Monterey Symphony Announces Appointment of John Wineglass as Composer-In-Residence

The Monterey Symphony announced the appointment of John Wineglass as Composer in Residence. Wineglass collaborated with the Symphony in 2016 for Big Sur

Carmel/Monterey, CA, July 28, 2020 – The Monterey Symphony announced the appointment of John Wineglass as Composer in Residence. Wineglass collaborated with the Symphony in 2016 for Big Sur: The Night Sun, a massive symphonic work featuring a drum made from a redwood tree (the premiere can be viewed on the Symphony’s YouTube channel). He spent time at Glen Deven Ranch in Big Sur, thanks to the Big Sur Land Trust.

This appointment, a new title for the organization, brings with it a new set of responsibilities: creating more music. “We wanted John to continue in the Big Sur theme. The idea of creating new art and new music during this complicated time of shelter-in-place seemed really important,” said Symphony Executive Director Nicola Reilly.

Wineglass will work on a Concerto for Violin and Orchestra which the Symphony will premiere in 2022 with Edwin Huizinga as soloist. The creative process will be documented with local filmmaker Doug Mueller capturing the artists at work. Wineglass will again have the opportunity for a residency at Glen Deven Ranch.

“This next Concerto is another part of a series,” said Reilly. “We want John to document this moment in time musically, and we want to be essential in supporting that. There are two other projects in the works, which will be announced soon.”

“After the premiere of Big Sur: The Night Sun with the Monterey Symphony back in 2016 to commemorate the centennial of the city of Carmel, I am once again thrilled to partner with and continue to tell and expose compelling stories through the symphonic medium,” said Wineglass.

Wineglass received his Bachelor of Music degree in Music Composition with a minor in Viola Performance at The American University and later received his master’s degree in Music Composition with an emphasis in Film Scoring for Motion Pictures, Television and Multi-Media at New York University, studying primarily with Justin Dello-Joio of the Juilliard School.

His latest symphonic 2019 premiere of three movements, Unburied, Unmourned, Unmarked: Requiem for Rice was dedicated to the lives of millions and numerous contributions of African and African-American forced laborers who cultivated the immense, expansive, and particularly wealthy rice economy in the Lowcountry. With a libretto and extensive research by historian Dr. Edda Fields-Black of Carnegie-Mellon University, this work has taken them with a team of researchers and film documentarians from the shores of South Carolina to the inner villages of Senegal, Guinea-Bissau and The Gambia. A 2020-2021 (pre-COVID) world premiere of six movements with full chorus in Washington, DC in conjunction with the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) where Dr.

Fields-Black has an installation is planned accompanied by the moving images by LA-based filmmaker and director Julie Dash.

More information can be found at the Symphony’s website: www.montereysymphony.org

The Monterey Symphony was founded in 1946 and incorporated in 1947. The Symphony’s mission is to engage, educate and excite our community through the performance and continual discovery of symphonic music.

Contact:
Marci Bracco Cain
Chatterbox PR
Salinas, CA 93901
(831) 747-7455
http://www.montereysymphony.org

Kata Cabrera’s Determination Helps her Overcome Obstacles

No matter the obstacle, Katarina Cabrera is hard-wired to persevere — always refusing to give up.

Salinas, CA, April 05, 2020 - The Alisal High School senior can certainly thank her parents for that trait, but the game of basketball also helped her develop her signature spunk and stamina.

“I have been playing basketball my whole life, and fell in love with it,” said Katarina, whose friends call her Kata for short.

When Gil Basketball Academy began 11 years ago, Kata couldn’t wait to sign up.

“It was so exciting because it was a big group of kids, and we did drills, we scrimmaged, it was great,” she said. A coach told her about GBA’s select travel teams and she joined — “no questions asked.”

“My dad took me to the next practice, and to my surprise it was all boys, no girls in sight,” she said. “At first I was a little overwhelmed and nervous, but once we got into practice all the nerves sorta just went away.”

Kata competed against boys for two years, “and today those boys on my team are some of my closest friends,” she said. “I was like one of the guys with them. I feel like it pushed me to feel more comfortable on the court, and just play the way I knew how.”

The 5-foot, 3-inch shooting guard played all four years at Alisal. Her senior season the girls team won the league championship and advanced to the Central Coast Section playoffs. She was awarded the most improved player on the team.

Born and raised in Salinas, Kata grew up in a family of six. All three of her siblings were girls.

A scholar athlete, the top student plans to choose among the UC San Diego, University of California, Davis, or University of California, Santa Barbara. Her goal is to obtain a degree in biology, and ultimately become a pediatrician.

“Education is a big thing for me,” she said. “I have big future plans for myself, which is why I push myself to work hard in school.”

Through GBA, Kata was able to travel (she played basketball and experienced different cultures in Mexico, Italy, Dominican Republic, and Costa Rica). She also toured college campuses through GBA’s visitation program.

“Not only did GBA help to develop me as a player and create a deeper love for basketball, but they helped to create the work ethic for school I have today, and I thank them for that.”

Kata has also volunteered to coach young GBA players.

“It feels so good because you are someone they look up to and you get to see them develop as a player first hand,” she said. “It’s amazing.”

Coaching also gives her an opportunity to help kids find in themselves the work ethic and ability to overcome obstacles that Kata found in herself.

The future pediatrician simply never took “no” for an answer.

Kata vividly remembers a doctor’s appointment she had as a child. Her pediatrician walked into the exam room to give her a clean bill of health. Looking at Kata’s height on a chart, the doctor told the young girl that basketball certainly wasn’t in her future.

“That broke my heart for some reason,” she said. “After we left I cried. I have had many encounters where someone told me I was too short. But really that was just talk because I showed height didn’t really matter. I learned to block out the negativity and just play my game, the one I enjoy doing and pushed to better myself.”

Contact:
Marci Bracco Cain
Chatterbox PR
Salinas, CA 93901
(831) 747-7455
https://gilbasketballacademy.com/