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San Francisco Conservatory of Music
Rating Details »
Categories: Education, Performing Arts
Neighborhoods: Hayes Valley, Civic Center/Tenderloin50 Oak St
(between Franklin St & United States Highway 101)
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 864-7326
Heroic Beethoven, Brahms & Strauss
Conservatory Orchestra - Alasdair Neale conducting
Leonore #3, Brentano Lieder, Brahms Sym. No.4
Xi Wang, soprano…
More »
- Hours:
Mon-Sun. 9:00 a.m. - 10:30 p.m.
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
20 reviews for San Francisco Conservatory of Music
This business is a Yelp Sponsor
11/19/2008
7/21/2009
6/16/2009
9/12/2009
3/10/2009
1/21/2009
3/15/2009
3/4/2008
11/5/2007
12/9/2007
7/28/2008
7/24/2009
10/12/2008
11/11/2006
9/4/2007
5/1/2008
1/21/2008
4/29/2008
3/2/2008
2/20/2009
One of the Business' Favorite Reviews What's This?
We hired the SF conservatory to play the ceremony music for our wedding as well as a jazz trio to play at our cocktail hour.
All I can say is -- WOW! First, the ceremony pianist played the pieces I picked out with beautiful emotion. She also edited my wedding song perfectly to coincide when I finished my walk down the aisle. I didn't even have a chance to meet her or talk to her before the ceremony, either. I was very impressed.
The jazz trio for the cocktail hour was great, also. We were concerned they might be a bit too loud for the space we were in, but the sound level and music added the perfect ambiance.
I highly recommend hiring the musicians from the SF Conservatory for your wedding or any other party.
This past Friday, I had the chance to attend a performance that was part of the Midsummer Mozart Festival at the new SF Conservatory of Music Concert Hall, and it rocked me. Well not quite Falco style, but it was just an amazing and intimate program, and very up close and personal.
The highlight for me was when pianists and twin sisters, Yong Jean and Yong Sun Park, took on the Concerto for Two Pianos in E flat (a work that Mozart and his sister frequently performed). Maria Tamburrino was also a wonder during Flute Concerto No. 1 in G, and her obvious joy could make a flute convert out of anyone.
Afterwards, there was a small reception, and almost all of the orchestra attended. It was just one of those visceral moments when you realized that what we call classical music was really the pop music of that time, and probably much more timeless than anything on the Billboard today.
Bravo, I say. Bravo!
As the bride, there was certainly too much going on for me to pay much attention to the music that two musicians - a flutist and a guitarist - from the SF Music Conservatory/Music-To-Go Program provided. All I know was they were there and I didn't hear any complaints and everything we did in advance went smoothly.
There provided ambiance music for our wedding ceremony for approx 2 hours for approx $420. I initially coordinated with Elizabeth (an administrator from the school) and once I decided with the musicians, I coordinated with the flautist. I did some research and learned she was a finalist in a competition, so I figured she must be good!
Easy to work with and extremely affordable live wedding music - what else could I have asked for? They played all the songs that I requested for the recessional, my entrance and the processional.
What a great way to hear quality music, at a great price. Just got back from a Saturday night concert of Bizet and Beethoven. The playing and conducting are really very high level. I honestly can't hear the difference between most performances at the Conservatory and those of the SF Symphony. That's not to say there isn't a difference. These guys are students, with some faculty featured some times like tonight, so I imagine someone very intimate with classical music could hear slight differences between these students and professional musicians, but I can't. And I have a pretty good ear.
Anyway, the hall is a pleasure to be in and the concerts are almost always an energizing experience. I love going there.
I would have use an amplified sound system for my wedding ceremony to save some money. Unfortunately, amplified music was not allowed in Golden Gate Park. So my search began. I contacted dozens of formers. And they were all too expensive. Starting $450 per hour. That's when I found San Francisco Conservatory of Music. It was stress free working with them. And to top it all off, pricing was sooo doable.
We hired a quartet from SF Conservatory of Music for our wedding ceremony and they did an excellent job. They were on time (which is extremely important for any wedding) and executed the music pieces we selected flawlessly. We received many compliments from our guests and it was a pity I didn't get to thank them personally for doing such a great job.
Saw a show here, no refreshments during intermission WTF?
