Musical Days Productions, Mari Kodama and Kent Nagano announced "A Portrait of BEETHOVEN: 32 Sonatas for Piano," a four-concert festival featuring world class performers in a celebration of the anniversary of Beethoven's 250th birthday, October 9-10, 2021.
The festival presents Beethoven's 32 piano sonatas chronologically, inviting attendees to experience the composer's iconic genius and compositional development. Featuring eighteen renowned pianists from the San Francisco Bay Area and around the world, "A Portrait of BEETHOVEN" will take place at the SFJAZZ Center's Robert N. Miner Auditorium on Saturday, October 9 at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. and Sunday, October 10 at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Tickets are $50 for each performance and are available now at sfjazz.org/tickets/productions/beethoven-portrait-32-sonatas.
"For 19 years, Musical Days has delivered exceptional performances to San Franciscans, showcasing some of the most talented musicians from around the world in an intimate setting," says Mari Kodama, Artistic Director of Musical Days Productions and Music Director of the festival. "I'm excited to expand the festival this year and I hope that the unparalleled experience of hearing Beethoven's sonatas in sequence will give audiences a joyful and unique appreciation for this body of work."
"A Portrait of BEETHOVEN" stems from Musical Days in Forest Hill, a unique chamber music festival that originated in 2002 as a series of private concerts presented by the virtuoso pianist Kodama and conductor
Kent Nagano. With a reputation as a benchmark interpreter of Beethoven and one of few female pianists to record the composer's complete sonatas, Kodama developed "A Portrait of BEETHOVEN" to appeal aficionados and novices alike. The festival-which was originally planned for June 2020-brings the San Francisco community the rare music experience that became a sought-after tradition for Forest Hill residents due to its curated lineup of world-class musicians. "A Portrait of BEETHOVEN" performers include Cameron Akioka, Xak Bjerken, Kenny Broberg, Alexander Fang, Adam Golka, Daniel Hsu, Mari Kodama, Momo Kodama, Stephen Kovacevich, Shunsuke Kurakata, Nicholas Mathew, Markus Pawlik, Olivia Pham, Stephen Prutsman, Richard Raymond, Xinran Shi, Gloriana Wolf, and Miri Yampolsky.
"These concerts have been a labor of love produced exclusively for the San Francisco Bay Area," adds
Ken Johnson, founding Board Member of Musical Days Productions. "After more than a year hiatus, it's heartening that Musical Days Productions can once again offer in-person performances as we reach new audiences. We look forward to presenting many more for years to come."
Kent Nagano serves as Artistic Advisor for "A Portrait of BEETHOVEN." The Berkeley native is a conductor renowned for both operatic and orchestral repertoire. He currently is the General Music Director of the Hamburg State Opera and Chief Conductor of the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra.
Full program details for "A Portrait of BEETHOVEN" are available at
https://bit.ly/250-Beethoven. Attendees must provide proof of vaccination with a valid ID and wear masks inside SFJAZZ Center and tickets will be limited to 50% of Miner Hall capacity.
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