SFCM Announces New Program in Technology and Applied Composition
 SFCM will soon offer composers professional training in the production studio as well as the concert hall to ready them for careers in the burgeoning fields of sound design and film and video game scoring. A new Technology and Applied Composition (TAC) Program, now accepting undergraduate applications for 2015, will draw on the expertise of SFCM's academic faculty as well as industry professionals from leading Bay Area media companies including Electronic Arts and Skywalker Sound. Composers will have access to newly-outfitted production studios with state-of-the-art equipment sponsored by Meyer Sound, sE Electronics and AMS Neve. Read more.
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Master Classes Feature Hampson, Zajick and Katz
 During one week in early October, legendary opera singers Thomas Hampson and Dolora Zajick make two special appearances at SFCM, leading spontaneous and wide-ranging classes on vocal technique, interpretation, diction, character and other facets of professional performance. Later in the month, pianist Martin Katz, accompanist to the world's most celebrated singers, shares his vast knowledge of opera and art song. All classes are free and open to the public. Reservations for Thomas Hampson are required. Thomas Hampson, baritone Monday, October 6, 7 PM Concert Hall, Free, RR* More informationDolora Zajick Wednesday, October 8, 7:30 PM Concert Hall, Free More informationMartin Katz, vocal coaching Thursday, October 30, 7:30 PM Recital Hall, Free More information
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The nation's top music critics will convene at SFCM to discuss and pass on their craft to aspiring young writers at The Stephen and Cynthia Rubin Institute for Music Criticism from November 5 to 10. The Rubin Institute Writers Panel includes Anne Midgette of the Washington Post; Tim Page, professor of journalism and music at the University of Southern California; writer and arts critic John Rockwell; Alex Ross of The New Yorker; Heidi Waleson of The Wall Street Journal, and Rubin Institute benefactor Stephen Rubin, President and Publisher of Henry Holt & Co. The New York Times chief music critic Anthony Tommasini will give the keynote address. Student Fellows from five schools including SFCM will vie for the $10,000 Rubin Prize in Music Criticism by reviewing four public performances presented during the Institute by Cal Performances, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, San Francisco Opera and the San Francisco Symphony. Read more.
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Everyone's a Critic!
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The Rubin Institute invites members of the public to unleash their inner critic by competing for the $1,000 Everyone's a Critic Audience Review Prize. Audience members who attend one or more of the four Institute-affiliated performances may submit a review via the institute's website. And like the pros, they'll be held to a deadline that falls just hours after the last curtain call. Institute Critic-in-Residence Joshua Kosman of the San Francisco Chronicle will chair the panel that selects the best review submitted by an audience member. To attend concerts and pre-concert lectures, individuals must purchase tickets directly from the Institute's performance partners. All events held at SFCM are free. Find all details at www.sfcm.edu/rubin-institute.
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Voice Teacher Ulloa and Student Grisez Honored at Convocation
 San Francisco Conservatory of Music voice faculty César Ulloa received the Sarlo Family Foundation Award for Excellence in Teaching at a special Convocation ceremony held in the Caroline H. Hume Concert Hall on Wednesday, September 24. President David H. Stull and foundation benefactor and Conservatory Trustee George S. Sarlo bestowed the annual award, which recognizes outstanding faculty members at several educational institutions in Northern California. SFCM also granted the Presser Scholarship, an award for musical achievement and academic excellence, to Mark Grisez '15. The collegiate senior recently won a one-year appointment as acting associate principal trumpet with the San Francisco Symphony. Read more. See this month's featured video at right for a faculty profile of César Ulloa.
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BluePrint Celebrates Elinor Armer
 Throughout this year, SFCM honors composer Elinor Armer, founder and former chair of SFCM's composition department, both for her contributions to the school and in celebration of her 75th birthday. The BluePrint New Music Series kicks off the festivities and opens its season with From the Heart, a concert of works by Armer and seven of her former students, all noted SFCM alumni. Artistic director Nicole Paiement conducts a program that also features Schoenberg's Herzgewächse with soprano Chelsea Hollow '14. Saturday, October 4, 8 PM*................  Concert Hall, $20/15 More information Purchase ticketsBluePrint invites audiences to meet Elinor Armer and other composers for casual conversation and glass of wine at Tête-à-tête, a pre-concert event at 7:20 on the Deleage Level. The composers will discuss their work during Creative Conversation Fridays, a free, public forum on October 3 at 6 p.m.
