Boomeria Organ Concert & Crawl

Boomeria Organ Concert & Crawl
presented by the
Santa Cruz Baroque Festival

Saturday, July 12, 2008 from 1-5pm

Event Information: The annual Boomeria Organ Concert comprises a unique afternoon with hours or organ music in Boomeria's own Chapel Royal, drinks and snacks, surrounded by the Bonny Doon area forest. The even takes place on Saturday, July 12, from 1 to 5 pm with Preston Boomer, Bill Visscher, Bruce Sawhill, Hartzell Lemons, and others performing throughout the afternoon. This event is a fundraiser and proceeds benefit the continued operation of the Baroque Festival's annual concert season.

The grounds of Boomeria are full of surprises, including its own castle and catacombs. Created and maintained by "The Boom" – a long-time local high school chemistry and physics teacher – Boomeria is a well-kept local secret. The Boomeria organ itself was a project begun in 1953. In that year Trinity Paris Church (now Cathedral) in San Jose replaced its organ console (vintage 1879), which had originally been donated to the church by The Boom's great grandmother. Boomer rescued the console along with two sets of pipes and started a project was completed with the assistance of students from San Lorenzo Valley High School over a period of many years. Since then generations of Boomer's students have helped with the building of this massive instrument and its intricate mechanisms, along with assistance from organ builders Bill Reid, John West, and Bill Visscher. The Boomeria organ now features 40 ranks, 2500 pipes, baroque voicing, and mechanical action.

Visitors to the Baroque Festival's annual Boomeria Organ Concert have the opportunity to explore the grounds and crawl(*) into the organ itself, while enjoying live music and refreshments.

Admission: $50 (includes music, food, drinks). Please note: advance ticket sales only.
Location: Chapel Royal at Boomeria, Bonny Doon (map and directions provided to ticket holders).
Ticket Outlets:
- SC Baroque Festival (http://www.scbaroque.org, 831-457-9693)
- UCSC Ticket Ofc (831-459-2159)
- SC Tickets (http://www.santacruztickets.com) & Civic Center Box Office

More information on all our events: http://www.scbaroque.org

(*)Ever wondered what an "organ crawl" is . . . ??
"An organ crawl is a tour of the inner mechanisms of a pipe organ, involving the exploration of parts of the organ not generally accessible to the public, including the pipes, chests, and blowers." As defined in Wikipedia - click here to read more about pipe organs: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pipe_organ

Looking ahead: November 15, 2008 ~ Fall Organ Benefit Concert (Holy Cross Church)
Organist Bruce Sawhill and brass ensemble kick off the SCBF's 2009 season with this fundraiser. Event updates forthcoming on our website.
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