“The fire that gutted Berkeley’s historic First Congregational Church last Friday, Sept. 30, landed a blow not only to the congregation itself but also to the many musical organizations that use the sanctuary as a performance venue,” writes Joshua Kosman in Friday’s (10/7) San Francisco Chronicle (subscription required). “As of this week, many were still scrambling to find substitute locations for concerts.… So far, just two concerts have been successfully relocated. The California Bach Society’s performance of Bach’s ‘St. Matthew Passion,’ scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 9, will take place in Hertz Hall on the UC Berkeley campus, and a performance on Oct. 15 by the Left Coast Chamber Ensemble and the chorus Volti has found a new home at Berkeley’s First Presbyterian Church. But some half a dozen other organizations—orchestras, chamber groups and choruses—have spent the week searching for a space that could approximate First Congregational’s combination of size, intimacy, and acoustics.… Philharmonia Baroque’s season opener, an all-Beethoven program featuring fortepianist Robert Levin, was scheduled for performances in First Congregational on Oct. 16 and 22. [Philharmonia Baroque Interim Executive Director Parker] Monroe said he and his staff have spent the week touring Berkeley venues to find a replacement.”
Posted October 7, 2016
