There is a special San Diego Symphony concert coming to the Rady Shell next month.
It will include two performances by professional musicians, with some help from hundreds of elementary school students.
The students in grades three through five are currently in the middle of a nine-week curriculum that features animated characters named “Sound” and “Silence.”
“Sound and Silence are these two (animated) characters who meet in their (musical) universe,” said Stephan Salts, the San Diego Symphony’s Director of Learning and Leadership.
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“Sound is really energetic. He can sing high-pitches and low-pitches. He can play music with a really fast or slow tempo. And, Silence’s character is kind of shocked by all this new knowledge,” Salts said.
Sound (left) and Silence (right) are animated characters used in the interactive curriculum to teach third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade students music concepts. They are featured in this graphic produced by the San Diego Symphony and used in a classroom slide show presentation.
Two-hundred fifteen students at Sandburg Elementary in Mira Mesa are learning from Sound and Silence lessons. The curriculum also includes interactive videos with symphony musicians. On a recent visit, the woodwind quintet performed live in the school’s multi-purpose room.
Max Opferkuch played the clarinet, an instrument he admitted he stumbled on.
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The San Diego Symphony’s woodwind quintet visits students at Sandburg Elementary before next month’s interactive concert at the Rady Shell, San Diego, Calif., March 11, 2024
“I thought it looked cool, and I was able to get a sound out of it right away. That is not the case for most of the other instruments,” Opferkuch said.
The quintet’s instruments also include the bassoon, horn, flute, and oboe.
The musicians played for students and answered questions that included everything from how many years it takes to master an instrument to what they can expect to make in an annual salary as a professional.
Opferkuch said, “It’s little opportunities like this that might seem like not much, but they do plant a seed in the kids’ heads.”
The in-person concert at Sandburg Elementary supplements the online curriculum that culminates with a concert at the Rady Shell on April 19.
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More than 5,000 students from schools around the county are registered for two performances that day, to join the Symphony using their new knowledge — and their bodies as percussion instruments.
Stephan Salts said it is the ultimate in interactive learning.
“They are learning this whole pattern of claps, snaps, and drum rolls on the lap. (The student participation) occurs on a very rhythmic piece that the symphony will open with.”
Dexter Dang, 9, is a fourth-grade student at Sandburg Elementary learning to play the cello seen in this undated photo.
The collaboration of the Sound and Silence lesson plans with professional musicians online and in-person helps teach students about music concepts like pitch, melody, and tempo.
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“I learned that the tempo can be fast, like really fast,” said Dexter Dang, 9, a Sandburg fourth-grade student who’s already played some piano. But it’s the cello he’s working with now. He said Sound and Silence have inspired him to keep on learning.
“I want to try out other instruments and then maybe go back to the cello or stay with whatever I (decide) I like,” he said.
Aziza DeNevares, 10, is a fourth-grade student at Sandburg Elementary with a passion for playing the guitar. She is seen practicing at home in this undated photo.
His classmate Aziza DeNevares, 10, is more certain about her future in music. She’s tried the flute, but her creative heart is elsewhere.
“My big passion is guitar. I love it. So, I want to be a guitarist when I grow up,” she said.
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Riza Eusebio teaches a class of 29 fourth-graders who will perform at the Rady Shell. Besides the required instruction of core subjects, she makes time on Fridays for independent creativity time. That includes time to practice an instrument.
“It’s important for them to know the creative arts is a profession and it’s definitely something to consider,” Eusebio said.
The Sound and Silence program is for students at any level of familiarity with music.
Salts said, “(the program works) if they already play an instrument at their school or even if their school (doesn’t have) a music program at all or if this is just brand new to them for them. Maybe they’ve never even heard a recording of a symphony orchestra before.”
“It’s important for them to know the creative arts is a profession and it’s definitely something (for students) to consider.”
Riza Eusebio, 4th grade teacher at Sandburg Elementary School
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The San Diego Symphony’s first morning performance on Friday, April 19 at The Rady Shell is at capacity. However, there are still seats for more students and educators to attend the performance at noon.
Students should be in grades three, four and five, and educators can register to attend using the “Register Now” button.
San Diego Symphony school programs are free for all participants. Transportation is not included.
Four suspects were behind bars Friday for allegedly beating a man to death two months ago during a fight at Linda Vista Park.
Arrested Wednesday on suspicion of murder in connection with the violent death of 59-year-old Ruben Rimorin were Juan Garcia Alavez, 21, Juan Manuel Lopez, 26, Brian Reyes, 20, and Franklin Joseph Tuell, 21, according to the San Diego Police Department.
