Meet Jessica Bejarano, the “Tattooed Lesbian Latina” Founder of SF Philharmonic

By Trent Berry

San Francisco is never short on miraculous stories of singular, maverick individuals that have defied all the odds to achieve their own versions of success. But with Jessica Bejarano, the self described “tattooed lesbian Latina” founder and conductor of the San Francisco Philharmonic, even the most jaded San Franciscan might need a moment to pause, then walk over to the Herbst Theatre to watch her throw down with her orchestra.

You’ll marvel at her tale. One that (you guessed it) could only happen here, in this magical town.

The orchestral milieu is to quote James Brown, “a man’s, man’s world”. Less than 3 percent of top tier orchestras are led by women. Much less one like Jessica, who grew up in the hyper-masculine and queerphobic streets of East LA (Bell Gardens, to be precise).

And so her origin story is worthy of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. We don’t have time to tell it all here, but let’s just say it was a main course of misogyny, with added side dishes of homophobia, classism and “you don’t LOOK right”, all thrown in just to pad the check even further by the end of the meal. As Jessica explains:

“I was working on my degree in music education, and I did residencies where I had to go into a middle school or high school, just to get the hands-on experience of working with children. And one of my mentors looked at me and said, ‘How are you going to stand in front of children, looking the way you do?’ At that point, aside from having tattoos, I had 13 piercings on my face,” she chuckles. “I said, ‘It doesn’t matter what I look like, I know the material, and I know how to educate, motivate, and inspire music in those kids.’

Still, she persisted. To quote Nelson Mandela, “It always seems impossible until it’s done.”

That quote was MADE for Jessica. After artisanal stints across the US and Europe, she decided the best way to lead a top tier orchestra in the US was…to found it herself.

And so in 2019, she did exactly that with the San Francisco Philharmonic. Finding a home at the Herbst Theatre, the orchestra now plays to audiences of hundreds each time, with glowing reviews.

Pretty cool, we know. But there’s more.

From its inception, Jessica ensured the SF Philharmonic met the twin goals of taking world-class symphonic music off the pedestal and into the heart of our community, and also making sure this orchestra LOOKED like San Francisco.

When you go to an SF Philharmonic concert, you’ll see (are you sitting down?) people with skin tones of ALL shades performing onstage. People of ALL sexual persuasions performing onstage. People who look however THEY want to look – piercings, tats, and beyond, you name it – performing onstage.

All playing the most sublime classical music you can imagine.

You’ve never SEEN an orchestra that looks like this before…because there has never BEEN an orchestra like this one before. Until NOW.

Fast forward to today and the superhero evolution is complete: Jessica has been featured all over the national media, even featured on the relaunched TV show To Tell The Truth.  And that motley crew orchestra she created? They’re now on the verge of recognition as never before.

Oh, one last thing about Jessica and The SF Philharmonic: they’re fucking AMAZING. But don’t just take my word for it. This September 17th you can come to Herbst Theatre and see for yourself as Jessica conducts them performing pieces from Tchaikovsky and Rimsky-Korsakov featuring Gallia Kastner.

Come listen to the miraculous end results of Jessica’s journey, the musical testimony of a tale that (you guessed it) could only have happened here, in this magical town.

Get tickets to the show right here.

Donate towards the SF Philharmonic’s latest concert right here.

Trent Berry is the owner/producer at Dreamrack Studios in the Hyde Street Studio complex, and, as you may have guessed, is the President of the Board of Directors for the San Francisco Philharmonic Orchestra.