After the big hoopla for the gala nights of the Symphony and Opera, last weekend offered a double bill season openers of smaller, but no less ambitious, ensembles. And the SF Opera welcomed a new Dolores Claiborne.

NCCO: The New Century Chamber Orchestra picked Michael Daugherty as its Featured Composer for the season, and its first concert covered the last 25 years of Daugherty's career. He was on hand, and MC'ed a first half devoted to his compositions. While Daugherty's training involved studying in Paris at Boulez's IRCAM or in Hamburg with György Ligeti, his works draw their themes from a mildly nostalgic Americana: Superman, Abraham Lincoln or Route 66 have inspired him.