San Francisco Chronicle
By Joshua Kosman
October 23, 2017
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Samuel Barber’s Violin Concerto, which dates from the 1940s (there were some revisions), is one of the great crowd-pleasers of the mid-20th century. Like much of Barber’s music, it’s sufficiently lyrical and accessible to please the more traditional-minded listener, while also being sturdy and strong-minded.
And if you don’t care for the first two movements, the finale — which takes a sudden and somewhat mysterious swerve into extroverted display — is waiting in the wings with something different.
The wonderfully thoughtful violinist Jennifer Koh is in the Bay Area on Sunday, Oct. 29, and Tuesday, Oct. 31, to play this concerto with Music Director Alasdair Neale and the Marin Symphony. Also on the program are familiar Russian masterpieces by Mussorgsky and Tchaikovsky.
Marin Symphony: 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 29. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 31. $45-$85. Marin Veterans’ Memorial Auditorium, 10 Avenue of the Flags, San Rafael. (415) 479-8100. www.marinsymphony.org
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