I went to their concert last weekend to listen to pieces familiar to me and also to try out a student orchestra at this school. Once inside, you will notice the spaciousness of the lobby, but that got filled pretty well during the intermission. Getting tickets at the last minute was easy, although having to arrive there right when the box office opened 1 hour before the concert helped. The place got packed by the time the show started.
The concert took place at Concert Hall (what a straightforward name). The interior is quite simple, box-typed, and traditional. Maybe because the number of players is limited, the spacing is adequate and should accommodate about 600 people.
The performance itself was pretty good for a student orchestra. I was also sitting the 3rd row from the front, so could hear a lot more. I wanted to sit on the 6th row to check the acoustics, but the seating chart was confusing.
The first piece was Rimsky-Korsakov's Capriccio Espagnol, which is basically a showpiece for an orchestral color. The brass, as expected, missed quite a few notes, but that was expected for a student orchestra. Yet the intensity of players were definitely there for the audience to feel. I'm not sure if the student female conductor added anything idiosyncratic to the music, but did a good job on conducting this piece without getting the music mushy.
The second piece is Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez, probably the most revered guitar concerto in the world. Its neo-classical structure gave me an opportunity to realize how this seemingly simple concerto was filled with technical challenges that both orchestral players and the soloist had to face to keep the subtle (but oh so beautiful) balances of rhythm and melody. There were a few spots that the two were not totally in sync (especially in the most difficult 3rd movement where measures change quite often), but hearing that made me appreciate their effort. The soloist got a deserving standing ovation.
After the intermission (thank god this place had a big enough bathroom so you don't have to wait for long), the orchestra played Dvorak's Symphony No. 8, which is considered even better than No. 9 (from the New World) by music connoisseurs. Here I really wished I was sitting a little further to see how the woodwind section was playing, but instead I was able to see concentrated expression of the string section. I could feel the tidal waves of the sound coming at me.
Overall, the whole experience was pretty good for the money, and I hope the admission helps this institution keep afloat.
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SF CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC
This review is dedicated to: X.metalmouth.TinnaH.
I have been a donor for the San Francisco Conservatory of Music for over 20 years. Tonight, I was a guest to attend a wine reception and a peek into a performance/critique from a maestro (Thomas Hampson) on their performance. I never realize how much emphasis the vocalist must concentrate on. Mr. Hampson (who has won a Grammy and countless other awards as well as from the San Francisco Opera) remarked that you do not fill up oxygen like gasoline when you sing.
I do not usually attend these reciprocal affairs, but I thought I would check out the new facility and was very impressed with the well-constructed facade and columns in the Concert Hall. I missed the Chinese replica building on Sloat Boulevard and as they explained to me, the cost of a total renovation and earthquake proofing the building would be financially unsound. And, the new building is larger and the classrooms, rehearsal suites and auditorium is more advantageous for the talented students as well as the location.
I chose the Banjo because it is my favorite instrument.
"And now for my first number, I'd like to perform Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons" with nothing but my hands...and armpits. Maestro?...."
This is a beautiful place to listen to music, and being a Friend of the Conservatory seems like a relative bargain for fifty bucks. You get to see two complimentary performances with a friend. That would make me a Friend of the Friend of the Conservatory. Two degrees of separation isn't bad, although I should really contribute now that I have seen the youthful zeal of the student musicians who perform here.
It's in a completely renovated men's health club in Hayes Valley right near Van Ness and Market. Jamie W. took me last Sunday to enjoy a little cookies-and-punch reception and then a performance of two small operas performed in the largest of their auditoriums, the Concert Hall. Understandably, the sets are handmade and costuming is minimal. Think of them as recitals with a little more effort.
The first was a piece by Ravel with a libretto by Colette. It offered an extensive cast of singers pretending to be animals and household objects. The music was ornamental in nature, not my cup of tea, since it was an elaborate fairy tale, but the best moment was when the singer playing the Naughty Child landed a paper airplane squarely in the face of the girl playing the fire in the hearth.
The second opera was more successful for me because I happen to like Bernstein. I also liked the darker, more mature themes of marital frustration and the Coplandesque touches in the arias. There was a trio of swing-style singers acting like an ironic chorus to the depressing activities of the couple. Bernstein wrote this piece in 1952, and you can hear some of the symphonic jazz he more fully employed several years later in "West Side Story".
There was abundant talent on display in both operas, each in varying degrees of maturation. The Concert Hall itself is a nice, open venue with a tall ceiling that seats about four hundred. The seats are actually comfortable. Support the arts and give the conservatory a try. We need another generation willing to perform Handel, Mozart, Bach...
