Turning 16 is a classic milestone for American teenagers: the driver’s license, the questionable decisions, the exhilaration of independence.
But for Magik*Magik Orchestra, the anniversary feels more like a homecoming, says founder and artistic director Minna Choi. Two San Francisco shows this Friday, Aug. 16 — an early, kid-friendly show and a later one for the grownups — mark the orchestra’s first live, public performances since before the pandemic. Billed as a “sweet 16” party, both will feature Magik*Magik’s string quartet accompanying singer-songwriter Diana Gameros and the Shakespeare-inspired indie-pop band the Frail Ophelias.
“It all feels very celebratory,” says Choi, especially on the heels of a tough few years. “We’re finally emerging from our little hidden place.”
As a made-to-order orchestra whose configurations can range from a solo violinist to an 80-piece symphony, Magik*Magik has occupied a unique place in the Bay Area music landscape. Founded in 2008, they quickly became your favorite indie rocker’s favorite collaborator, providing live and in-studio accompaniment for Death Cab for Cutie, Weezer, Third Eye Blind, the Dodos, Geographer and John Vanderslice. In 2014, Magik*Magik got hired as the house band for Pop-Up Magazine, and toured the country for much of the next decade performing original scores for the beloved storytelling event.
![an indie musician dude with a guitar performs on stage with a string orchestra](https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/08/GettyImages-143503000-scaled.jpg)
But the pandemic was brutal to the orchestra: Choi recalls losing $40,000 of upcoming work in one week back in April 2020, more than a third of their yearly budget. John Vanderslice, a major Magik*Magik collaborator and patron, moved to Los Angeles that year after closing his original Mission District location of Tiny Telephone Studios. And Pop-Up Magazine, which briefly returned to live performances after a COVID hiatus, permanently ended its run in January 2023.