Sun 10/26 7:15 PM West Oakland Sound Series [2201 Poplar Street Dresher Ensemble Studio Oakland]
Instrument inventor SUDHU TEWARI, filmmaker/improviser David Michalak and percussionist Jordan Glenn join forces in NUNNPHONICS: an improvised set featuring instruments built by the late, great inventor, TOM NUNN.

NYC-based synthesist and composer-improviser MATTHEW RYALS performs a solo set.  More...

Sun 10/26 7:30 PM Dead Noise Station [3370 19th St, SF 94110]
Jason Kahn & Kevin Corcoran Duo Set
Captainmcsweeney & Domi Duo Set
Corsick/Pontac perform a short experimental opera  More...

Wed 10/29 6:00 PM Babette Cafe [2033 San Pablo Ave, Berkeley CA]
Ben Goldberg every Wednesday in October

Reservations  More...

Wed 10/29 7:00 PM Make-Out Room [3225 22nd St SF]
Jazz at the Make-Out Room (formerly the Monday Make-Out) continues! A wily evening of cutting-edge jazz, free improvisation, and creative music.
***

Jazz at the Make-Out Room
Wednesday, October 29, 6pm doors/7pm show
No Cover/Donations Accepted

7pm David Slusser Trio
(Dave Slusser - sax, Erich Hunt - acoustic bass, Donald Robinson - drums)

8:15pm Plonsey Scheme
(Dan Plonsey - saxes, Mantra Plonsey - voice, Tomek Sinclair - guitar, Mic Gendreau - electronics and drums)  More...

Wed 10/29 8:00 PM Ivy Room [860 San Pablo Ave Albany]
Scott Amendola's Floating Parade @ The Ivy Room! Nate Brenner, Mark Clifford, Robert Lopez, Ryan Schaeffer!  More...

Thu 10/30 6:30 PM Mercury Cafe [201 Octavia Blvd. SF Ca]
Live Music, original and improvised. Dave Mihaly, Michael Cavaseno, David Boyce, and Jeff Hobbs.  More...

Thu 10/30 7:00 PM Mr Tipple's [39 Fell St SF]
Kasey Knudsen Sextet  More...

Thu 10/30 7:30 PM Wyldflowr Arts [809 37th St Oakland]
ROOTSTOCK ARTS presents:

Kjell Nordeson, solo percussion
+
duo B. vs. Liberty Ellman
Lisa Mezzacappa, bass
Jason Levis, drums
Liberty Ellman, guitar  More...

Fri 10/31 7:00 PM Medicine for Nightmares [3036 24th St SF]
Other Dimensions in Sound; The Spooky ooky Edition  More...

Fri 10/31 8:00 PM Herbst Theatre [401 Van Ness Ave SF]
Kronos Quartet and Timo Andres | PIANO

SPOOKY  More...

Fri 10/31 8:30 PM Bird & Beckett Books and Records [653 Chenery St. SF]
Winston Tong + Dreambounders (Andre Custodio + Lx Rudis)  More...

Sat 11/01 8:00 PM Martial Arts [message martialartsoak@gmail.com for address]
Laetitia Sonami "Dangerous Women" (Lovely Music) album release show!
featuring guests Paul Demarinis and Matt Robidoux  More...

Sun 11/02 7:15 PM West Oakland Sound Series [2201 Poplar Street Dresher Ensemble Studio Oakland]
KRYS BOBROWSKI (Gliss Glass) and Karen Stackpole (gongs) create a deep sonic journey that unfurls into an engaging and transcendent soundtrack for the imagination.
JAMES GOODE (electronics, voice) coaxes extraordinary sounds from everyday objects.
SUNG KIM presents four of his most recent iterations of musical instruments that he has been developing for the last 36 years.  More...

Sun 11/02 7:30 PM Temescal Arts Center [511 48th Street Oakland]
Doors That Only Open in Silence (open participation, non-hierarchical workshop in free improvisation)

Monthly series of improvisation research at Temescal Arts Center. Bring your instrument or come to listen. Movement and other disciplines encouraged. No advance notice needed — just show up.  More...

