Great Upcoming Vocal Music Events

By Robyn Greene, VoiceBox Listings Editor





Contemporary opera/song cycle excerpts featured at Feb. 8 Shanghai Celebration Concert

Get tickets at www.sfcm.edu/shanghai.aspx or by calling 415.503.6275

The Conservatory is delighted to showcase leading Chinese mezzo-soprano and San Francisco resident Zheng Cao at a historic concert celebrating the new sister-school relationship between the San Francisco and Shanghai Conservatories of Music. The concert will be held Feb. 8, 2010 at 8 p.m. in the Conservatory’s Caroline H. Hume Concert Hall.

Ms. Zheng will perform “Phenomenal Woman” and “The Gamut” from David Garner’s song cycle Phenomenal Woman; “Hostess Aria” from Gordon Getty’s opera Plump Jack; “As Adam, Early in the Morning,” from Joseph Gregorio’s song cycle Five Whitman Songs; and Jake Heggie’s What Lips My Lips Have Kissed.


Soul Legend Irma Thomas and The Professionals at Yoshi's Jazz Club Yoshi's Jazz Club and Restaurant (San Francisco, CA)
Feb 1 - 7

Acclaimed Jazz Singer Paula West with the George Mesterhazy Quartet at the Rrazz Room Rrazz Room @ Hotel Nikko (San Francisco, CA) Paula West sings at the Rrazz Room at Hotel Nikko, accompanied by the George Mesterhazy Quartet. Paula's sound is often compared to Billie Holiday and Lena Horne. She's received three New York Nightlife Awards for Outstanding Female Jazz Vocalist. In 2008, she was the first singer to play the Rrazz Room.

Feb 1 - Mar 7

Mahalia: Featuring Nationally Acclaimed Recording Artist Jeanie Tracy as Mahalia Jackson

Lorraine Hansberry Theatre (San Francisco, CA)

Mahalia: A Gospel Musical chronicles the life of Mahalia Jackson, who rose from poverty to become a reknowned gospel singer, performing at John F. Kennedy's inauguration and at the historic March on Washington in 1963. This gospel musical celebrates her life and her music. Jeanie Tracy, who plays Mahalia Jackson has formerly played her off-Broadway in Sing Mahalia Sing. She has also appeared on Ed McMahon's Star Search and has released several top ten records.

Feb 15 - Mar 7

Top Shelf's Motown Madness, The Musical at Pier 39 Theatre 39 (San Francisco, CA)

This hit-filled R&B revue at J'LaChic Theatre 39 traces a narrated musical journey from the early days of Motown to the classic soul sounds of today. The songs of Stevie Wonder, the Temptations, the Four Tops, Smokey Robinson, Diana Ross and more are performed by Bay Area trio Top Shelf, accompanied by female vocalists and dancers.

Feb 8 - 28

Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco: 7th Annual Love Bites Anti-Valentine's Cabaret
The Women's Building (San Francisco, CA)

Cupid takes a well-deserved beating -- again -- as the Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco's popular Anti-Valentine's Day Cabaret & Musical Extravaganza returns for its 7th year. The 2010 installment -- Love Bites: And All That Jazz -- features new arrangements of old favorites, from classic jazz to twisted tunes.

Feb 1 - 14

Maria Volante in Tango Cabaret at the Rrazz Room

Rrazz Room @ Hotel Nikko (San Francisco, CA)

The Marriage of Figaro
Opera San José presents Mozart's humorous and touching, The Marriage of Figaro, opening February 6 to 21 at the magnificent California Theatre in downtown San Jose. Experience the greatest comic opera of all time - sung in Italian with English supertitles. For tickets go to operasj.org.