Happy Anniversary!
The day finally arrived!
The great concert celebrating Cristina's 50 years in music was a great success, with a full house, even in the midst of the pandemic.
The days before the concert had their corresponding share of chaos, with the continuous count of available places given the limited capacity and the limited staff so that everything flowed without problems. Anyway, when the day came, everything went according to plan, and people were able to enjoy the event with Cristina and from their homes.
On Monday, after her well-deserved rest, Cristina took the time to leave us a few words about the special celebration of this milestone in her career:
"(...) This concert was scheduled for March 21, which also coincided with Johann Sebastian Bach's birth date, and it was 270 years (...) after his death. And we were able to announce it in advance, but by March 14th, 15th, we knew that it would not be possible.
Time passed by, and there was an opening, to a certain degree, to carry out activities trying not to gather big crowds and such, so I asked at the Parish and Father Raúl (...), said yes.
(...) As I have too much activity every week, I had to decide a few days ago what repertoire (...) I was going to do, and the program that I had in mind, of course, was Beatles Love Bach because I had never presented it in Montevideo. I had played something very similar in the Paysandú Basilica at the end of 2019. So I wanted to do it, but at the same time, I didn't know if I would have the time to put together the program. (...) I said to myself: Well, at the end of the concert I want to add All You Need Is Love, as a final message, which (...) is not on the album. And I thought I needed a soloist, and I chose (...) Álvaro Cedrés, who is an excellent singer, and he immediately accepted. (...) There, I thought it would be very nice if he also sang the song For No One, which is linked to the aria of the G string (...) by Bach. (...) Later, I also had the idea to add (...) the song A Whiter Shade of Pale by Procol Harum (...) because it is also written on (...) a bass voice very similar to the aria by Bach and the song For No One.
(...) During the concert, I was happy and at the same time very attentive because this instrument from the Tapes parish, although it is very dear to me and has accompanied me since the beginning of my studies, has some defects. Several were solved thanks to the competence of Jaime Camps and the help of the new future organ builder Nicolás López Marino (...), and it is a joy for us because we can think that the organ building school will continue in Uruguay. (...) The pneumatic system does not work 100% well, and then the keyboards and the pedalboard have a response, sometimes quite finicky. It means that one passes the foot over it barely touching it (...) and sounds a little, and of course, that (...) is heard. (...) We plan to improve the instrument soon.
(...) It was really moving, reaching the end with All You Need Is Love and the surprise for the public, especially from the De Profundis choir that from their chairs they accompanied with the choir of this song while Álvaro Cedrés sang the melody. (...) And that encouraged people to start clapping their hands, and well, a party started. But calmly, with joy, and with gratitude.
(...) The concert was recorded with two cameras and will have a professional sound take.
(...) And last but not least, my regards and most sincere thanks to the parish priest Raúl Díaz who accompanied this project from the moment I asked him if he thought it was okay for me to do my 50th-anniversary celebration concert on his instrument."
During the concert, many copies of Beatles Love Bach and Cristina's new album, Preludi e Concerti, recorded in the San Domenico Church, Rieti, Italy were also sold. You can still get your copy by communicating over private messages.
This would be it for now, see you next Thursday!