Tue 11/04 7:30 PM Temescal Arts Center [511 48th Street Oakland]
Improvisation Workshop hosted by Lewis Jordan: Inviting musicians, poets, dancers, to a non-hierarchical setting to improvise together. Improvisation is the key.  More...

Wed 11/05 6:30 PM 836M [836 Montgomery St San Francisco]
KRONOS QUARTET CREATIVE LAB #3

For more than 50 years, San Francisco’s Kronos Quartet has reimagined what the string quartet experience can be, and 836M is proud to be the host for a series of their Creative Labs, the final one for this year to take place on November 5.  More...

Wed 11/05 7:00 PM Dresher Ensemble Studio [2201 Poplar St Oakland]
Queen Bee Records Micro-Fest #3: DAY ONE

Two nights of freewheeling improvised music and creative jazz from some of the scene's most adventurous and exciting ensembles. Celebrating three new recordings out this fall on Berkeley's Queen Bee Records — the 7th, 8th and 9th! — in a series of 12 releases coming this year.

Wednesday Nov 5
*in collaboration with the West Oakland Sound Series*
oakland reductionist orchestra
with special guest sets by
Kristin Miltner (computer)
Roco Córdova (voice, electronics) + Theresa Wong (cello, voice)  More...

Thu 11/06 7:00 PM Wyldflowr Arts [809 37th St., Oakland, CA]
Chris Brown's "Geryon" concert at Wyldflowr Arts Center  More...

Thu 11/06 7:00 PM Dresher Ensemble Studio [2201 Poplar St Oakland]
Queen Bee Records Micro-Fest #3: Two Days!
Two nights of freewheeling improvised music and creative jazz from some of the scene's most adventurous and exciting ensembles. Celebrating three new recordings out this fall on Berkeley's Queen Bee Records — the 7th, 8th and 9th! — in a series of 12 releases coming this year.

DAY TWO: Thursday Nov 6
Beth Schenck Quintet
Nathan Clevenger Group: Astrolabe
flatways  More...

Thu 11/06 7:30 PM CCRMA [660 Lomita Dr. Stanford]
Streaming and in-person:Click for stream  
CCRMA presents a concert of Ambisonics works by composer-in-residence Mariam Gviniashvili.  More...

Fri 11/07 7:00 PM Maybeck Studio for the Performing Arts [1537 Euclid Ave. Berkeley]
Expressions of the Inner Self
The Telegraph Quartet and Musicians of the University of Michigan present
the deeply expressive works of Schoenberg, Webern and Bartok.

Purchase Tickets Here  More...

Fri 11/07 8:00 PM Indexical [Tannery Arts Center 1050 River St. #119 Santa Cruz]
Jon Mueller + Voicehandler  More...

Fri 11/07 8:00 PM Santa Cruz Actors' Theatre [1001 Center Street Santa Cruz, CA 95060]
Click to make donation  
The Y2K International Live Looping Festival is an annual event celebrating the art of live looping. A three-day event from November 7–9, 2025, featuring performances from artists around the world such as David Leikam, David Tristram, Mikko Biffle, R Duck, and many others.  More...

Fri 11/07 8:00 PM Gray Area Art And Technology [2665 Mission St. SF]
The San Francisco Electronic Music Festival begins on Friday, November 7, with Leyya Mona Tawil (also known as Lime Rickey International), who brings her embodied, interdisciplinary approach, creating a musical performance that incorporates sound objects, physical effects, and disappearing words. The artist DULL follows, combining instrumental mastery with live electronics, while balancing lab-coat meticulousness with a punk attitude. Friday night concludes with Angélica Negrón performing live electronics, incorporating her love of drag, comedy, and the natural world into her set.  More...

Sat 11/08 12:00 PM Center for New Music [55 Taylor St SF]
G|O|D|W|A|F|F|L|E||N|O|I|S|E||P|A|N|C|A|K|E|S

Soiled Doilies (L.A.)
Scott R. Looney w/ Thomas Dimuzio
R K Faulhaber + Unknown Subject #1
Bonus Beast  More...

