Music I'm Listening To: The San Francisco Symphony

I attended the Friday, March 20 performance of the San Francisco Symphony at Davies Symphony Hall. On the program were Overture to Euryanthe (Carl Maria Von Weber), Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 9, an early work that I have surely heard before but didn't really recognize, and Dvorak's Symphony No. 7, perhaps my favorite of them (but it's hard not to like No. 8 and No. 9 as well). The soloist in the Mozart was Jan Lisiecki, a Canadian-born pianist that appears to be well known, but I hadn't been aware of him. The guest conductor was Andrés Orozco-Estrada. 

Orozco-Estrada was a lot of fun to watch. Some conductors barely move. Orozco-Estrada was virtually dancing on the podium, and with great energy, his baton seemingly a wizard's wand. It was a uniformly excellent concert, but I thought his reading of the Dvorak was particularly good. The audience seemed to agree with me. The concert ended with a prolonged standing ovation. 

According to the program notes, Orozco-Estrada will take over as director of the Swedish Radio Symphony next season. He has in the past been the music director of the Houston Symphony, and conducted the Hesse Radio Symphony and the Vienna Symphony. 

Miscellaneous: A quiet moment of near symmetry

At Davies Symphony Hall last night, during intermission, I made my usual climb up the stairs (96 of them; I counted this time) to the balcony that overlooks Van Ness Avenue and City Hall. Near the doors that lead outside is a sitting area where I captured this quiet moment of near symmetry. 

Miscellaneous: Gas Prices

Thanks to the reckless actions of our Great Leader, gasoline prices have jumped, sharply. Two weeks ago, I was paying about $4.19/gallon for regular. Locally (Santa Rosa) gas is now approaching $6/gallon. In San Francisco last night, I saw it well over $6/gallon, with diesel near $7.50/gallon. 

Places I'm Visiting: Bodega Bay

I was out at Bodega Bay recently for a dinner at Terrapin Creek Café. Yes, I took my camera. Yes, I took pictures of birds. Nothing unusual was flying around, but I got some good shots of Western Gulls in flight – and the food was excellent.

The Western Gulls present were in at least three different plumages. Some were fully adult birds, and some were already nesting on the rocks off Bodega Head. Some were nearly fully adult, with no white in the primary flight feathers and with black dots on the bill, which I usually associate with California Gulls, but apparently any Gull with a red spot on the bill as an adult may have a remnant of the dark, immature bill color remaining for some time. 

We watched the sun go down over the Pacific. There was a small crowd at Bodega Head doing the same. 

 

Miscellaneous: 50 years without a ticket

I realized recently that I've been a licensed driver now for 50 years, as I got my driver's license on my 16th Birthday or thereabouts. 50 years and never a ticket. I learned to drive a stick shift. This was the car I learned to drive on, a FIAT 128 3P Coupe.