San Francisco Girls Chorus Explores Folk Songs of the World with Latin Grammy Nominee Sam Reider at Davies Symphony Hall
Photos available in high resolution at www.sfgirlschorus.org/press-room.
San Francisco Girls Chorus Presents SFGC Winter Concert: Folk Songs of the World
at Davies Symphony Hall on December 11
With Special Guest Latin Grammy Nominee Accordionist Sam Reider
Valérie Sainte-Agathe, Artistic Director
Monday, December 11, 2023 at 7pm
Davies Symphony Hall | 201 Van Ness Ave. | San Francisco, CA
Tickets & Information: www.sfgirlschorus.org/performances
San Francisco Girls Chorus: www.sfgirlschorus.org
Press Room: www.sfgirlschorus.org/press-room
San Francisco, CA – The San Francisco Girls Chorus (SFGC) continues its 2023-2024 season with its highly anticipated annual concert at Davies Symphony Hall, SFGC Winter Concert: Folk Songs of the World, on Monday, December 11, 2023 at 7pm. The concert will feature hundreds of singers from the Premier Ensemble, the entire six-level Chorus School, SFGC alumnae, and special guest accordionist and 2023 Latin Grammy nominee, Sam Reider. Led by Artistic Director Valérie Sainte-Agathe, SFGC is celebrating 45 years of empowering young women through music this season.
SFGC Winter Concert: Folk Songs of the World is inspired by folk music traditions from around the world, combining traditional favorites (including Silent Night), new works, and hidden gems from the holiday choral repertoire. "One of my favorite moments in the year is the concert at Davies Symphony Hall, when we have 300 children on stage,” says Sainte-Agathe. “You hear and feel the power of the sound. One reason our singers remain motivated is that each time they're on stage, they have this feeling that they are performing, and doing it really well after practicing so much. They realize that their music is moving and touching to people; sometimes people are so moved that they’re crying. That's so powerful. There is really nothing else like it."
Guest artist Sam Reider, who is based in San Francisco, has performed, recorded, and collaborated with a range of artists including Jon Batiste, Jorge Glem, Sierra Hull, Laurie Lewis, and Paquito d’Rivera. From his genre-bending acoustic ensemble The Human Hands to his duo collaboration with Grammy-nominated Venezuelan artist Jorge Glem, his unique compositional voice and melodicism runs throughout his eclectic projects.
Since 1978, SFGC has provided girls and young women the unique opportunity not only to perform at the highest artistic caliber, but also to develop self-confidence, leadership skills, and an awareness of the role of the arts in civic engagement. A leader in the Bay Area and national music scenes, SFGC produces award-winning concerts, recordings and tours; empowers young women in music and other fields; and sets the international standard for the highest level of performance and education. SFGC has been recognized through numerous honors including five GRAMMY Awards, four ASCAP/Chorus America Awards for Adventurous Programming, and in 2002, becoming the first youth chorus to receive Chorus America's prestigious Margaret Hillis Achievement Award for Choral Excellence. Each year, hundreds of singers of diverse backgrounds from 45 Bay Area cities ranging in age from age four to eighteen participate in SFGC’s programs. The organization consists of a six-level Chorus School training program and the Premier Ensemble, a professional-level chorus of treble voices.
Under the direction of Valérie Sainte-Agathe, SFGC has achieved an incomparable sound that underscores the unique clarity and force of impeccably trained treble voices fused with expressiveness and drama. As a result, the SFGC vibrantly performs 1,000 years of choral masterworks from plainchant to the most challenging and nuanced contemporary works, many created expressly for them, in programs that are as intelligently designed as they are enjoyable and revelatory to experience. The SFGC 2023-2024 season is no exception.
SFGC's season continues on March 9, 2024 when the Premier Ensemble performs Vivaldi’s Juditha Triumphans at Z Space, with music direction by Valérie Sainte-Agathe and stage direction by Céline Ricci. The Premier Ensemble’s season concludes with a collaboration with renowned percussionist and composer Haruka Fujii on May 19, 2024 at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. On May 30, 2024, the Chorus School will showcase singers from Levels 1 through IV at its annual Chorus School Spring Concert at the Scottish Rite Masonic Center, coming together to celebrate their accomplishments from the year individually and as a school. In addition, SFGC ensembles will perform throughout the Bay Area in collaboration this season with other organizations and artists including the East Bay Philharmonic, Sunset Music & Arts, Lisa Mezzacappa, and the Amateur Music Network.
More about the San Francisco Girls Chorus: www.sfgirlschorus.org/about
More about Valérie Sainte-Agathe: www.sfgirlschorus.org/valerie-sainte-agathe
More about Sam Reider: www.samreidermusic.com/about
San Francisco Girls Chorus - Upcoming Highlights
SFGC Winter Concert: Folk Songs of the World
with Latin Grammy-Nominee Accordionist Sam Reider
December 11, 2023 at 7pm
Davies Symphony Hall, 201 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA
SFGC Premier Ensemble in Vivaldi’s Juditha Triumphans
Music direction by Valérie Sainte-Agathe & stage direction by Celine Ricci
March 9, 2024 at 7:30pm & March 10, 2024 at 2pm
Z Space, 450 Florida St, San Francisco, CA
SFGC Premier Ensemble with Percussionist & Composer Haruka Fujii
May 19, 2024 at 3pm
San Francisco Conservatory of Music, 50 Oak St, San Francisco, CA
Chorus School Spring Concert
Featuring a World Premiere by SFGC Composer-in-Residence Sahba Aminikia
May 30, 2024
Scottish Rite Masonic Center, 2850 19th Ave, San Francisco, CA
Tickets & information: www.sfgirlschorus.org
The San Francisco Girls Chorus receives support from Grants for the Arts, The Kimball Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Sequoia Trust, The Aaron Copland Fund for Music, Inc., The Sam Mazza Foundation, The Bernard Osher Foundation, and The Morris Stulsaft Foundation.