Sat 11/08 3:30 PM Santa Cruz Actors' Theatre [1001 Center Street Santa Cruz, CA 95060]
Click to make donation  
The Y2K International Live Looping Festival is an annual event celebrating the art of live looping. A three-day event from November 7–9, 2025, featuring performances from artists around the world such as David Leikam, David Tristram, Mikko Biffle, R Duck, and many others.  More...

Sat 11/08 6:00 PM Temescal Arts Center [511 48th Street Oakland]
Streaming and in-person:Click for stream  
Unlocked Festival 2025

The Unlocked Festival returns at a most desperate hour, featuring:

• Grex (Karl Evangelista - guitar/voice, Rei Scampavia - keys/voice, Robert Lopez - drums)

• Wiener Kids Reunion (Beth Schenck/Cory Wright - saxophones, Jordan Glenn - drums)

• Feefawfum

• Foreign/Domestic (Zachary James Watkins - bass/electronics, John Diaz - drums)

• Bleeding Vector (Lorin Benedict - voice, Eric Vogler - guitar)

The Unlocked Festival (formerly the Lockdown Festival) is an annual event that commemorates the spirit of creativity and resistance that prevailed through the COVID-19 pandemic. This program offers an opportunity for the Bay Area music community to convene, gather strength, and forge ahead. (All proceeds directed to Temescal Art Center and the National Day Laborer Organizing Network).  More...

Sat 11/08 8:00 PM The Back Room [1984 Bonita Ave Berkeley]
Sarah Wilson's Incandescence Album Release Party  More...

Sat 11/08 8:00 PM Formerland & Scream [5428 San Pablo, Oakland]
Night show Brutal Sound FX minifist:

Soiled Doilies (L.A.)
Anti Matter
Cruel Work
Wilderman  More...

Sat 11/08 8:00 PM Gray Area Art And Technology [2665 Mission St. SF]
On Saturday, November 8, the San Francisco Electronic Music Festival presents Celia Hollander, who combines acoustic and digital elements to explore music as a natural phenomenon of dynamic systems. "Audiovisual sorceress," Freida Abtan follows, weaving together acousmatic composition with more industrial and pop-influenced experimental anthems. Saturday’s lineup closes with Julien Bayle performing super.system, a live performance uniting sound and image through real-time generative composition that is a living, mutable work where intention meets entropy.  More...

Sun 11/09 3:00 PM Santa Cruz Actors' Theatre [1001 Center Street Santa Cruz, CA 95060]
Click to make donation  
The Y2K International Live Looping Festival is an annual event celebrating the art of live looping. A three-day event from November 7–9, 2025, featuring performances from artists around the world such as David Leikam, David Tristram, Mikko Biffle, R Duck, and many others.  More...

Sun 11/09 8:00 PM Gray Area Art And Technology [2665 Mission St. SF]
On Sunday, Nov. 9th, the San Francisco Electronic Music Festival presents S’hells Gate, a three-piece outfit comprising members Jonathan Carr, Matt Brownell, and Cat Lauigan, who fuse elements of arpeggiated electronics, experimental poetry / processed trance vocals, oscillating hypnotic drones, and industrial dub rhythms. Lauren Sarah Hayes follows, exploring instability, vulnerability, and unpredictability through improvisation with her hybrid analogue-digital live electronics performance system, a form of embodied machine intelligence. With punk/metal roots, DADABOTS close the festival using machine-learning as an extreme way to make sound and eliminate humans from music.  More...

Thu 11/13 7:00 PM Shapeshifters Cinema [567 5th St. Oakland]
Do-Over Music Series @ Shapeshifters Cinema
second Thursday!

7pm
Marielle V Jakobsons, violin/electronics +
David Golightly, keys

8pm
expanded cinema + improvised music with:
Jakobsens/ Golightly joined by
Erika Oba, flutes
Lisa Mezzacappa, bass
Jordan Glenn, percussion  More...

Thu 11/13 7:30 PM Wyldflowr Arts [809 37th St, Oakland]
Classical Revolution

Classical Revolution is a collective of musicians dedicated to performing high-quality chamber music in non-traditional and accessible settings. Founded in 2006 at the Revolution Cafe in San Francisco, the movement's mission is to dismantle the barriers often associated with classical music, bringing it "to the people" in cafes, bars, and other community spaces.  More...

