MONTEREY COUNTY POPS! ANNOUNCES 37th ANNUAL FREE MEMORIAL DAY CONCERT

May 27, 2024, 1:00-3:30PM

Monterey City Hall Lawn

Monterey County Pops! President of the Board of Directors Steve DeCarli has announced the 37th Annual Monterey County Pops! Memorial Day Concert on the Monterey City Hall Lawn. The theme this year is "To Remember and Honor." On Monday, May 27, 2024, the full 40-piece orchestra – conducted and hosted by Dr. Carl Christensen – will present an exciting program for all ages from 1 pm to 3:30 pm. Opening for the Pops! this year is the extraordinary Latin Jazz Collective with John Nava.

Committed to their motto “Making a Difference Through Music,” the Monterey County Pops! provides the entire concert free of charge. They will also stream the concert live via the Monterey County Pops! website and Access Media Productions Channel 24.

The Latin Jazz Collective – specializing in Afro-Cuban Latin Jazz, featuring John Nava - percussion,  Kevin McCullough- piano, Steve Uccello - bass, Martin Binder - drums, Stu Reynolds - sax and percussion, Brian Stock - trumpet and flugelhorn, and Felix Diaz Contreras – trombone. Members of the Collective are all well-known jazz performers in Monterey County. Trumpeter Brian Stock is a son of “Papa” Jake Stock, a saxophone and clarinet player who opened the first Monterey Jazz Festival in 1958 with the “Abalone Stompers.” Stu Reynolds, Brian Stock, Steve Uccello, and Felix Diaz Contreras have also performed with Monterey County Pops! (MCP!). Bassist Steve Uccello filmed the MCP! “Electric Bass” episode for “Pops Pros Teach” currently posted on the MCP! website.

Program Details

The National Anthem will be sung by Jorge Torrez, a Salinas native who is currently the choir director at Santa Cruz High School, Aptos High School, and the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Monterey Peninsula.  He is a graduate of the Conservatory of the University of the Pacific. The Monterey County Pops! Orchestra will then present a wide range of pops, patriotic, and Americana favorites – starting with a stirring performance of the traditional “Armed Forces Salute” and inviting the audience to rise in tribute to family members who have served.

The program will include the exciting “Light Cavalry Overture” by Von Supped, American favorites “The Entertainer” by Joplin, the stirring “National Emblem March,” and Morton Gould’s “American Salute.” Other popular selections include the “Video Games Live” suite as well as themes from the movie “Frozen.” Tenor Jorge Torrez will interpret contemporary Mexican hits “Hasta Mañana” and “Yo Sin Tu Amor.” In a very special segment, long-time member of the orchestra, horn player and composer Jackie Orzel – who passed away unexpectedly this winter – will be honored with a performance of her  “Overture in C Minor (The Chukchansi)." The program concludes with “The Navy Hymn,” “Taps,” and Sousa's “Stars and Stripes Forever.”

ADDITIONAL CONTACTS FOR INTERVIEWS:

Board President – Steve DeCarli (831) 596-7329; Board Vice President - Doug Lee (831) 373-8550

Visit montereycountypops.org to learn more and see where we are performing next!