Celebrity Series of Boston Neighborhood Arts embarks on a season-long celebration of Puerto Rican music and artists throughout the 2019-2020 performance season. This year-long tribute is anchored by two public concerts honoring the legacy of legendary cellist Pablo Casals and his connections to Boston and Puerto Rico in A Boston Tribute to Pablo Casals. This special project will feature a recital by nine prominent local cellists, a cello orchestra concert featuring 56 cellists, and performances by youth ensembles at the Dorchester and Roxbury Stringfests.
Pablo Casals is perhaps most well-known for rediscovering and popularizing the Bach cello suites, now a staple of the cello repertoire and performed all over the world. Casals was born in Spain in 1856, learned to play the cello and violin at a young age, and made his Boston debut on November 26, 1901, during his first tour of the U.S. with soprano Emma Nevada. In the wake of the Spanish civil war, Casals spent much of his adult life in exile and in 1955 relocated to Puerto Rico, his mother’s native land. In 1957, he was invited to lead a new music festival bearing his name; his leadership and presence in Puerto Rico also spurred the establishment of a symphony orchestra in 1958 and a conservatory in 1959. The Casals Festival continues to be a source of tremendous pride in Puerto Rico today.
Celebrity Series began exploring ideas for this project in conversations with Casals scholar Pedro Reina-Pérez and Neighborhood Arts collaborating partner Inquilinos Boricuas en Acción. Conversations expanded to include an ever-wider group of collaborating cellists, including Neighborhood Arts cellists Mike Block (Silk Road Ensemble) and Aristides Rivas (master El Sistema teaching artist), Boston Symphony Orchestra principal cellist Blaise Déjardin, New England Conservatory string department chair Lluís Claret (also Casals’ godson), president of the Boston Cello Society Robert Mayes, and others.
“Our season-long focus on the music and artists of Puerto Rico showcases local artists of Puerto Rican heritage, features rarely-performed works by underrepresented composers, honors the legacy and Boston connections of renowned cellist Pablo Casals, and celebrates the vibrant Puerto Rican community in Boston today,” says Robin Baker, Celebrity Series Associate Director of Community Engagement.
Lluís Claret, Chair of Strings at the New England Conservatory and godson of Pablo Casals says, “This tribute to Pablo Casals has for me many meanings. As a cellist, I think that Casals is not only my godfather but the godfather of all cellists since he developed a new approach to the instrument and a very personal and unusual way to make music through it. Every cellist should be proud to honor Pablo Casals, and performing his music will bring the event to an even higher level.”
Claret continues by saying, ”Everybody should also know how much was Casals involved, during and after World War II in helping people and refugees, regardless of their condition and origin. Casals said: “Before being a musician I am a human being,” and we all should feel like him in these days! To invite now the Boston Puerto Rican Community to join us for this tribute is a great feeling for me, as a quite fresh Bostonian but with a life-long relationship to Pablo Casals.”
Historian and Casals scholar Pedro Reina-Pérez says, "To honor Pablo Casals and his Puerto Rican heritage in a city so musical as Boston is splendid. The birthplace of his mother Pilar, Puerto Rico offered the right conditions for him to travel, conduct, and teach during the last 16 years of his life. Casals joyously expanded the cello's repertoire and technique and the ways in which music could overturn cultural barriers. His entire career was a celebration of the power of beauty to tame the demons of violence. The cello was his weapon of choice.”
A CELEBRATION OF PUERTO RICO CONCERTS
CELLO RECITAL: NINE ALL-STAR SOLOISTS
Friday, October 18, 2019, at 8 pm (7:15 PM pre-concert talk)
Union United Methodist Church, 485 Columbus Ave, Boston, MA 02118
Tickets are $5; proceeds to benefit the Massachusetts United for Puerto Rico Fund
Learn more and purchase tickets>>
Featuring Casals’ godson and New England Conservatory string chair Lluís Claret, Boston Symphony Orchestra Principal cellist Blaise Déjardin, and cellists Mike Block, Eugene Friesen, Yeesun Kim, Robert Mayes, Aristides Rivas, Rhonda Rider, and Nicholas Tzavaras, with Pei-Shan Lee, piano, this powerhouse collective of nine prominent cellists performs music from Casals’ 1901 Boston debut recital, works from the Casals Festivals, and the Boston premiere of Casals’ Cinco Obras for cello and piano.
