Celebrating the new year with an concert on Friday, January 1 that premieres at 2 p.m. Pacific Tme. CLICK HERE for the link to the concert, which will remain posted for your viewing.
Program:
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Sinfonia from Cantata BWV 29 -arr. Marcel Dupré
Johann & Joseph Strauss jr.
Pizzicato Polka -arr. Raul Prieto Ramírez
Fred Stansfield
EXPO
official March 1915 Exposition
Raúl Prieto Ramírez
Paraphrasis on EXPO for pedals alone
Dimitri Schostakovich (1906-1975)
Lyrical Waltz, from Ballet Suite N.3
-trans. Raúl Prieto Ramírez
Johann Strauss jr.(1825-1899)
Trish-Trash Ploka -arr. Raul Prieto Ramírez
Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962)
Caprice Vienois, Op.2 (arr. Raúl Prieto Ramírez)
-arranged for organ by Raúl Prieto Ramírez
Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin (1810-1849)
Nocturne Op.9 N.2 in Eb Major
Johann Strauss jr.(1825-1899)
Furioso Ploka -arr. Raul Prieto Ramírez
Johann Strauss jr.(1825-1899)
An der schönen blauen Danau
-arr. Raul Prieto Ramírez
Here’s the inside story on a cantankerous dad and his five children, among them industrious John Diedrich, the eldest, and his playboy brother Adolph.
This is the family that made sugar a centerpiece of the Hawaiian economy… operated the main steamship line between Hawaii and the US mainland… exerted major influence on the cultural tone and tenor of both expositions that California held in 1915 to celebrate the opening of the Panama canal… and so much more.
The book is called Empire Builder because when John Spreckels first came to San Diego, he was inspired to get busy.
He invested, he planned, and he dreamed. After the 1906 earthquake and fire devastated his home town of San Francisco, he became a San Diegan for good.
By the time John D. donated the great Spreckels Organ to the citizens of San Diego as a centerpiece of the 1915 exposition here, he was paying a significant percentage of the County’s property taxes. By 1915, he had built San Diego’s extensive trolley line, funded the lower Otay dam, developed land and businesses, and was owner and publisher of the San Diego Union morning newspaper.
After San Diego suffered a huge land bust in the late 1880s, Spreckels cash came to the rescue of many an enterprise and could also pick some juicy plums – among them, the Hotel del Coronado, all of North Island (which was later sold to Uncle Sam) and a string of blocks along the south side of Broadway, from Fifth Avenue to the waterfront. You’ll read about it — and so much more! – in this fascinating, breathtaking new biography of a man who had plenty of power and did things with it.
Here’s a link to the book review. The hefty 440-page biography was written by local author and historian Sandra Bonura and released this fall.
Raúl Prieto Ramírez will be joined by soprano Tasha Koontz for a seasonal concert that’s sure to warm your weekend on Sunday, December 27 premiering at 2 p.m. Pacific Time and available for re-viewing afterward.
CLICK HERE FOR THE LINK to take you to the YouTube posting of the hour-long concert that features Raúl’s artistry on the great Spreckels Organ in combination with the vocal stylings of classically-trained Tasha Koontz.
Musical Selections:
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Prelude in G Major BWV 568
Angels We Have Heard on High
*With Tasha Koontz as guest singer
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Prelude on the choral “In dir ist Freude” BWV 615
Silent Night -Franz X. Gruber
*With Tasha Koontz as guest singer
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Arabesque I -transcribed for organ by Raúl Prieto Ramírez
O Come, All Ye Faithful (Adeste Fideles)
*With Tasha Koontz as guest singer
Leroy Anderson (1908-1975)
The Typewriter (arr. Raúl Prieto Ramírez)
What Child is This
*With Tasha Koontz as guest singer
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Prelude on the choral “Liebster Jesu, Wir Sind Hier” BWV 731
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
*With Tasha Koontz as guest singer
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Arabesque II
-transcribed for organ by Raúl Prieto Ramírez
O Holy Night – Adolphe Adam, 1847
*With Tasha Koontz as guest singer
Félix Alexandre Guilmant (1837-1911)
Finale, from Sonate N.2 in D Major Op.50
The Star Spangled Banner
Here’s Diane Bish bringing you The Joy of Christmas…
Bay Area organist Stephen Brittain with Irving Berlin’s classic, White Christmas…
And from Southern California, Mark Herman brings you Holiday Pops.
Special!
Longtime fans and members, take note!
A Christmas blessing from former San Diego Civic Organist Carol Williams – melcotmusic.com – here’s a 2015 video of Jared Jacobsen offering the “Nickel Tour” of the Spreckels Organ!
Raul welcomes Marco Labastida, who will sing Spanish-language Christmas carols as part of the hour-long holiday concert. CLICK HERE FOR THE LINK to the concert on YouTube. It premieres at 2 p.m. Pacific time on Sunday, Dec. 20 and will be available for later viewing as well.
Musical program:
Marcel Dupre – Magnificat VI Gloria Finale
Carlo Gustavino – Cancion de Navidad N.2
* with guest singer Marco Labastida
Augustin Lara – Granada
La Virgen Lava Panales * – Spanish Villancico
Kander & Ebb – New York, New York
Johann Sebastian Bach – Prelude & Fugue in G Major BWV 541
Los Reyes Magos * – Mexican Villancico
Johann Jacob Froberger – Canzon V FbWV 305
Silent Night * – Franz Gruber
Louis Vierne – Berceuse
Joaquin Turina – Orgia
Star-Spangled Banner