GRASS VALLEY, Calif. April 3, 2019 – Mozart considered the organ the “king of instruments.” At the hands of Grammy award winning artist Paul Jacobs, the organ will truly become a regal experience. Jacobs will perform at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 28 in Grass Valley as part of InConcert Sierra’s 2018-19 season.
Jacobs is the only organist ever to have won a Grammy Award. With his imaginative interpretations and charismatic stage presence, Jacobs is an important influence in the revival of symphonic works featuring the organ, and is a true innovator in the advocacy of organ repertoire.
InConcert Sierra Artistic Director Ken Hardin has had his eye on Jacobs for years.
“Paul Jacobs transfixes audiences and colleagues with his performances,” Hardin said. “When we presented organist Isabelle Demers in 2011, we had a sold-out audience. Afterwards, I received countless requests for a follow-up organ concert with Paul Jacobs who was Isabelle’s mentor at Juilliard.”
For his Grass Valley appearance, Jacobs’ program will feature “Fantasia for Organ” by Weaver, “Trio Sonata in E Minor, BWV 528,” by J.S. Bach, “Fantasia in F Minor, K. 594,” by Mozart, “Variations on ‘America’” by Ives, and Guilmant’s “Organ Sonata No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 42.”
Jacobs studied at the Curtis Institute of Music, double-majoring with John Weaver for organ and Lionel Party for harpsichord, and at Yale University with Thomas Murray. He joined the faculty of The Juilliard School in 2003, and was named chairman of the organ department in 2004, one of the youngest faculty appointees in the school’s history. He received Juilliard’s prestigious William Schuman Scholar’s Chair in 2007. In addition to his concert and teaching appearances, Jacobs is a frequent performer at festivals across the world, and has appeared on American Public Media’s Performance Today, Pipedreams, and Saint Paul Sunday, as well as NPR’s Morning Edition, ABC-TV’s World News Tonight, and BBC Radio 3.
The Allen Digital Organ belonging to the Seventh-day Adventist Church was donated to the church by the Hagele family in memory of Beverly Hagele. The Allen Organ Company is noted as having pioneered digital sound technology in 1971. Combining 21st century advanced technology and unmatched tonal artistry gained over 75 years, today’s Allen organs are acknowledged to be the finest and most pipe-like digital instruments in the world.
Jacob’s concert will be at 2 p.m. at the Seventh-day Adventist Church, 12889 Osborne Hill Road in Grass Valley. There will be a 1:15 p.m. pre-concert forum. Tickets are $38 for general admission and available by phone at 530-273-3990, online at www.inconcertsierra.org or in person at BriarPatch Co-op and at the door the day of the concert. There are a limited number of free youth passes for those 5-17, available with the purchase a general admission ticket. Please call 530-273-3990 to arrange for youth passes in advance of the concert.
For more information, please visit www.inconcertsierra.org or call 530-273-3990.