San Diego Symphony Orchestra music director Rafael Payare finished his slate of Fall concerts this last weekend. I attended the Friday, November 14th, concert at The Jacobs Music Center. It was announced that he has …

A dim, grey light filtered through the early morning mists as The Glacier Express chugged away from the station at St. Moritz. As the train climbed higher, the peak of the Matterhorn pushed its way …

Whenever I attend an opera, I enter the theater and find my seat full of trepidation. (To clarify: I am full of trepidation, not my seat.) It doesn’t matter where the opera is being produced. …

The San Diego Symphony Orchestra has wrapped up the first month of the 2025-2026 Jacobs Masterworks Series. Irwin Jacobs himself  was at the Saturday, October 18 concert at The Jacobs Music Center, and it happened …

My weekend started on Friday, October 10, with a concert and lecture by pianist Daniel Beliavsky at The La Jolla Athenaeum. The concert included music by Dimitri Shostakovich, Frédéric Chopin, Alexander Scriabin, and Sergei Rachmaninoff. The …

The San Diego Symphony’s 2025-2026 Jacobs Masterworks Series started with a triumph on Friday, October 3 at The Jacobs Music Center. San Diego Symphony Music Director Rafael Payare conducted an all-French concert that set a …

October is nigh, and that means many things. Halloween is the new start of the holiday season, so we can begin looking forward to the holidays. The weather will relax, though there will be no …

Technically, the dog days of summer run from July 3 through August 11. The term comes from ancient Greece. The star Sirius rises with the sun between these dates, adding to the heat, or so …

I am currently trapped in the throes of a fantasy football fever. I never thought this would be the case, but as it turns out, I'm a micromanager. I have been poring over stats and …

On Saturday, August 30, I went to my first Tchaikovsky Spectacular at the Rady Shell at Jacobs Park. The concert is the traditional conclusion of the San Diego Symphony’s summer pops season. I have eschewed this …

After a six-year hiatus, renowned Russian soprano Anna Netrebko is set to make a highly anticipated — and deeply divisive — return to London’s Royal Opera House at Covent Garden. The 53-year-old opera star will …

Once upon a time, we went to the movies during the summer and enjoyed a blockbuster movie, the theater's AC, and some junk food. The AC and junk food are still a treat, but the …

I spent this week at The Big Sur Lodge in the Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park. My kids and I wandered along the scenic coastline, trekked through the redwoods, and skipped rocks in the river. How …

Here we are, at the end of summer, for all intents and purposes. For me, that means pre-season NFL games. I’m like most NFL fans. I want a hero to arise, usually at the quarterback …

Opera, a vibrant fusion of music, drama, and visual spectacle, has entertained audiences for centuries. Its power lies in its ability to convey human emotions through profound music while employing basic storytelling. The basic storytelling …

Round about this time of year, I usually start thinking about checking in on The Bayreuth Festival — the annual bending of the knee to the controversial composer Richard Wagner. But as I thought about …

There is a new classical music festival coming to San Diego County July 18-20. The Tramonto Music Festival was established by the City of Encinitas to offer audiences access to exceptional classical music experiences. Tramonto …

There is just one concert remaining in the 2025 San Diego Mainly Mozart Festival. On Saturday, June 28, the All-Star Festival Orchestra will perform a program that includes Mozart’s “Overture” to Cosi fan Tutte, Beethoven's Triple Concerto, and …

Today, June 20, 2025, is the summer solstice. From here on out, the days will become shorter. To my mind, that makes it the start of Christmas. Actually, this week does have some nativity activity: the …

Once upon a time, piano music was the social media of its day. The 19th and early 20th Centuries were the heyday of the piano. It was the primary entertainment for the evening in most …

The 2025 San Diego Mainly Mozart Festival promises an exhilarating celebration of classical music, bringing together world-renowned musicians, innovative performances, and a rich array of events that cater to both seasoned aficionados and newcomers to …

The San Diego Symphony concluded the 2024-2025 Jacob's Masterworks Series with three performances of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 3. I attended on Saturday, May 24. San Diego Symphony music director Rafael Payare conducted.Mahler’s Third has traditionally …

The San Diego Symphony concert on Sunday, May 11th was not quite everything I was hoping it would be. The concert started with a cello concerto by Unsuk Chin, but I was there to hear Bruckner’s Symphony …

The San Diego Symphony is in the home stretch of the 2024-2025 Jacobs Masterworks Season. On Sunday, May 4, they presented a concert entitled Czech Masterpieces and a Saxophone Concerto.The first item on the concert was …

From time to time, I wonder why I love classical music and opera. I do know it wasn’t a choice. My parents didn’t sit me down and present various types of music and then tell …