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50 Years of Guitar at SFCM and Other Faculty Recitals
SFCM's groundbreaking guitar department celebrates its history of bringing the instrument's finest practitioners to the Conservatory, both as teachers and students, with a special 50th Anniversary Concert. Acclaimed faculty artists Sérgio Assad, Lawrence Ferrara, Richard Savino, Marc Teicholz and department chair David Tanenbaum '78 are joined by accomplished former faculty, alumni and students of the Conservatory Guitar Ensemble. The performance also showcases the Harris Guitar Collection of rare and historic instruments on display at SFCM and regularly used by students for practice, performance and recording. For those who can't attend, the concert will streamed live on the web. Faculty artists also perform chamber music and solo recitals on viola, cello, piano and tuba throughout October. Visit our performance calendar for full details.
Saturday, October 11, 8 PM Concert Hall, Free More information
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| The flourishing video game industry is creating a multitude of opportunities for composers. But as the field rapidly evolves, so do the skills that are required of an aspiring game composer. Game On! An Insider's Guide to Video Game Scoring invites masters in the field including Dren McDonald, Sean McMahon and Lennie Moore to discuss technical and practical tips for launching a career in video game music. Events include a "Demo Derby" and live concert.  SFCM hosts Game On! on November 1 and 2 in partnership with the American Composers Forum. Register here and look for more details in the next issue of Take Note.
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Conservatory Orchestra Flies its Russian Colors
A century ago, a headstrong St. Petersburg Conservatory student had the gumption to perform his own composition instead of an accepted masterpiece in the school's piano concerto competition. The gamble worked, and this month Conservatory Orchestra music director Scott Sandmeier conducts Sergei Prokofiev's prize-winning Piano Concerto No. 1 in a performance featuring a more recent concerto competition winner, Jing'er Xu '15. The program also features Shostakovich's Symphony No. 10 in E Minor. Saturday, October 18, 8 PM and Sunday, October 19, 2 PM................ Concert Hall, $20/15 More information Purchase tickets
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Arrivals and a Notable Departure  Bess Touma is departing the Conservatory following 14 years of outstanding service as Director of Development, Vice President of Advancement and, most recently, Associate Vice President for Development Affairs to the President. She has been an indefatigable advocate of the school, a constant booster of its students, faculty and alumni, and a fixture at Conservatory concerts and events. Among her many accomplishments, Touma created the Conservatory Society and the Corporate Council and played a critical role in the $65 million capital campaign that enabled SFCM to move to the Civic Center in 2006. Her energy and warmth will be greatly missed. New faces in the Office of Advancement this fall include Michael Lawrence, director of development, Shannon Moats, development information manager, and Micaela McNulty, advancement assistant. Shase Hernandez '14 is manning SFCM's online ship of state as interim digital communications manager. Other new staff members include alumnus and composer Ryan Brown '05, who takes up a new post as director of professional development in the Professional Development and Engagement Center, and Taurin Barrera, SFCM's new studio coordinator, who will assist with the installation, maintenance and management of new music technology labs.
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Upcoming Concerts
SEPTEMBER
Orchestra | Scott Sandmeier, conductor
with Nicholas Denton '17, cello
Creative Conversations | Elinor Armer, composer and others 3 Friday, 8 PM POSTPONED UNTIL NOV. 17Faculty Artist Series Catherine Cook, mezzo-soprano 4 Friday, 8 PM $20/15.................... BluePrint | Nicole Paiement, director "From the Heart" Celebrating faculty composer Elinor Armer
Kristin Pankonin Memorial Concert
Master Class | Thomas Hampson, baritone 6 Monday, 8 PM FREE Faculty Artist Series Jean-Michel Fonteneau, cello 7 Tuesday, 8 PM FREE Voice Department Recital 8 Wednesday, 7:30 PM FREE Master Class | Dolora Zajick, mezzo-soprano Joint Faculty Recital | Bettina Mussumeli, violin Mack McCray, piano and Bonnie Hampton, cello 11 Saturday, 8 PM FREE Faculty Artist Recital Guitar Department 50th Anniversary Concert 15 Wednesday, 8 PM FREE Faculty Artist Recital | Sarah Cahill, piano 16 Thursday, 8 PM FREE Guitar Department Recital 17 Friday, 7:30 PM FREE Master Class | Elizabeth Wright, harpsichord Orchestra | Scott Sandmeier, conductor with Jing'er Xu '15, piano 20 Monday, 8 PM FREE Faculty Artist Series | William Wellborn, piano 22 Thursday, 8 PM FREE Piano Department Recital 26 Sunday, 2 PM FREE Faculty Artist Series OcTUBAfest: Jeffrey Anderson, tuba 27 Monday, 8 PM FREE, RR* Faculty Artist Series | Don Ehrlich, viola 27 Monday, 8 PM FREE OcTUBAfest: Tuba student showcase 28 Tuesday, 7:30 PM FREE Master Class | Telegraph Quartet 30 Thursday, 7:30 PM FREE Master Class | Martin Katz, vocal coaching 30 Thursday, 8 PM $20/15.................. Chamber Music Presents | Telegraph Quartet
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View our performance calendar for complete information including concert changes and updates. RR* = Reservations required. Call the Box Office for tickets and reservations at 415.503.6275. Conservatory SupportersTo reserve tickets, please contact June Hom at 415.503.6201 or jhom@sfcm.edu. To become a Conservatory supporter visit our website.
