KRTU-FM commissions a musical work dedicated to the city to celebrate 10 years of jazz; Spurs legend Sean Elliott announced as narrator for Oct. 23 world premiere
SAN ANTONIO -- When riffing on ideas on how to celebrate 10 years of jazz programming on
KRTU 91.7 FM, the first great idea came early. What better way to mark the occasion at the station than with original music?
After commissioning the work a year ago, KRTU will unveil the
San Antonio Jazz Suite this October, marking the start of a yearlong celebration - the second great idea to emerge - that will lead to the station's decade anniversary.
The
Jazz Suite will receive its world premiere at "Sunday in Brackenridge Park: Jazz Family Showcase," the
kick-off event of KRTU's
Year of Jazzcelebration. The premiere will start at 6 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 23, in the Sunken Garden Theater. The event is free and is open to all ages.
As for who would write the composition, there was only one choice - Aaron Prado, a pianist and composer who has been surrounded by jazz all his life. Even his middle name is Ellington. A San Antonian by birth, he has been playing the piano since he was seven and attended the Stanford Jazz Workshop, studying with jazz artists McCoy Tyner, Art Farmer, and Ray Brown while in high school.
He received his bachelor's from Columbia University in New York, where he studied jazz history. After graduation, he returned to San Antonio and was hired by KRTU in 2003 as the station's music director.
He was the voice of the station for several years, entertaining and enlightening listeners with his encyclopedic knowledge of jazz lore. He left the station in 2009 to continue his music education at New York University's Jazz Studies graduate program.
While studying in New York, he also found time to perform at some of the landmark venues in jazz, including the Blue Note and the Jazz Gallery.
After completing his master's, Prado returned to San Antonio and is now pursuing a doctorate while commuting to the prestigious Butler School of Music at the University of Texas at Austin.
When he first heard about the Year of Jazz project, Prado said he was delighted but wondered if the ambitious project would ever come to fruition. "I knew it would be a huge commitment," said Prado.
However, Ron Nirenberg, the associate general manager of KRTU, worked tirelessly to develop the idea of Year in Jazz with a collaboration of arts and cultural organizations, which made the San Antonio Jazz Suite possible.
In early discussions about the suite, it was decided that the piece should be dedicated to San Antonio.
"There are a number of sounds and cultures that make up San Antonio," said Nirenberg, "and I thought there is no better way to capture it all than in jazz."
"My goal is to celebrate San Antonio," said Prado. "The suite is my impression of the history and development and current state of San Antonio and its people."
The suite is written for a big band. "This is coming out of my primary influences for large ensemble jazz, such as Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and the Mel Louis Orchestra," explained Prado, who added that Ellington himself also wrote many jazz suites. "I am a big fan of Ellington's music. Aside from being named after him, he was one of America's greatest composers."
The suite will contain nine sections grouped into three movements. The first movement will recall the early years of the city, from the Spaniards who first came to the area by the San Pedro Springs, to the arrival of the Canary Islanders, who helped establish a civil government. From there the music will jump to the most famous event in San Antonio's history, the battle of the Alamo.
The second movement evokes the rising fortunes of San Antonio and the city's development into an economic and cultural crossroads. The music will pay homage to the Riverwalk and to HemisFair '68, the world's fair that brought international attention to the city.
The third movement will look at San Antonians in the 21st century and bring up themes that everyone can relate to, including the stock show and rodeo, Fiesta, and rooting for the San Antonio Spurs. One section will even be about traffic and the endless time spent on Loop 410 and Loop 1604.
The final section will then bring all the elements together while looking toward the future.
The suite will be performed by the San Antonio Jazz All Stars, a 16-piece big band with most members coming from the King William Collective, a jazz group led by jazz musician Bill King. In addition to the All Stars, the suite will feature Prado on piano and a string quartet.
The suite will also include narration, written by Prado, which will be read at the premiere by former San Antonio Spur Sean Elliott.
Prado said he would like the local audience to be invigorated once they hear the 50-minute composition. "A lot of times we are moved by great art that is about somewhere else. This is something that is made for us. I hope that people will have a pride of place, of where we live, and how lucky we are to be here."
More than 2,500 San Antonians took advantage of the warm afternoon, on Oct. 23, to enjoy music and other entertainment at the first Year of Jazz event, which KRTU hosted with the Brackenridge Park Conservancy – Sunday in Brackenridge Park: Jazz Family Showcase held at the Sunken Garden Theater. 