A pre-concert talk features Casals scholar Pedro Reina-Pérez, Lluís Claret, and Brian and Rosi Amador.
Tickets are $5, with proceeds to benefit the Massachusetts United for Puerto Rico Fund.
Program:
This program will feature selections from Casals’ 1901 Boston debut, notable selections from the Puerto Rico festivals established in 1957, and other works.
Fauré - Élégie (cello ensemble)
Bach - Cello Suite no. 3 in C major
Mendelssohn-Bartholdy - Song without Words in D major, Op. 109 (posthumous)
Beethoven - Seven Variations in E flat major on “Bei Männern, welche Liebe fühlen”
Saint-Saëns - Allegro Appassionato, Op. 43
Block - original song TBD
Casals - Cinco Obras para violonchelo y piano (BOSTON PREMIERE)
Casals - “Sant Martí del Canigó” Sardana (cello ensemble)
ALL-CELLO ORCHESTRA CONCERT: 56 CELLISTS CELEBRATE PABLO CASALS
Sunday, October 20, 2019 at 3pm
Virginia Wimberly Theatre, Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont Street, Boston, MA 02116
Tickets: Free but Ticketed, advance reservations encouraged
Celebrating the tradition of mass cello choir performances at Puerto Rico’s beloved Casals Festivals, an orchestra of 56 cellists – drawn from students and faculty at Berklee, Boston Conservatory, Boston University, Longy School of Music, New England Conservatory, and 14 professional organizations – share the stage for the first time in the magnificent Virginia Wimberley Theatre at the Boston Center for the Arts in the South End.
The program includes Spanish Sardanas by Pablo Casals, Puerto Rican folksong arrangements by Aristides Rivas, and works by contemporary composers, accompanied by Jorge and Gabriel Arce on percussion. Joining the ensemble are Casals’ godson and New England Conservatory string chair Lluís Claret, and conductors Eugene Friesen and Aristides Rivas.
FABIOLA MÉNDEZ TRIO
Saturday, October 26, 2019, 4pm
Church of the Holy Spirit, 525 River St, Mattapan, MA 02126
Tickets: Free but ticketed
Fabiola Méndez is the first Berklee College of Music graduate with the Puerto Rican cuatro as principal instrument. The Fabiola Méndez Trio performs Puerto Rican Folk and Jazz music in a free concert at the Church of the Holy Spirit in Mattapan.
FABIOLA MÉNDEZ TRIO
Saturday, November 30, 2019 7:00 PM
Puerto Rican Folk | Jazz
CROMA @ Arlington Street Church, 351 Boylston St, Boston, MA 02116
Tickets: Free but ticketed
Fabiola Méndez is the first Berklee College of Music graduate with the Puerto Rican cuatro as principal instrument. The Fabiola Méndez Trio performs Puerto Rican Folk and Jazz music in a free concert CROMA @ Arlington Street Church.
ROXBURY STRINGFEST WITH VOCI ANGELICA AND GUESTS
Boston City-Wide String Orchestra | City Strings United
Sunday, December 8, 2019, 3:30 PM
Hibernian Hall, 184 Dudley St, Boston, MA 02119
Tickets: Free but ticketed
Cello and vocal trio Voci Angelica, a frequent Neighborhood Arts partner organization, leads the Roxbury Stringfest, featuring youth ensembles Boston City-Wide String Orchestra and City Strings United. Voci Angelica cellist and Venezuelan El Sistema master teaching artist Aristides Rivas will adapt the Puerto Rican song arrangements commissioned for A Boston Tribute to Cellist Pablo Casals for the featured youth ensembles.