Rimorin was found gravely injured about 3:45 a.m. Oct. 18 on a sidewalk in the 6800 block of Osler Street, just west of the park, SDPD Lt. Chris Tivanian said. Paramedics tried in vain to revive the victim before pronouncing him dead at the scene.
It remains unclear what sparked the deadly fight.
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The suspects were being held at San Diego Central Jail without bail pending arraignment, scheduled for Friday afternoon.
National City’s Pepper Park can soon expand in size by nearly 50%, thanks to a ruling this week by the California Coastal Commission to approve the National City Balanced Plan.
The approval of the plan at the CCC’s Wednesday meeting, developed by the Port of San Diego, means that not only will the popular park have the ability to increase in size, big changes are coming for commercial, recreation and maritime uses on the National City bayfront.
“We are grateful to the California Coastal Commission for its support of the National City Balanced Plan,” said Danielle Moore, chair of the Board of Port Commissioners. “The progress we have made has been anchored in tireless collaboration with the community, business leaders and, of course, the city of National City. It’s about bringing more recreational opportunities to the bayfront while also streamlining and strengthening maritime operations, and we are eager to bring these projects to life.”
Other components of the balanced plan include:
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Realigning Marina Way to serve as the buffer area between commercial recreation and maritime uses
The closure of Tidelands Avenue between Bay Marina Drive and West 32nd Street, and West 28th Street between Tidelands Avenue and Quay Avenue, around six acres, to increase terminal efficiency by eliminating redundancies
The development of a recreational vehicle park, tent sites, cabins and the “ultimate development of up to two hotels with up to 365 rooms, as well as dry boat storage,” a port statement read
A connector rail project to connect the existing rail and loop track located on the National City Marine Terminal to additional rail car storage spots at the existing Burlington Northern Santa Fe National City Yard east of the National Distribution Center
The Board of Port Commissioners must accept the CCC’s certification, then the port and city can begin the process of completing the above projects.
“I am proud of the work we have done to help create a lasting legacy for National City, the Port of San Diego, and the entire region,” said Port Commissioner GilAnthony Ungab. “Nearly a decade in the making, this plan balances the interests of the community and many other stakeholders, addresses public access, maritime, and recreation uses, and expands waterfront access in my community.”
The National City Bayfront is 273 acres of waterfront land and 167 acres of water, and includes the National City Marine Terminal, Pepper Park, Pier 32 Marina, the Aquatic Center and pieces of public art.
Mayor Todd Gloria announced an initiative Wednesday intended to expand housing options in neighborhoods by integrating small-scale residences such as townhomes, rowhomes and cottages into an area’s existing character.
The Neighborhood Homes for All of Us initiative is also intended to support community land trusts — nonprofit organizations that acquire land to create permanent affordable housing.
“Since Day 1 of my administration, I have been focused on building more homes that San Diegans can actually afford — and getting them built faster,” Gloria said at a news conference Wednesday. “‘Neighborhood Homes for All of Us’ is the latest piece of that puzzle. This innovative program will break down the barriers that have gotten in the way of building the type of housing that I believe is ideal for young families and first-time homebuyers for whom the dream of homeownership has long felt out of reach.”
Around 80% of land zoned for housing in the city is restricted to single-family homes, which continue to increase in price, Gloria said. And a significant portion of new housing being built consists of apartment buildings with primarily studio and one-bedroom units, leaving working-class families fewer and fewer options for homes.
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Neighborhood Homes for All of Us is intended to increase the housing supply and allow community land trusts to keep housing affordable in disadvantaged communities for low- to middle-income families.
“San Diego is an incredible place to raise a family, and more families need the opportunity to do that in San Diego’s existing, highly desirable single-family neighborhoods where their kids can learn and play in a great community,” City Planning Director Heidi Vonblum said. “But today, that comes at a price that is out of reach for too many. Integrating more options for families requires careful and thoughtful planning, with input from existing and future community members across the city, to ensure these new home opportunities for San Diego’s families are built in ways that best enhance and benefit San Diego’s amazing neighborhoods.”
The initiative will roll out in two phases. In the first phase, beginning this week and continuing through next summer, San Diegans can help determine what the neighborhoods can look like. The public will be able to see renderings showing small-scale neighborhood homes within San Diego’s existing communities, along with new regulations that “provide a clear pathway for building these homes,” according to a statement from Gloria’s office.
Phase 1 will also include an open house and ways for the community to provide feedback and concerns.
Phase 2, scheduled for the second half of 2026, will be for city staff to develop regulations allowing for the building of more neighborhood homes in a way informed by the public feedback.
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The initiative is partly funded through a Regional Early Action Planning grant from the San Diego Association of Governments.