Thu 11/13 8:00 PM Peacock Lounge [738 Haight St]
Yama Uba, Vio (IDHAZ + Emily Bouton + Christopher Moore), Camera Oscura (Loachfillet), Nerfbau (solo)
November 13, 8pm-11pm Peacock Lounge, 552 Haight, SF
All-ages, $5-$15 notaflof
.::more details soon::.  More...

Sun 11/16 4:00 PM Brava Theatre [2781 24th Street SF]
San Francisco Contemporary Music Players: American Reflections: Exuberance  More...

Sun 11/16 4:00 PM Spruce Street Concerts [send email to harry@fullplatemedia.com]
The Vex Collection, a remarkable trio employing non-western instruments to startling & intensely beautiful effect, perform in the intimacy of a house concert. The eatures Mat Muntz (Croatian/Bulgarian bagpipes, bass and electronics); gamin (the Korean woodwinds piri, taepyeongso, saenghwang); and Vicente Atria (drums and electronics).
The Vex Collection uses unheard-of combinations of traditional instruments, newly devised musical contraptions, and a philosophy of mad-scientific experimentation in their pursuit of ancient and futuristic sounds. The Vex Collection grew from Mat and Vicente’s shared fascination with the double reed, an ancient musical technology developed by virtually every culture on Earth in order to produce loud, brilliant, and beautifully intense sounds. On their self-titled debut, the striking presences of traditional instruments from Scotland, Korea, and the Balkans are not softened or altered so as to better blend with one another; they are allowed to clash thunderously in one moment and synthesize miraculously in the next, imagining some forgotten past where these sounds could have emerged as part of an organic folk tradition.  More...

Sun 11/16 8:00 PM The Lab [2948 16th St SF]
Félicia Atkinson + Jon Porras

In a mid-renovation performance within The Lab’s cavernous space, before permanence sets in, we invite you to experience work by Félicia Atkinson and Jon Porras.  More...

Thu 11/20 7:30 PM Wyldflowr Arts [809 37th St, Oakland]
Echo's Bones

Echo’s Bones is an improvising woodwind trio based in the San Francisco Bay Area. They have been improvising together for 7 years, making music that has been described as: “Avant pastoralism in a chamber music mode” (Eric Whittington - bon vivant; proprietor, Bird & Beckett); and “Mesmerizing serpentine yeti music” (Dave Mihaly - drummer, composer, leader of Shimmering Leaves). They have performed at Medicine For Nightmares, Mosswood Sound Series, SIMM Series, Bird & Beckett, Tom’s Place and San Francisco Public Libraries. A recording of their Mosswood show is on the SF Public Libraries Bay Beats website.  More...

Sun 11/23 12:00 PM Cybersentics Book Club at Gray Area [2665 Mission St. SF]
Click to make donation  
Come together to explore the relationship between the human sensorium and the intersection of art and technology. This year’s theme centers on the bidirectional flow of information between our bodies and the environment. What are those streams of exchange? No other than biofeedback and cyborg art! Or bio-information going outside compared to inside our bodies.

Our first meeting will be on November 23rd, from 12:00 to 2:00 PM at Gray Area (in person only)  More...

Fri 11/28 7:30 PM Wyldflowr Arts [809 37th St Oakland]
Sound Alchemy: David Boyce & Sameer Gupta  More...

Sun 11/30 3:00 PM Maybeck Studio for the Performing Arts [1537 Euclid Ave. Berkeley]
Ben Goldberg • Todd Sickafoose • Scott Amendola

The trio behind last year's "HERE TO THERE" brings a concert of mysterious, fluid music to Berkeley's historic Maybeck Studio.

Purchase Tickets Here  More...

Sun 11/30 7:30 PM Wyldflowr Arts [809 37th St West Oakland, CA]
Oakland “In C” — in Honor of Terry Riley’s 90th Birthday

Tickets  More...

Tue 12/02 7:30 PM Temescal Arts Center [511 48th Street Oakland]
Improvisation Workshop hosted by Lewis Jordan: Inviting musicians, poets, dancers, to a non-hierarchical setting to improvise together. Improvisation is the key.  More...