Posted October 17, 2011

Hi, folks,

It’s October. Time to dust off the Halloween decorations and costumes and buy the candy. I always have fun answering the door in a cat costume, but I loaned it to the granddaughter, so will have to come up with something else this year! Here’s the treat the WSNC has for us this month:

Finishing the Ring: From the “New Bayreuth Style” to Today – A Visual Exploration
Sat Oct 22 at 1pm
JCC-San Francisco, 3200 California St
Non-members $10

Professor William Eddelman returns to continue his talk about the world of art and design as it is reflected in Ring productions; expect another sensational program filled with background on the cultural climate and the resulting designs with many projected images.  Eddelman was a great favorite of those who attended his last lecture, you will not want to miss this opportunity to hear him again.

Ring Productions from Post War to Present Day | Wagner Society of Northern California

* * *

Franz Liszt Bicentennial

Late-breaking news—it’s the bicentennial of the birth of Wagner’s father-in-law, and the SF Liszt Society has a few things planned, including a performance of the piano transcription of the “Liebestod” at the Oct 23rd concert:

Join us for three exciting events in honor of the Franz Liszt bicentennial
 
Dear Friends, Colleagues, and Music Lovers,
It is my pleasure to invite you to attend three very special events co-sponsored by the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of the American Liszt Society in honor of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Franz Liszt.  I hope you will make plans to attend these wonderful concerts, lectures, and masterclasses, and I look forward to seeing many of you in the coming weeks.
Best wishes,
William Wellborn, Founding President of SF-ALS

Liszt and His Circle
Monday, October 17, 2011
San Jose State University
 
Pianists Michael Boyd, Chih-long Hu, and William Wellborn join Dr. Gwendolyn Mok, Coordinator of Keyboard Studies at SJSU, in a day long series of events in celebration of Liszt’s Bicentennial.
 
12:30 pm – Lunchtime Concert – Shiro Room (5th Floor of Martin Luther King Library)
Featuring art songs by Liszt, performed by Joseph Frank and Chih-long Hu
Chopin – Liszt: ‘The Maiden’s Wish, Beethoven-Liszt: ‘Mignon’, and Hungarian Rhapsody # 15, ‘Rakoczy March’, performed by William Wellborn
Fantasy and Fugue on B-A-C-H, performed by Michael Boyd.
Petrarch Sonnets, Nos. 104 and 123, performed by Gwendolyn Mok
Free
 
3:30 – Masterclass – Concert Hall, School of Music
led by pianists William Wellborn and Michael Boyd
Free
 
7:30 pm – Gala Concert – Concert Hall, School of Music
Performance of the 1841 Album Beethoven, a rare collection of works by Liszt’s contemporaries, including Chopin, Mendelssohn, Kalkbrenner, Moscheles, Taubert, Thalberg, Dohler and Henselt, all performed on an 1868 Erard piano. The program also features Liszt’s transcription of the Funeral March from Beethoven’s ‘Eroica’ Symphony.  Boyd, Hu, Mok, and Wellborn will be joined by two specially selected students- Evan Chow and Yong Yu Gao.
Tickets are $15 for adults, $5 for students

Franz Liszt 200th Anniversary Gala
Sunday, October 23, 2011 at 2:00 pm
Old First Church, 1751 Sacramento St at Van Ness Ave.

Presented by the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of the American Liszt Society
in conjunction with Old First Concerts
For tickets and information, visit www.oldfirstconcerts.org
or call (415) 474-1608
 
An All-Liszt program featuring Michael Boyd, Daniel Glover, Heidi Hau, John Hord, Antonio Iturrioz, Machiko Kobialka, Jerome Lenk, Eliane Lust, Jonathan Mann, Gwendolyn Mok, Victoria Neve, Robert Schwartz, Keith Snell,  Hanson Tam and William Wellborn
Champagne Reception following the concert

Classical Music at the Firehouse Arts Center
Liszt Festival
4444 Railroad Ave., Pleasanton, CA
Sunday, November 20, 2011
www.firehousearts.org
 
2:00 pm – Young Artist Recital
Presenting winners of the MTAC audition in works by Liszt
 
3:30 pm – Lecture-Recital with Dr. William Wellborn
On the fascinating evolution of Liszt’s keyboard style, with musical examples from the keyboard
 
5:00 pm – Ensemble Concert
Featuring the Varney-Sanchez Duo and friends in performances of Liszt’s Les Preludes, Grand Galop Chromatique, Orpheus, Symphonic Poem (arr. by Saint-Saens and feautring Cecilia Huang, Paul Rhodes, and Dominique Piana), as well as selected art songs with Marta Johansen and Robert Schwartz
 
8:00 pm – Solo Recital
Award-winning pianist Peter Toth performs Liszt’s ‘Mazeppa’, ‘B-A-C-H’, ‘Legend’, Weinen, Klagen’, ‘Norma’, and more.

* * *

Ariadne auf Naxos

WSNC grant recipient Marie Plette stars in Richard Strauss’ comedy, along with Buffy Baggot, Emma McNairy and Dennis Petersen

Berkeley West Edge Opera
El Cerrito High School Performing Arts Center
840 Ashbury Avenue
El Cerrito 94530

Sunday, Oct 30 2011 3:00 pm
Friday, Nov 4th 8:00 pm
Sunday, Nov 6th 3:00 pm

West Edge Opera

* * *

Miscellanea

I came across this Wagner signed document on eBay while looking for Wagner postcards. For a mere $3500, it can be yours! (The postcards and Wagneriania I collect tend to run in the $1-10 range.)

Richard WAGNER (Composer): Autograph Note on his Visiting Card!

* * *

For Fans of Jonas Kaufmann
He’s back after his surgery: http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/08/29/the-tenor-jonas-kaufmann-keeps-plans-despite-surgery/.

* * *

A fun article from Operabobb:
Ciao, Opera Mavens. Someone commented “you have to be rich to enjoy opera.” This really, I mean really, struck a nerve with a lot of opera fans. Read this: http://www.npr.org/blogs/deceptivecadence/2011/10/13/141319827/opera-is-for-the-99-heres-what-you-told-us?ft=1&f=10003.
 

* * *

Final Farewells

Dorothy Shaw
(1943-2011)

Sad news to many of us. WSNC member Dorothy Shaw passed away unexpectedly 2 weeks ago. She was a passionate devotee of opera and the arts and had a wide circle of friends including many in WSNC. She will be missed. Memorial plans are pending.

SHAW, Dorothy

* * *

Coda

Please notify me of any corrections, omissions, and additions

If you want to unsubscribe, just send me an email at trish.wsnc@gmail.com

Trish Benedict, editor
WSNC E-Notes