kelly: alto vox;
• Victoria Ko: soprano vox;
• Angelyn Liu: soprano vox;
• Sarah Liu: soprano vox;
• Azaria Stauffer-Barney: alto vox;
• Isabel Yang: soprano vox.

program notes

It's interesting that tonight's show lacked any sort of speaking beside Nikky Finney's dramatic reading of her poem and the choral rendition that followed each bit. No greeting. No goodnight. No thanks to the sponsors. Wordless!

It's also interesting that unlike most every other Kronos show I've seen, this one had no visual/multimedia component. No fancy or dramatic stage lighting. No videos. Nothing!

What it did have was plenty of tuneful music. Around fifteen parts by the count above, but I probably missed a couple as there were a few times where segments seemed to segue together: the notes above correspond to the obvious transitions or breaks in the performance. In other words: take my list as an advisory impression rather than gospel truth!

NPR posted a brief podcast about this work at Deceptive Cadence just prior to the world premiere last November. Past Kronos program notes have been exceptionally clear about premieres and sponsors and such, but tonight's handout doesn't seem to make any note about this weekend being the CA premiere for this work…strange!

Back to the previous event! ☸ Up to the 2022 yearbox! ☸ Up to the 2022 event list! ☸ On to the next event!