concert review: San Francisco Girls Chorus

Last Friday I went to hear Brocelïande, Saturday the Palo Alto Philharmonic, and on Sunday, the San Francisco Girls Chorus, which I reviewed, and which has today been published. I wrote "nor do they" in the first sentence, but my editors changed "nor" to "or." I guess that's one of their newspaper editorial preferences, like avoiding Oxford commas.

Normally I don't review Christmas holiday concerts, partly because I'm not that enthused by the genre, though I don't dislike it, but more because it's difficult to review a lot of short pieces, which a carol recital will be. But this time seemed special. It was being held at Kohl Mansion, usually a venue for fairly austere instrumental chamber music of 2-4 players, rarely anything vocal, and one which takes no notice of the holidays. But this year they did, so I decided to play along.

B. didn't want to come along, since she's not a fan of children's choirs. She might have liked this one, though, as these girls were all of high-school age, and most of the time they sounded like adult women, albeit a bit lighter and fresher. But when they reverted to something younger, it was painful enough that B. was better off staying away. Two dozen teenage girls screeching in a small and highly reveberant room is not a sound you want to travel to hear.

But most of it was excellent. I wrote in the review of arrangements that were "quite complex with melodic and harmonic lines weaving in all directions." That's the summary of lots of notes I took about some of the remarkable things going on, all of it memorized, all of it clear as crystal, and as sparkling too.

Without B., then, I asked L., who is also a choral singer and was sure to appreciate it. We both figured to dress up a little for the spirit of the occasion. She was in red and fuzzy, and I figured my color scheme this way: I have a green shirt, I should match it with a red tie. But I don't have a red tie, so I chose the closest thing I do have: maroon background with little blue shapes of US states scattered over it. And we had a pleasant time of the concert.