Music in May Pop-Up Concerts

What better way to launch Music in May’s 19th season than by launching a new festival event hosted by the legendary Bookshop Santa Cruz? Think of these string orchestra community pop-up concerts as an impromptu classical “reading party” among new and old friends. There will be 2 performances on May 27, 2026. The first pop-up concert is from 11:00-11:30 a.m. and the second is from 12:00-12:30 p.m. featuring members of the Ensemble San Francisco String Quartet alongside local talent, each with a distinct program for strings and a different 19-member ensemble of musicians. A 30-minute “intermission” provides an opportunity for musicians and friends to connect and engage with one another.

It’s a reading party [no conductor], so there will be no ensemble rehearsal but individual advance preparation will surely make this a memorable “on stage” adventure! 

All of the music and concert notes are posted under the tab REPERTOIRE. There are parts for Violin 1 and 2, Viola, Cello and Bass. That will allow you to review the music and determine whether or not you are comfortable with the selections.   In total we will be selecting musicians as follows for each concert:

• 1st Violin  - 5
• 2nd Violin - 3
• Viola -  3
• Cello   - 3
• Bass - 1

There is no cost to participate other than your time.  So review the musical scores posted above and decide if you have the time and skill to devote to the repertoire.  Remember - this is supposed to be fun and community "pop-ups" are almost never "perfect". 

If you are interested in participating please complete the registration form with your personal contact information and instrument selection. Selection of participants for each concert will be via lottery for each instrument.  

Sign up by April 5th and we will notify selected players by mid-April. Registering for the concert does not guarantee participation. You will be notified of the lottery results to guarantee your participation. 

A graduate of The Juilliard School and Yale School of Music, cellist Angela Lee earned a Fulbright scholarship to study in London with William Pleeth, a grant from the Foundation for American Musicians in Europe, the Jury Prize in the Naumburg International Cello Competition, and a cello performance fellowship from the American-Scandinavian Foundation. She is a founding member of The Lee Trio, which won top prizes in the Kuhmo International Chamber Music Competition in Finland and the Gaetano Zinetti International Chamber Music Competition in Italy. In its third decade, the Trio regularly gives master classes and performs worldwide as well as commissioning and premiering works of numerous living composers. The Lee Trio has recorded on Delos, Innova, and the Chelsea Music Festival Records labels. The Trio's latest album, Midsummer Night Magic, was released in 2024 to critical acclaim. Using music to foster peace and goodwill, Angela Lee has made humanitarian trips to the Republic of the Philippines and the former Yugoslavia. While on a U.N.-sanctioned tour of six war-torn cities throughout Bosnia-Herzegovina, she performed for NATO troops and displaced civilians. Ms. Lee joined Ensemble SF in 2022 and has been coaching chamber music at SFCM since 2017. Her Neapolitan cello is made by Nicolo Gagliano dated 1762.

All parts for review.  Just scroll down the pdf for your instrument part. 

Complete score for all instruments.  Arranged By Renata Bratt. 

Click the icon below to download the attached PDF.

In this section you will find music for all the parts and the score. 

The attached pdf provides notes and references for the music, discussion of who plays parts, and some links to recordings from each piece. 

In this section you will find music for all the parts and the score. 

The attached pdf provides notes and references for the music, discussion of who plays parts, and some links to recordings from each piece. 

Note from the file:  Parts for cello and Bass are combined into one file.  All other instruments have separate parts. 

All parts for review.  Just scroll down the pdf for your instrument part. 

Complete score for all instruments

Founded in 2013, Ensemble SF is a malleable collective of musicians dedicated to inspiring a more inclusive world through art. Beyond the traditional concert hall setting, Ensemble SF is also dedicated to bringing world class music to groups throughout the Bay Area including at schools, juvenile detention centers, community centers, hospitals and nursing homes. In these outreach settings ESF musicians generously donate their time to share their love of chamber music.

Complete score and parts for all instruments

Click the icon below to download the attached PDF.

All parts for review.  Just scroll down the pdf for your instrument part.  Note that Cello and Bass are combined into one part. 

Complete score for all instruments

Click the icon below to download the attached PDF.

All parts for review.  Just scroll down the pdf for your instrument part. 

Complete score for all instruments

Click the icon below to download the attached PDF.

