San Francisco Symphony's SoundBox: A Musical Experience to Put on Your Bucket List
March 25, 2018
If you're wanting to check out classical music for the first time or you're looking for a unique concert experience that enhances your passions for music, SoundBox is the answer! Watch our exclusive behind-the-scenes video to see why this is a Bay Area bucket list experience.
The San Francisco Symphony has taken a backstage area and transformed it into a multi-media concert series that has gained a lot of attention. General Admission tickets are just $45 and have been known to sell out in four-minutes flat - for both nights!
Instead of theater chairs, they have filled the room with lounge furniture, hightops and bar stools. Drinks and bites are served all night with multiple intermissions so you can chat with your friends and meet new people. "This is my fifth SoundBox concert that I've been to," said Hooman Khalili, Radio Host from Alice 97.3. "It's are really neat and innovative way to see classical music and I always have a great time!"
These concerts happen about every other month with different and innovative programs that are set to a theme. Their most recent concert curated by Christian Reif (San Francisco Symphony's Resident Conductor and Youth Orchestra Music Director) was all about how music affects your senses.
"I think it's so interesting that music can activate and engage our all of your senses at the same time," said Christian. "SoundBox is the perfect space to isolate these things and let you experience them in a multi-sensory space."
Guests are brought in to collaborate with the San Francisco Symphony to introduce and showcase other musicians that are breaking the barriers around classical music. Recently, they featured members from the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), a group of over 35 musicians based in New York City that performs and explores how new music intersects with communities across the world.
"It has been a lot of fun performing with members of the San Francisco Symphony and celebrating the music of Pauline Oliveros because she started her work as an experimental composer in the Bay Area," said Rebekah Heller, ICE's Bassoonist and Artist Director.
What also makes this concert experience so you unique is the SOUND. San Francisco Symphony installed the mind-blowing Meyer Sound System that can transform the acoustics in the space.
"We can fill this space with any combination of sound, "said Eugene Izotov, San Francisco Symphony's Principal Oboist. "The Meyer Sound System allows us to sounds as if we're playing at Twin Peak, Notre Dame, or even in a basement. The sound has no limit and the oboe has the ability to provide all kinds of amazing color in this wonderful space."
Addict Insider Tips:
- Tickets generally go on sale about a month before the event around a 10 am timeframe. Follow them on Facebook to get notifications!
- Seats go FAST so make you show up at least an hour before to get in line.
- There are multiple stages set-up for in the space for different performances. The best seats in the house are always in the middle so you get the perfect view of all of them.
Addict Insider:
- This space is also used by the San Francisco Opera as a rehearsal space! It's an exact replicate of the War Memorial's stage that even has an orchestra pit.
- The programming for these concerts is a bit of a fun mystery until you arrive. SoundBox is for the curious.
- By contributing towards the continuation of these concerts, you can receive some pretty awesome perks!
Want to win a ticket to their next SOLD OUT concert on April 6th?? Click HERE!
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