Wow, writing this review totally makes me feel dated.
I know nothing about the Oak Street building, but I was there during the Ortega building. I was a student at SFCM in the Prepatory Department for 6 years, starting when I was 10. In addition to taking private violin lessons, I took theory, composition, and chamber music classes. As much as there were times when I just hated it back then, I look back with fondness and really, this school is amazing. The opportunities this school provides is simply amazing and the teachers are great. As much as juries used to freak me out, I realize now that they taught me so much and I always received constructive criticism. I miss Hellman and Agnes Albert Hall!
Plus back in the day when it was the Ortega building, there was really yummy chinese food close by. WOOT! I hope that the new school is carrying on the great traditions.
I was so pleased with the musicians and the pieces that they played for our wedding ceremony. I even added a piece of my own & asked them to play the song at a different tempo. They added so much to the ambiance of the elegance of our wedding & as I was heading to the entrance into the courtyard and heard the music that I had specifically requested, I was in tears because of how beautiful everything sounded in addition to seeing my husband at the end of the aisle. Elisabeth was very helpful in providing me necessary information. And the person that she had put me in contact with, Lara, was very prompt & professional in helping me with my concerns and questions to help make our wedding day "perfect" I was very happy with the preparation and the delivery of everything in dealing with the music to go program.
I used the conservatory's Music to Go program for my wedding. I booked a string quartet and a trumpeter for the pieces I wanted played during the ceremony. They were really easy to work with, reasonably priced and the musicians did a lovely job.
YELP was too busy to notice (only three months later...that) there is a new address, babies in training closer to Symphony Hall:
50 OAK Street,
near Civic Center, between Van Ness and Franklin Street, main frame built in 1914 by Catholic Young Men's Institute.
50 Steinways and Yamahas.has a wonderful space for chamber music, quartets, seats 100 in Osher Salon, 135 in Recital Hall and once it gets finished 445 in Concert Hall..Nov. 15-Donald Runnicles 3:30pm. Once a grand ballroom, brought to you by Swinerton and Oppenheim Lewis, Inc. thank you very much..(many of the master teachers play for SF Symphony down the block: Robin Sutherland-piano, Jack Van Geem-percussion, ) Public Cafe if you have a need for imbibing. acoustically tuned practice rooms, none of that shag 360 room rehearsal with the cockroaches and mice stuff here...yet! Try for: Sat. Dec. 9, 8pm Concert Hall: John Adams, Prokofiev Piano Concerto, Holst Planets. http://www.sfcm.edu
offers minimal faux asian music program-Lou Harrison's music, no jazz..boohoo...
check the free concerts out. take music lessons and be grateful people still play accoustic instruments and use their operatic voices to project.
hey, with the decline in electrical energy for year
...we may need to de-volve to pure acoustic...save your eardrums being blasted by the 2,000 speakers...listen to classical music.
Need a string ensemble for your wedding or special event? Look no further...
4 stars for a great price. I've been to several weddings with their musicians and they get the job done.
Booking begins 3 months in advance prior to your event. For background music, it's $90/musician for string instruments for 1.5 hours + some additional travel and booking fees. This is reasonable compared to other string ensemble companies out there.
My favorite San Francisco secret? Have a friend who attends school here. You will be hooked up with sweet tickets, find a music teacher for yourself, and have an excuse to go out in Hayes Valley when you visit them after work. Also, the building is absolutely beautiful!
I went to see Symphony Parnassus here. Very new looking. The people I went with said the acoustics were good, at least better than in Herbst where they used to play. The seats aren't graduated very much so I found it hard to see the person I had come to see.
The highest quality music education available in the Bay Area.. I miss the Ortega building, but I guess Oak street is ok... So many stairs, good workout. I love to study in their library, beautiful view up there. Security guards are dead friendly (-; Practice rooms are a hassle to find when you forget to bring your badge, but that's alright.
I went to the free opera performance tonight. It featured both students and alumni. The performance gradually improved as the show progressed. The concert hall was beautiful and the acoustic was good too. Because of this event, I found out about SFCM and was amazed by the talent they showcased. I'd love to come back for more performances and student recitals.
The building and the concert hall is just amazing. They offer wonderful classes for children as well. Many of the concerts are free and it is worth checking out!
