In Conversation with Gautier Capuçon: Collaboration, Connection and the Sound of Earth
An interview with the world-renowned cellist Gautier Capuçon. Plus, a tale of sisters takes the stage at Berkeley Rep and Cal Performances shares a taste of Manual Cinema’s upcoming show.
You had probably the most dramatic debut anyone has ever had with the San Francisco Symphony. [In 2009, Capuçon was stricken with appendicitis after his first rehearsal of the Schumann Cello Concerto and underwent emergency surgery].
After the operation I called [guest conductor Semyon Bychkov] and I said, ‘Look, Semyon, I didn’t come all the way from Paris just to go to the hospital. I want to play!’ He and the Orchestra were so kind that they actually didn’t replace me; they substituted another orchestral piece in the first two concerts. So I made my debut at the last concert. It’s of course a debut that I will never forget! Every time I’ve been to San Francisco since then we joke about it. The SF Symphony is a great family, and I’m always very happy to make music with them.
What can you tell us about the concerto you are playing here in the spring?
The Saint-Saëns First Concerto is of course one of the most-played cello concertos; I’ve played it since I was very young. It’s very alive, and really well-written for the cello, very operatic in a way, dramatic, and romantic.
On the Stage
The Hills of California
Theatre | Berkeley Repertory Theatre
Now – December 7 | Tickets
Internationally renowned Olivier and Tony Award-winning playwright Jez Butterworth weaves the compelling, tender, and savagely funny tale of the Webb sisters’ return to their childhood home in an English seaside town.
More Events
- Parsifal | San Francisco Opera | Now – November 13 | View Print Program
- Stereophonic | American Conservatory Theater & BroadwaySF | Now – November 23
- Sally & Tom | Marin Theatre | Now – November 23
- Twelfth Night | Cal Performances | November 9
Next Line
- Check out the trailer for Manual Cinema’s The Fourth Witch, an inventive production inspired by Macbeth that is making its Bay Area premiere this month.
- Berkeley Rep announces their first ever Company in Residence: The Formerly Incarcerated Peoples’ Performance Project. Get a taste of what FIPPP is all about this month with Solo Salon Sundays.
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