The San Antonio Symphony's weekend slate is full, but as to the music they will be playing, it may be different than you’d expect. It's going to be a lot less Bach and a lot more salsa.
“The Fiesta Pops is a series of three performances this weekend.”
Associate Conductor Akiko Fujimoto explains it.
“And they feature the San Antonio Symphony of course, and the Guadalupe Dance Company, and Mariachi Campanas de America. And this year, in addition to them we will bring back Sebastian de la Cruz, the Mariachi sensation that we heard two years ago at Fiesta Pops. His career as a singer is really blossoming.”
Mariachi Campanas de America is doing a medley of Selena songs to honor the twentieth anniversary of her death.
“It is a very meaningful anniversary for the Tejano community of course, and we want to help honor that anniversary, so we invited Campanas to sing a medley of Selena songs.”
Expect brightly colored costumes, exuberant dancing and a very big sound.
“It’s just as much a feast for the eyes as it is the ears, so it’s just going to be one big explosion of Fiesta energy and a celebration of the many cultures that we have in San Antonio.”
I had to ask if the San Antonio Symphony has to quickly evolve into all kinds of different iterations depending on the week. She enthusiastically agreed that the symphony stretches in all different directions.
“Oh yeah, we do so many different concerts, different types of concerts. Some weeks they have to do two or three different programs, so they have to switch gears very quickly and they do it very well.”
That said, Fujimoto says the Fiesta Pops concert is a gas.
“Every year we have so much fun. It’s a way to see the orchestra in a different light and it’s a great way to kick off Fiesta.”
We’ve more on Fiesta Pops here.
