Ayala to perform for Pope

Gabriel Ayala Takes to the Airwaves and Books a Gig at the Vatican

By Lee AllenAyala may need to take a break from the new show in October to play a once-in-a-lifetime gig: A performance of an original arrangement for Pope Benedict XVI in Rome. The opportunity arose out of a concert he played in the Windy City at the request of the Diocese of Chicago. “Once I was there, they said ‘Look at this piece of music, it’s a triple melody.’ I said ‘It’s really nice.’ They said, ‘What do you hear in this?’ I said ‘It needs guitar, and needs to be harmonized,’ and they said ‘Here’s the piece of music, arrange it,’ and that was that. I’m going to do an SATB arrangement—soprano, alto, tenor, bass—and I’m hoping to have 16 performers, four from each category, plus guitar and Native American flute. I’ve worked on the piece and it’s about where I want it.”

Performing for the Pope “will show me on a different level as a Native artisan,” Ayala says, although he admits that the date is tentative. “Musicians are always the last to know what’s going on,” he chuckles. “We show up and play when we’re told and leave when we’re done.”Comment:  For more on Ayala, see The 2011 NAMMY Winners and First Indian Chamber Music Festival.

Below:  "The acclaimed musician on the microphone for Yoeme Radio on KPYT." (Lee Allen/AZFREELANCE)