Cypress Quartet at Piedmont Center for the Arts

Piedmont Center for the Arts—fledgling gem takes flight The acclaimed Cypress Quartet tested the waters at Piedmont’s brand new Center of the Arts on Friday, September 17. Their sound overflowed the lively central hall, submerging us in sonorous waves. Like multiple-use art spaces, while enjoying the concert one could also see the current show, a photographic essay of the people and mountains of Peru. Pre-Colombian villages and Incan faces, aged...

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Turandot at SF Opera

Stunning voices at War Memorial Opera House A mesmerizing production of Turandot by the San Francisco Opera emphasized the right stuff—brilliant singing—in a fantasy setting worthy of Disney. Giacomo Puccini’s final opera had a story line that was tough to swallow, but it was a surprising fit for David Hockney’s lurid sets. Hockney has made a career out of carefully thumbing his nose at the establishment, and Wednesday night at the War...

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Searching for meaning on an inauspicious day

The tenth anniversary of September 11 dawned cloudy in the Bay Area. In San Francisco thousands were lured to Sharon Meadows in Golden Gate Park by an offer of free opera, spreading blankets and hauling picnic baskets and wine. By two in the afternoon the last shreds of fog had burned off, giving a somber occasion a sunny patina. Undampened by speeches from a long roster of public figures, the public milled about until the San Francisco...

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