Award winning violinist Jennifer Choi has charted a career that breaks through the conventional boundaries of solo, chamber music, and the art of improvisation. Hailed by The New York Times as an “excellent violinist," "soulful, compelling,” Jennifer has performed worldwide in venues such as the Library of Congress in Washington D.C., the RAI National Radio in Rome, Hong Kong National Radio, and the Mozartsalle in Vienna, since giving her debut recital at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Hall in 2000. As a soloist, she has performed with groups including the Oregon Symphony, Vancouver Symphony, and SONYC. A prominent chamber musician, Jennifer was a founding violinist of the Miró String Quartet. With her involvement, the group won Grand Prize at the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition and First Prize at the Coleman Chamber Music Competition. She has performed for the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Ravinia Festival, Ravenscroft, and numerous other chamber music series worldwide.

Taiwanese-American violist Jessica Chang is the founder of Chamber Music by the Bay, which brings concerts to pre K-12 schools, libraries, and communities throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Her work as a teaching artist has led to concert residencies with Sound Impact, Project 440, the Savannah Music Festival, and Music from Angel Fire. Festival appearances include Festival Mozaic, Music in May, Bard Music West, the Perlman Workshop, Aspen, Verbier, Tanglewood, Taos, Prussia Cove, Juneau Jazz and Classics, Music from Angel Fire, and the Savannah Music Festival. As a chamber musician, she has performed throughout North America, Europe, and Asia, and her performances have been broadcast on NPR’s Performance Today, WNYC, WHYY, and WQXR Public Radio. She has also served as violist of the Afiara Quartet, including positions as the Quartet-in-Residence at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto and visiting faculty at The Banff Centre. Jessica holds degrees from Yale, The Juilliard School, and the Curtis Institute of Music, and performs with groups including Ensemble San Francisco, SAGE, Chamber Music Silicon Valley, and the Ives Collective. She leads a dual career in information security and is passionate about protecting people’s safety and security in our increasingly connected world.

Violinist Rebecca Jackson-Picht's foundational belief is that music possesses power to heal and unite. This has propelled her career and professional outreach around the globe, performing in marginalized communities across the US, Ukraine, Romania, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Nepal, Costa Rica, and Lebanon. While maintaining a regular performance schedule including as member of the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra, she contemporaneously produces projects that build community through music outside the concert hall. Music in May, for which she serves as Artistic Director, is Jackson-Picht’s largest project to date. Now in its 19th season, Music in May continues its dedication to engaging incarcerated youth. In 2013, Jackson-Picht co-founded Sound Impact and Ensemble San Francisco, organizations with missions tied to many of her personal core values. In 2018, Rebecca received a KSBW Jefferson Award in recognition of her volunteerism and public service. The following year, she and her father co-authored the biography of her mentor David Arben, a Holocaust survivor and former associate concertmaster of The Philadelphia Orchestra.

Concert #1 Repertoire and Order

G. P. Telemann Don Quixote Suite  (10 mins)

• Overture
• Windmills
• Sighs of Princess Dulcinea
• Sancho Panza’s Mule

Arcangelo Corelli Concerto Grosso in D, Op 6 no 4 (10 mins)

Consuelo Velázquez Besame Mucho (arr. Renata Bratt)  (4 min)

Concert #2 Repertoire and Order

G. F. Handel Concerto Grosso Op 6 no 1 in G major  (12 mins)

Gustav Holst St. Paul’s Suite 1st movt (Jig)   (4 mins)

Fiddlers Fortune trad tunes (arr. Renata Bratt) (4 mins)

Musician Notes: 

We ask that you bring your own stand, as well as a compact folding chair. Due to space constraints, please plan to store your belongings by your seat, alongside the bookshelves that will demarcate our small “stage.” We will ask that the violins and violas stand. Those unable to stand for 30 minutes, please send us an email at musicinmay@gmail.com and we will make arrangements.

Performance Notes: 

Notes on repertoire: For the Handel, violins will see a concertino and ripieno on the same part. Ensemble SF will play any solo parts, while others play the ripieno/tutti parts. Though the score includes two oboe parts, we will omit them. Handel’s original version was without oboes. Holst St. Paul’s Suite, First movement ONLY (Jig) Exciting to play and listen to but not too difficult. It is the first 7 pages of the score. In the parts, The Jig is just the first 3 pages (2 pages for Bass). Telemann Don Quixote: The scores and parts have all the movements but to reduce it to about 10 minutes, we will only perform the following movements: (1) Overture, (2) His Attack on the Windmills, (3) Sighs of Love for Princess Aline, (4) Sancho Panza Swindled, and (5) The Gallop of Sancho Panza’s Mule. Corelli: As with the Handel, concertino solo and ripieno are on the same part, so please note that Ensemble SF will play top solo lines and musicians will play the ripieno parts. Velázquez Besame Mucho: Will feature either one bongo or other Latin percussion player.

All parts for review.  Just scroll down the pdf for your instrument part. 

Complete score for all instruments