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 | Faculty member and Sarlo Award recipient
César Ulloa
discusses guiding students through school and onto major opera stages.
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SFCM's guitar department celebrates its 50th Anniversary with a special concert on October 11 (details at left). But the school's first guitar student enjoys a longer history still. In 1948, Robert Symmonds began studies at the Conservatory that led to a life of playing and riding the rails as Guitar Whitey. Archivist Tessa Updike relates the story of Symmonds and his teacher Clarence Easley as part of SFCM's Oral History Project.
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Friends of the Conservatory are invited to a String and Piano Chamber Music Class and Rehearsal on October 16 at 4 p.m. Friend Larry Zabo recommends the event highly, because: "Chamber music transports me as much as a whole orchestra playing. When Conservatory students are led by faculty or guest performers, they become inspired and present an elevated, more passionate performance." Friends may reserve seats for this rehearsal by emailing dvsa@sfcm.edu.
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Kristin Pankonin '89 Memorial Concert SFCM hosts a concert celebrating the life of alumna and pianist Kristin Pankonin '89 on Sunday, October 5 at 7 p.m. A wide cross-section of the Conservatory community knew Pankonin as a staff pianist, gifted collaborator and close friend. Performers will include mezzo-soprano and trustee advisor Frederica von Stade, voice faculty chair Catherine Cook and numerous SFCM alumni. The concert also marks the launch of a fund at SFCM honoring Pankonin's musical legacy and supporting the creation and performance of new art song. Sunday, October 5, 7 p.m. Concert Hall
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Colyer Makes the CoverStar soprano Patricia Racette shines on the cover of September's Opera News magazine. But in this case, the artistry on display belongs to Abigail Colyer '12. Colyer, a freelance fashion and costume stylist, has also worked for Inspirare Magazine as stylist and head fashion blogger, consulted for numerous San Francisco boutiques, and costumed productions such as Pierrot lunaire by the SFCM alumni ensemble Nonsemble 6. After receiving a B.M. in voice as a student of Pamela Fry, Colyer landed a stint in the costume shop at San Francisco Opera. The rest is fashion history.
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David SubkeThe Conservatory community was saddened to learn of the death of former flute faculty David Subke on August 24. In addition to teaching at the Conservatory from 1980 to 1987, Subke founded the Mill Valley Chamber Music Society, performed as assistant principal flute of the Oakland Ballet Orchestra and pursued a career in real estate for almost thirty years. At the request of David's family, donations in his memory may be sent to the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, 50 Oak Street, San Francisco, CA 94102, or be made online to provide scholarship support in his honor.
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Elevate EnsembleFriday, October 10 The Elevate Ensemble draws on the talents of several SFCM alumni in concerts that showcase multimedia collaborations and emerging composers. Elevate opens its 2014-15 concert season with a premiere by composer-in-residence Danny Clay '13 inspired by the photography of San Francisco-based urban archaeologist Jeremy Blakeslee.
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 Hausmann Quartet
Sunday, October 19
Noe Valley Chamber Music opens its season with the Hausmann Quartet at St. Mark's Lutheran Church. Praised for its "passion and commitment" (San Francisco Classical Voice), the Quartet will perform a program that explores contrast in tone and composition.
Peter Susskind gives a
pre-concert talk at 3:15 p.m. Meet the artists at a post-concert reception. Ample free parking and childcare is available. Tickets and info at nvcm.org.
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Café menu with beer and wine available from