Fall 2014

In this issue…

Disney Hall Concert—Page 2

Summer Photo Montage —Pg 3

HALLOWEEN – pg 1

The 27th season of free-to-the-public

organ concerts under the stars is now a

glowing set of memories. On page three

of this edition the photos may offer a

reminder of the great music of the sum-

mer.

Anthony Newman, America’s fore-

most Baroque interpreter described by

Wynton Marsalis as “The High Priest of

Bach” led off the season, followed by

Monte Maxwell, Chapel Organist and

Director of Chapel Music and the Mid-

shipmen Symphony Orchestra at the

United States Naval Academy. That

concert included the Navy Band South-

west as special guests and began with a

presentation of colors.

The following Mondays brought R.

Jelani Eddington, award-winning theatre

organist, and Wyatt Smith, passionate

rising star of the organ world and gradu-

ate student at the Yale Institute of Sa-

cred Music, who was joined by soprano

Priti Gandhi.

San Diego favorite Robert Plimpton,

San Diego Civic Organist Emeritus,

played an evening of Latin music with

special guest Marco Labastida, tenor.

Frederick Swann, Thomas Mellan, and

Carol Williams were the performers on the

next Monday, and then Kimberly Marshall,

Professor of Music at Arizona State Uni-

versity, was featured in an evening of

French masterworks.

Silent Movie Night featured Scottish

organist Donald McKenzie accompanying

two silent film classics: Chasing Choo

Choos with Monty Banks (1927), a runa-

way train adventure filmed at least partly

on the Spreckels Railroad in our region,

and One Week (1928), a Buster Keaton

comedy classic.

For the festival season finale, Come

Dancing! San Diego Civic Organist Carol

Williams hosted dancers from the Califor-

nia Ballet and played with musicians of the

Moonlight Serenade Orchestra.

A special add-on concert took place on

August 31 that brought 5,000 younger mu-

sic lovers to the organ pavilion for a reun-

ion of the 1990s band Drive Like Jehu.

Band members John Reis, Mark Trombino,

Rick Froberg, Mike Kennedy, and Rob

Crow were excited by the opportunity to

play with Carol Williams and the great

Spreckels Organ in a unique musical event

that achieved wide acclaim.

Upcoming Events

Sun. October 26 - Family Festival Day at

Spreckels Organ, 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. No admission

charge.

Fri. October 31 - Special Event Fundraiser:

Cocktails and Dinner at the House of Hospitali-

ty followed by Phantom of the Opera accompa-

nied by Russ Peck on the Spreckels Organ. The

movie is free to the public; the dinner is $150

per person and includes VIP seating for the

movie. Click here for info and reservations.

Sunday, November 23—Carol Williams joins

Frederick Swann and Cameron Carpenter at the

Disney Hall for a special anniversary concert.

Wed. December 31 - Centennial Concert, 7 -9

p.m. Free.

Thurs. Jan. 1, 2015 - New Years Day Concert,

2-3 p.m. No admission charge.

Summer

International

Organ Festival

Aug. 31, 2014—Drive Like Jehu jams with Carol Williams.

Half parts volunteered civic duty to a cherished landmark/

instrument, a little bit of recital, and a tiny bit of chaos. The

band least likely to reunite, did so in a public park for as many

passing children, elderly and dogs as there were aging punk

dads and less millennial fans. No vendors. No glamour… No

eight dollar waters. Just good music and pure class.

- Lukas Hodge, Noisey

Click here for tickets to the fundraising

dinner on Halloween night: http://www.eventbrite.com/e/halloween-gala-tickets

-12485511501?aff=eorg

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Dear Musical Friends,

What a great Summer Festival we

have all enjoyed - all artists performed

magnificently!

And, this was the first year that we

started live streaming the concerts on

Sundays and Mondays. So, if you

haven't already tuned in, then just visit

the website and click on webcast.

We also started a new series for

YouTube - "On The Bench with Dr.

Carol" - here I’ve been chatting with

the visiting artists and learning a lot

about their careers. You can find videos with Monte Maxwell; An-

thony Newman; Fred Swann. More are being added to the series.

As the Summer winds down, we however are on full steam for

the major event on 31 December. Much is planned for this once in a

life time celebration and hopefully most of you will come and at-

tend this historical event. Brass; Bagpipes; Choir; Harp and of

course organ will be on the menu.

