Cal Performances Awashed in Sounds of Music

An amazing array of star musicians is lining up for winter stints at Cal Performances, notorious for seeking and finding the ultimate best in the world of art and all over the world.
1. A modern virtuoso, Israeli-American violinist Gil Shaham brings his expressive style to Zellerbach Hall on Berkeley campus on January 20, 2008 at 3 p.m. Recognized worldwide as one of the most engaging and technically proficient classical artists, violinist Gil Shaham will be accompanied by Akira Eguchi (piano). Shaham will perform six pieces by William Walton, Johann Sebastian Bach, JoaquinRodrigo and Pablo de Sarasate. Shaham is "a sensitive, subtle musician, strongly inclined to rich, multi-shaded tonal nuances and romantic expressiveness of phrasing," with "one of the fastest and most accurate pairs of hands of any violinist now performing" (Washington Post).
Tickets $34.00, $48.00, and $62.00 are available through the Cal Performances Ticket Office at Zellerbach Hall; at (510)642-9988 to charge by phone; at http://www.calperformances.org/; and at the door. Half-price tickets are available for UC Berkeley students. UC Berkeley Campus Bancroft Way at Telegraph Ave., Berkeley.
2. "One of the most impressive young pianists on the horizon today" (The Washington Post), Christopher Taylor returns to Cal Performances with his tour de force performance of Olivier Messiaen's Vingt Regards sur l'Enfant-Jésus on Sunday, January 27 at 3 p.m. in Hertz Hall. Taylor is a pianist equally comfortable with both classical and contemporary material, bringing his intensity and artistry to the works of masters ranging from Bach and Beethoven to Boulez and Bolcom. Taylor will perform the 176-page piece entirely from memory.
Tickets $34.00, are available through the CalPerformances Ticket Office (see above).
3. The incomparable Richard Goode performs works by Beetchoven, Bach, Chopin, Debussy and Faures on Sunday, February 3 at 3 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall. Noted for his brilliantly intuitive and revelatory interpretations, Goode has set the music world abuzz over a span of decades. His Cal Performances program features an assortment of pieces rich in variety yet all bearing witness to the intensity with which Goode delves into the composer's inner thoughts.
Tickets at $34.00, $48.00 and $62.00 are available at Cal Performances web site http://www.calperformances.org/ (see above).
4. Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis swings into Zellerbach Hall on Saturday, January 26 at 8 p.m. Multi-Grammy winner Marsalis showcases the music of Duke Ellington with the "greatest large jazz ensemble working today" (The Chicago Tribune). Under the artistic leadership of trumpeter Marsalis, the band of 15 finest jazz soloists and ensemble players will perform Love Songs, written and made famous by Ellington, one of the most significant musicians and composers in American history. The program will also draw on other repertoire from the jazz canon, including tunes by jazz luminaries and new and original music by members of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.
Tickets at $34.00, $48.00 and $68.00 are available through the Cal Performances Ticket Office at Zellerbach Hall (see above). More info at http://www.calperformances.org/.