Award-winning cellist, organist to play Tucson summer concert sereis

St. Andrew’s Bach Society is making its own history on Saturday, Aug. 5, when it hosts a cello-organ duo in concert.

Cellist Tommy Mesa and organist Greg Zelek will perform a rare Saturday concert for the society; concerts are historically held on Sunday afternoons.

When he announced the series lineup last April, Bach Society Director Ben Nisbet said he opted for a Saturday concert to accommodate Mesa’s schedule.

Mesa is one of the biggest stars to play the series, which celebrated its 35th year this summer. Mesa won the 2023 Sphinx Medal of Excellence Award, his second Sphinx Competition win after he placed first in 2016. The Cuban-American cellist also won the 2017 Astral Artists National Auditions.

Mesa’s career is centered around performances in much larger venues than Grace St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, where St. Andrew’s Bach Society holds its concerts.

But Nisbet was quick to note that Mesa is still eager to play smaller concert series and introduce himself to new audiences.

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Zelek is no slouch either. He’s the principal organist for the Madison (Wisconsin) Symphony Orchestra and has been a member of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, Jacksonville Symphony, Florida Orchestra, New World Symphony, Ridgewood Symphony and Miami Symphony.

The pair’s program features a pair of works by Bach including his Fugue in D major; Nadia Boulanger’s “Trois Pièces;” Jules Massenet’s “Méditation from Thaïs;” and Daniel Ficarri‘s Sonata for Organ and Cello that the New York City composer/organist wrote for Zelek and Mesa.

Alfred Lefébure-Wély’s “Boléro de Concert” and Andrea Casarrubios’ “Seven” for Solo Cello round out the program.

Saturday’s concert begins at 2 p.m. at Grace, 2331 E. Adams St. Tickets are $25 for reserved seats, $15 for general admission through standrewsbach.org or, if available, at the door.