SF Leonard Cohen Festival presents
San Francisco Leonard Cohen Festival
with Conspiracy of Beards, Daniel Kahn and Jake Shulman-Ment
Song & Spirit
Other Arts & Theater
Upstairs
Date, times and tickets
- Doors
- Show
- Ages
- 21+Valid photo ID required
- Price
- $56.11
- Room
- Swedish American HallUpstairs, 2174 Market St, San FranciscoMap
From the artist
Conspiracy of Beards present their new show “The Song & Spirit of Leonard Cohen” along with special guests, Daniel Kahn and Jake Shulman-Ment.
Read more
Detroit-born, Hamburg-based troubadour and multi-instrumentalist Daniel Kahn and New York master fiddler Jake Shulman-Ment have been playing, traveling and making music together for nearly twenty years – drawing on klezmer, folk, punk, poetry and a tradition that has never stopped evolving.
The San Francisco Leonard Cohen Festival, founded in 2018, is an annual celebration dedicated to honoring the poetry, music, and spirit of the legendary songwriter, poet, and author. Presented each November by Conspiracy of Beards—San Francisco’s renowned 30-member male choir devoted to Cohen’s work—the festival has grown from its early beginnings into a multi-day, multi-venue event that draws poets, musicians, artists, and audiences from across the Bay Area and beyond.
The festival emphasizes fresh interpretations of Cohen’s work, encouraging artists to reshape his words and melodies through their own creative lenses. This open, inventive approach results in a diverse program of performances, readings, and collaborations that keep Cohen’s timeless themes of love, longing, humor, and spirituality alive for new generations.
Together, the festival and the choir invite audiences to conspire in celebration of one of the 20th century’s most enduring and influential voices. The result is a vibrant gathering that honors Cohen’s legacy with creativity, reverence, and joy.
Conspiracy of Beards Support
Other
San Francisco’s Conspiracy of Beards is a choir of men that performs dynamic, original, a cappella arrangements of the poetic songs of Leonard Cohen.
Well dressed in suits, ties, and the occasional fedora, the choir brings an energized live choral music experience out of churches and tabernacles and into the taverns, art houses, and theaters of the Bay Area and beyond. Transforming Cohen’s lyrics and simple melodies into complex 4- and 5-part harmonies, and with a wide variety of small ensemble and full choir pieces, Conspiracy of Beards achieves a sound that is both robust and tender. Drawing on influences ranging from jazz and gospel to barbershop and doo-wop, the unique arrangements that choir members create capture all of the emotion and humor of Leonard Cohen’s original music and inspire audiences to ponder common human experiences like romance, heartbreak, politics, sex, longing, and spirituality.
Formed in 2003 through the inspiration of the late San Francisco performance artist Peter Kadyk, his brother Patrick Kadyk, along with friend and composer Daryl Henline, gathered a small group of friends to learn and sing a couple of Leonard Cohen songs as a tribute. Since then the choir, still directed by Daryl Henline, has grown to over 30 members.
Conspiracy of Beards has become an integral part of the San Francisco music scene with performances at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, The Jewish Music Festival, Cafe du Nord, Great American Music Hall, San Francisco City Hall, and San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, as well as dozens of bars, bookstores, galleries, hospices, and various other community centers. The choir has also been featured on several radio programs including NPR’s “West Coast Live,” “The California Report,” “Weekend Edition,” KQED, KFOG, KPFA, WFMU, and on PBS television.
As a non-profit organization (501c-3) along with our sister choir, Conspiracy of Venus, and with a commitment to contributing to civic progress, both choirs also perform in support of many charities, fundraisers, and other non-profits.
Getting here
Swedish American Hall (upstairs)
Swedish American Hall · Upstairs2174 Market St, San Francisco, CA 94114
It is upstairs in the same building. Use the Hall's main entrance at 2174 Market St.
Good to know
18+ and 21+ shows need valid ID: a driver's license, state ID card or passport. A photo of your ID doesn't count. Without valid ID we can't let you in, and we can't refund your ticket. All ages means 6 and up. Tickets are standing room unless the show page says otherwise. Need anything to enjoy the show? Email info@cafedunord.com before you come.
All sales are final unless the headliner or the show is cancelled. Support acts can change without a refund. Show moved to a date you can't make? Email concerts@cafedunord.com.
A professional camera (a detachable lens, or pro grade as judged by venue staff) needs approval before the show. Email concerts@cafedunord.com before the show and we may get you a photo pass, if the artist approves.