DORCHESTER STRINGFEST WITH VOCI ANGELICA AND GUESTS
Conservatory Lab Charter School
Saturday, December 14, 2019, 3:00 PM
Salvation Army Kroc Center, 650 Dudley St, Boston, MA 02125
Tickets: Free but ticketed
Cello and vocal trio Voci Angelica, a frequent Neighborhood Arts partner organization, leads the Dorchester Stringfest, featuring the young musicians from Conservatory Lab Charter School. Voci Angelica cellist and Venezuelan El Sistema master teaching artist Aristides Rivas will adapt the Puerto Rican song arrangements commissioned for A Boston Tribute to Cellist Pablo Casals for the featured youth ensembles.
ROSI & BRIAN AMADOR: SCHOOL VACATION WEEK CONCERT
Friday, February 21, 2020, 10:30am
Hyde Park Library, 35 Harvard Ave, Hyde Park, MA 02136
Tickets: Free
Pan-Latin ensemble Sol y Canto led by Puerto Rican/Argentine singer and bongo player Rosi Amador and New Mexican guitarist and composer Brian Amador perform a free School Vacation Week concert at the Hyde Park Library. Featuring Rosi's crystalline voice and Brian's lush Spanish guitar, the duo has established a reputation for their quirky original compositions that address matters of the heart, social and global aspiration, and for their unique and driving interpretations of contemporary Latin music.
MUSIC OF PUERTO RICO: SOL Y CANTO WITH GUESTS CHRISTIAN FIGUEROA | TENOR AND FABIOLA MENDEZ | CUATRISTA
Saturday, March 7, 2020, 3:00 PM
Union United Methodist Church, 485 Columbus Ave, Boston, MA 02118
Tickets are $5
Sol y Canto showcases Puerto Rican music in a family concert at Union United Methodist Church, with tenor Christian Figueroa and cuatrista Fabiola Mendez. Tickets are $5 and proceeds benefit the Massachusetts United for Puerto Rico Fund.
ABOUT CELEBRITY SERIES OF BOSTON
Celebrity Series of Boston was founded in 1938 by pianist and impresario Aaron Richmond. The Celebrity Series has been bringing the very best performers–from orchestras and chamber ensembles, vocal and piano music, to dance companies, jazz, and more–to Boston’s major concert halls for 81 years. The Celebrity Series of Boston believes in the power of excellence and innovation in the performing arts to enrich life experiences, transform lives and build better communities. Through its education initiatives, the Celebrity Series seeks to build a community of Greater Boston where the performing arts are a valued, lifelong, shared experience—on stages, on streets, in neighborhoods–everywhere.
Celebrity Series of Boston is grateful to our 2019-20 Season Sponsors Amy & Joshua Boger, and to the many individuals, corporations, foundations, and government agencies whose support helps fulfill our mission to present performing artists who inspire and enrich our community. Institutional supporters include the Barr Foundation through its ArtsAmplified initiative, The Boston Foundation, Stephanie L. Brown Foundation, The Catered Affair, Susanne Marcus Collins Foundation, Deloitte LLP, D.L. Saunders Real Estate Corp., Foley & Lardner LLP, Ipsen Biopharmaceuticals, Liberty Mutual Foundation, Massachusetts Cultural Council, National Endowment for the Arts, Outside the Box: A Production of the Boston Arts Summer Institute, Cynthia and John S. Reed Foundation, Royal Little Family Foundation, Stifler Family Foundation, and many others.
SUPPORT FOR ARTS FOR ALL!
Celebrity Series of Boston is grateful to our Season Sponsors Amy & Joshua Boger, and to the many individual donors whose generosity supports Arts for All! programs. Celebrity Series is also grateful to the following corporations, foundations, and government agencies for their support in the 2019-20 season: the Barr Foundation through its ArtsAmplified Initiative, The Boston Foundation, Stephanie L. Brown Foundation, Susanne Marcus Collins Foundation, First Republic Bank, Liberty Mutual Foundation, Massachusetts Cultural Council, National Endowment for the Arts, Outside the Box: A Production of the Boston Arts Summer Institute, Bessie Pappas Charitable Foundation, Stifler Family Foundation, Tufts Health Plan, Anonymous, and other generous supporters.
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Press Contact: Stephanie Janes, (617) 419-0445, stephanie@stephaniejanespr.com
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