2026 - 2027 Season | Concerts at a glance
The intimate musical experience which chamber music brings is surely like nothing else — the close connection between audience and performers reminds us of how music can be that magic ingredient which invites a variety of perspectives while also finding our common humanity. Like a mosaic, or carefully-crafted rug or quilt, our concerts will weave together music of all different colors, shapes and sizes into a surprising and yet complete whole. Our second Winter Wandering Festival juxtaposes old and new music to explore timeless themes of home and belonging, with Left Coast inviting in guest artists, speakers, and wider connections to our community.
We really look forward to seeing you at our concerts this season!
— Matilda Hofman, Artistic Director
FALL CONCERTS
Impossible Inventions
Saturday, September 19, 2026, 7:30 PM (Noe Valley Ministry, San Francisco)
Sunday, September 20, 2026, 4:00 PM (Berkeley Piano Club, Berkeley)
Music full of youthful brilliance and optimism opens our season: we celebrate the music of the new generation through our Pathways program, alongside Mendelssohn’s beautiful E-flat major quartet and music from Paul Novak, the winner of Left Coast’s composition competition.
Mozart Clarinet Quintet
Saturday, November 21, 2026, 7:30 PM (Noe Valley Ministry, San Francisco)
Sunday, November 22, 2026, 4:00 PM (First Church of Christ, Scientist, Berkeley)
A paean to all the many different personalities of the clarinet, this program sets Mozart’s quintet, written for his dear friend Anton Stadler alongside a new work written specially for Left Coast clarinetist Jerome Simas.
WINTER WANDERING FESTIVAL
Saturday, January 16 - Monday, January 18, 2027
In Left Coast’s second Winter Wandering Festival, contemporary explorations of the themes of home and displacement meet similar preoccupations in the music of Mahler and Janacek. Guest artist Hesam Abedini imagines these ideas through Persian and contemporary improvisation, and guest speaker and historian Sheer Ganor discusses ideas of home through the lens of those who have lost it. Left Coast gives the west coast premieres of seven new works! Join us for a thought-provoking weekend of music, community and discussion.
Maps
Saturday, January 16, 2027, 11:00 AM (First Church of Christ, Scientist, Berkeley)
LCCE connects with community members to perform Brittany Green’s Maps and a special performance with Iranian composer and improviser, Hesam Abedini for a sonic exploration of physical space and our place within it.
Displacement: Talk & Music
Saturday, January 16, 2027, 6:00 PM (First Church of Christ, Scientist, Berkeley)
Guest lecture on the themes of displacement and migration, with music by Hesam Abedini. Followed by a festive reception with complimentary refreshments.
On an Overgrown Path
Saturday, January 16, 2027, 7:30 PM (First Church of Christ, Scientist, Berkeley)
Six newly-composed miniatures for ensemble on the theme of What Is Home? alongside Janacek’s wistful and moody vignettes of place and memory.
Songs of a Wayfarer (East Bay)
Sunday, January 17, 2027, 4:00 PM (First Church of Christ, Scientist, Berkeley)
Songs by Joni Mitchell and Hildegard von Bingen are remixed in new versions by Kurt Rohde. These meet Ty Bloomfeld’s poignant exploration of love and beauty and Gustav Mahler’s songs about wandering and heartbreak, weaving together common themes over the centuries.
Songs of a Wayfarer (San Francisco)
Monday, January 18, 2027, 4:00 PM (Noe Valley Ministry, San Francisco)
Six new miniatures exploring the nature of Home are set alongside Gustav Mahler’s Songs of a Wayfarer.
SPRING CONCERT
Ephemera: Rebecca Clarke and Friends
Saturday, May 22, 2027 (Piedmont Center for the Arts, Piedmont)
Sunday, May 23, 2027 (Noe Valley Ministry, San Francisco)
On the threshold of impressionism, romanticism, and modernism, Rebecca Clarke’s imaginative compositions are now at the heart of chamber music and the viola repertoire. This concert puts her music in the perspective of other British and American composers who followed in her footsteps.
Image credit: Copyright Sally K. Smith, used by permission of Artist. The banner image is a detail of The Shortest Day Is Not the Earliest Sunset.
