Results tagged “semyonbychkov”

Gautier Capuçon makes his SF Symphony debut tomorrow. The French cellist will dazzle in Schumann's cello concerto, under the direction of famed Russian conductor Semyon Bychkov (the program also includes a curtain opener by Dutilleux, and Sibelius 5th symphony). It's his third time in San Francisco, but his first time with the SFS orchestra, or without his brother and chamber music partner, the violinist Renaud Capuçon.

We were phoning Marielle Labeque, one half of the Labeque sisters piano duo virtuosos, and being our French selves. We said: “We can talk in French, if you are not afraid…” Right away she interrupted: “No, I am not afraid.” We meant: “if you’re not afraid we’ll screw up the translation” but the attitude was fitting: there’s a definitive fearlessness in the Labeque sisters. We can see it from the engaged way they perform, from the bright colors they wear on stage, from the modern repertoire they advocate, from the risks they take with their production company, and obviously, from the difficult concerto they’ll perform tomorrow through Saturday with the SF Symphony. No, they aren’t afraid.

We were psyched to see our fellow French man, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, at the symphony last night. He was amazing all right, but guest conductor Semyon Bychkov stole the show, by masterfully conducting an eclectic program at Davies Symphony last night (performance will repeat tonight through Sunday): a modern piece by a living composer, an as-romantic-as-it-gets piano concerto with a prodigious Thibaudet as the soloist and a Shostakovic symphony to celebrate the composer’s 100th anniversary. All three pieces displayed his skills at the baton, and the orchestra at its best.