Wishing all the best from Sunny San Diego

Dr. Carol

Dear Fellow Members of the

Spreckels Organ Society,

I hope you were able to attend at least

some of the concerts in the just completed

27th Summer International Organ Festival.

What a spectacular summer of superb mu-

sic, spanning the full range of styles and

traditions! From classical, to theater, to big

band, to patriotic, Dr. Carol Williams and

the Program Committee of the Spreckels

Organ Society put together a marvelous

festival. And I am pleased to report that the expenses of the festi-

val were covered entirely by our members, donations, fund rais-

ing, and sponsors. Thank you to everyone who contributed so

much of their time and talent to make the festival a huge success.

Have you marked your calendars and saved two very im-

portant dates coming up? On Oct. 31, 2014, the Spreckels Organ

Society will be having its annual fundraiser, in preparation for

the Centennial Celebration just around the corner. It's Hallow-

een! We will be featuring Russ Peck playing the Spreckels Organ

and accompanying the classic silent movie Phantom of the

Opera. The movie and concert will be free to all, but earlier, we

will be having a Gala Dinner at the Prado, with fine wine, a

delicious dinner, a special presentation by Russ Peck, and a pri-

vate concert by members of the San Diego Master Chorale! You

can reserve your spot at SpreckelsOrgan.org or by calling the

office. This is our only big fundraiser this year. We would

love to see you there.

By now, you all know that Dec. 31, 2014, will be the biggest

night in the history of the Spreckels Organ Society. Our be-

loved organ will turn 100 years old! The concert will be an event

not to be missed. Imagine bagpipes leading a procession through

Balboa Park, with friends and institutions displaying their own

banners, into the Organ Pavilion; a brass fanfare; the unveiling

and dedication of the new pipes, made possible by the generosity

of many of you, plus the new brilliantly gold front pipes; special-

ly commissioned new works for the organ; a 200-voice choir;

and fireworks going off while we all sing Handel's Hallelujah

Chorus! You will want to be there, with your family and friends.

I look forward to seeing you on Sunday afternoons at the Or-

gan Pavilion. Remember, together we make it happen.

George Hardy, President

Page 2 StopTab Fall 2014

StopTab: A Quarterly published by the

SPRECKELS ORGAN SOCIETY 1549 El Prado, Suite 10, San Diego CA 92101-1661

(619) 702-8138 / SOSorgan@gmail.com / SpreckelsOrgan.org

Artistic Director

Dr. Carol Williams, San Diego Civic Organist

Board of Trustees

Officers

Chair of the Board - Vivian Evenson

President - George Hardy

Vice President - Randy Ward

Treasurer - Clifford McMillan

Secretary - Donald Snowden Trustees

Edward Barr Max Nanis

Andrea Card David Nesvig

Len Filomeo Dang Nguyen

Dennis Fox Marion Persons

Bill Galante Lynn Reaser

Richard Griswold Paulette Rodgers-Leahy

Pamela Hartwell Jean Samuels

Julie Hudson Tony Uribe

Jared Jacobsen Richard Vandervoort

Jack Lasher Thomas Warschauer

Peter Way

Ex-Officio Trustees

Lyle Blackinton and Dale Sorenson - Co-Curators

Executive Administrator / StopTab Editor—Ross Porter

Summer International Organ Festival—2014

Photos by Bob Lang and Mike Cox captured a few of the many amazing

musical moments of this past summer. You can see more of their work

online at www.SpreckelsOrgan.org.

Julie Hudson —

2014 Volunteer of the

Year

At the annual Membership

Meeting on August 11, Julie Hud-

son was recognized as Volunteer

of the Year for 2014. Now in her

third term of service on the Board

of Trustees, Julie has almost sin-

glehandedly raised about $200,000

for the Spreckels Organ Society by

doggedly pursuing grants from

major local funders to enable the

construction of a new organ con-

sole, new pipe façade, and other

improvements to the Spreckels

Organ and the Society’s program-

ming.

November 23—Disney Hall Concert

Carol Williams is one of three featured organists in a Nov. 23

celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Disney Hall organ. The San

Diego Chapter of the American Guild of Organists is organizing a

bus to bring San Diego attendees to Los Angeles. $75 buys your

concert ticket and bus trip, departing Mission Valley at 3 p.m.,

returning midnight. Dinner on your own at Disney Hall restaurant.

For tickets and information contact Malou Rogers at 858.752.1246

or dean@agosd.org.

Page 3 StopTab Fall 2014