The San Diego Symphony is set to wrap up the 2024-2025 Jacobs Masterworks series with several exciting concerts in May. These concerts will conclude the Jacobs Music Center’s maiden season. These aren’t just concerts, they …

I spend a significant amount of time walking and going to the gym each week. Besides staving off the days of my dotage, it gives me a chance to listen to a lot of music. …

The final production of the San Diego Opera 2024-2025 season is Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata; it opens on Friday, April 25, at The San Diego Civic Theatre.Composed in 1853, Traviata followed Verdi's Rigoletto and Il Trovatore, capping off what could be considered the …

Did you know that Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 kills 20 percent of cancer cells? It’s true; I know because someone posted it on Facebook. I thought it seemed interesting so I investigated it with the all-knowing power …

I saw Salome by Richard Strauss at San Diego Opera on Sunday, March 23. Let's start with the positives. I like the way the current administration uses local singers for the roles that were written for local singers. …

As the San Diego Opera’s production of Richard Strauss’s Salome opens, I’ve come to a realization. I have opera angst. Upcoming EventSalomeFriday, March 21, 2025, 7:30 p.m.San Diego Civic Theatre, 1100 Third Avenue, San DiegoAge Limit: Not availableMoreThere …

San Diego Opera is presenting Salome by Richard Strauss on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, March 21, 22, and 23. Salome was last produced in 2012.Salome, based on the play by Oscar Wilde, is a compelling exploration of desire, …

I’d say one of the greatest barriers to enjoying opera is knowing whether or not the singing is good. I’m being serious. It’s a problem for those who haven’t spent years studying voice or exploring …

I attended my first morning concert by the San Diego Symphony on Friday, February 28. The concert started at 11 am, and I was happy to have the day free in order to attend. I’ve …

I have it on good authority that the San Diego Symphony concert on Sunday, February 9, provided a fantastic experience of classical music. My plans to attend were usurped by a family medical situation. Under …

The San Diego Symphony has announced its 2025-26 season. The schedule is, of course, solid but there are a few concerts that jump off the page. Let's take a look.Upcoming EventSD Symphony: French Fairytales - …

With the unfathomable amount of classical music that is available to us, here are a few pieces that everyone needs to know. Many of them are known in part but getting to know them in …

Interestingly, my two favorite concerts, thus far in the 2024-2025 Jacobs Master Works Series at the San Diego Symphony, have been dominated by pieces from the classical period of music. Obviously, music at the symphony …

The first concert of the year at The San Diego Symphony was a miniature French festival. Overseeing the proceedings was conductor Ludovic Morlot. Previously he was the music director of The Seattle Symphony and has …

Once upon a time in the salons of Paris, one Frederic Chopin would play the piano and narrate to the audience. I had a chance to experience a modern version of this phenomenon on Tuesday, …

The start of January is a packed to the gills with classical music in San Diego. There’s chamber music, new music, and gargantuan symphonic masterpieces. Upcoming EventJacobs Masterworks: Saint-Saens, Hokmes, SmithFriday, January 10, 2025, 7:30 p.m.Jacobs …

With Christmas over and New Year's just ahead, let’s look back at the year that was 2024 for classical music in San Diego. Back on March 1, 2024, The San Diego Symphony gave a concert at …

For the first time, in many a year, I’ve had George Frideric Handel ’s Messiah as part of my Christmas season listening. At this time of year, I’m all about the mid-century crooners all singing the same …

I came across a social media post that asked if there are any operas with an all-female chorus. To be clear this doesn’t mean operas that have a chorus scene with only women. There are …

Every now and then, a truly underappreciated gem comes along. I have a friend who has bugged me about Havergal Brian’s Symphony No. 1: “Gothic”. I ended up listening to it about a dozen times in …

I am notorious, amongst my friends and family, for starting my holiday season early. As soon as Halloween is over, it’s Christmas time in my mind. My tree goes up and my Mid-Century Christmas playlist …

The struggle session returned with a vengeance at the San Diego Symphony Orchestra concert on Saturday, November 16. The previous concert weekend featured a program without any contemporary pieces to struggle through as an audience …

The San Diego Symphony Orchestra concert on Saturday, November 9, was the concert I didn’t know I needed. To be honest, the program looked a bit boring on the surface. It was only Mozart, Haydn, …

Back in the dark days of the pandemic, San Diego Opera conceived of a way to present Giacomo Puccini’s La Boheme in a manner that would be consistent with Covid-19 social distancing rules. The performance …

There are some spooky operas out there and nothing is better for a refined and dignified Halloween. Of course, a sugar-laden celebration is also appropriate but on this night of ghosts and devils, opera can …