Alan Trist reports that ca. 1960-1961 one of their friends "John the Poet" had a great classical recording collection, and they listened to a lot of Bach. "Endless Bach," Trist said. Jerry and Trist and a few others went to see three or four performance by the Vatican organist playing Grace Cathedral (Greenfield 1996, 17).
Of course, there's Beethoven's "Bagatelle No. 25 in A minor", a.k.a. "Für Elise", played by James Booker on 1/9/76.
Nick has hipped me to brief GD engagements with Bach's "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" over the years, including 55 seconds into the 11/30/73 Dark Star, the last minute of the Other One transitioning into Stella Blue on 3/14/81, @ 5:25 of Space on 10/28/84, 6 minutes into Space on 12/13/90, and @ ca. 9:25 of Space on 2/20/91. Phil dabbled around aplenty, too, I gather.
Any others I should know about?
Related, Heather Garcia Katz, his daughter by Sara Ruppenthal, is a violinist, and ca. early 1993 (according to Greenfield 1996, 285), she and Jerry had been working on a project with the Redwood City Symphony Orchestra. I would very, very much like to learn more about that. If anyone knows Heather, please send her my way!
Naturally, Blair is on the case, after narrating spring 1991, he says "Later that year, Jerry and the conductor of the
Redwood [Symphony], Eric Kujawsky, hatched a plan for Garcia to commission
several short works for guitar and orchestra, which he would perform with the
Redwood. With glee he told Sara. 'I let him think I was doing him a favor, but
I've always wanted an orchestra!' … Although Jerry did contact some composers
and Davies Symphony [403] Hall in San Francisco was tentatively booked for the
performance, this was one of the great plans that Garcia never managed to
complete" (Jackson 1999, 402-403).
