Posts by Ken Herman
Lise Lindstrom and Greer Grimsley Easily Exceed the Billing of ‘One Amazing Night’ for San Diego Opera
Let no one claim that San Diego Opera does not know how to have a good time! The Saturday, May 5, concert–“One Amazing Night”–at the Balboa Theatre featured opera stars soprano Lise Lindstrom and bass-baritone Greer Grimsley accompanied the San Diego Symphony in a program that ranged from arias and scenes from grand opera to Viennese operetta and American musical theater.
Read MoreGuest Conductor Fabien Gabel Takes San Diego Symphony to New Heights
Under the astute baton of guest conductor Fabien Gabel, Dutch violinist Simone Lamsma and the San Diego Symphony gave a rapturous account on Friday, May 4, of Leonard Bernstein’s “Serenade,” a violin concerto written for no less a violinist than Isaac Stern in memory of the composer’s early mentor, Boston Symphony Music Director Serge Koussevitsky.
Read MoreSan Diego Symphony Music Director Designate Rafael Payare Welcomed at the Jacobs Music Center
Surrounded by civic leaders and members of the San Diego Symphony board and orchestra, Symphony C.E.O. Martha Gilmer introduced Music Director Designate Rafael Payare to the press, symphony patrons, and representatives of other San Diego arts organizations Monday (April 30) at Copley Symphony Hall.
Read MoreAdventurous NWEAMO 2018 Festival Opens at San Diego State University
Curated by New West Electro-Acoustic Music Organization founder Joseph Waters, the 2018 NWEAMO Festival’s opening concert on April 27, 2018, offered diverse sonic visions of seven composers working in various ways with computer generated sound.
Read MoreJahja Ling Returns to San Diego Conducting an Inspired Shostakovich Fifth Symphony
Returning to the podium of the San Diego Symphony as Laureate Conductor, Jahja Ling presided over one of the more amazing performances of the 2017-18 season with a probing account of Dmitri Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony and the young Uzbek pianist Behzod Abduraimov’s thrilling San Diego debut in Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto.
Read MoreCamarada Goes Calypso at the Mingei in Balboa Park
Branching out from its customary programming, Beth Ross Buckley’s enterprising Camarada offered a laid-back concert of jazz-tinged calypso Sunday, April 15, at the Mingei International Museum.
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