Sonic Runway gets extended stay at San Jose City Hall
Without a doubt, Sonic Runway has been the most eye-catching thing to hit downtown San Jose in a long time. But if your eyes haven’t yet had the chance to catch the light-and-sound installation at San Jose City Hall, you’re in luck.
Kerry Adams-Hapner, San Jose’s director of cultural affairs, says the piece by artists Ron Jensen and Warren Trezevant will have its stay at city hall’s plaza extended through March 9. The first installation in the “Playa to the Paseo” partnership between the Burning Man Project and the city, Sonic Runway was supposed to finish its temporary run this month, but it’s proven too popular to switch off quite so soon.
“The public response to the public art project has been remarkable,” Adams-Hapner said. “It has become a destination for San Joseans of all ages and backgrounds, and visitors.”
The artwork — a blocklong series of 24, LED-lit arches that demonstrates the speed of sound through light — has been the backdrop for marriage proposals, fashion shoots and even the welcome video for the San Jose Earthquakes’ new player, Magnus Eriksson. Last month, I was out there one night to see a light-saber battle among several “Star Wars” fans and then watched innovative cellist Freya Seeburger, aka Cellista, perform there the very next night. Other Bay Area artists, including San Jose Taiko, the Vivace Youth Chorus and vocalist/music producer Containher have performed at the piece through the Office of Cultural Affairs’ Experiments in Sound Series.
That series will also continue with San Jose singer-songwriter Socorra performing there Jan. 11. And — just as scores of people do every night — you can check out Sonic Runway, with or without musical accompaniment, from 5 p.m. to midnight.
BRANDENBURG’S LEGACY
>> I was blindsided by the news that developer Lee Brandenburg had died at age 87 on Dec. 28, just months after the death of his son, Eric Brandenburg, at age 61 in March. His name was well known in business circles because of the properties developed by Brandenburg, Staedler & Moore and later, with his son, Brandenburg Properties, but I got to know Lee and his wife, Diane, through their contributions to local nonprofits and the arts.
You could spend a year rattling off all the contributions the Brandenburg family made to support the valley over many decades, but whenever I think of Lee Brandenburg, a few things always come to mind. First, there’s his golf memorabilia museum at Cinnabar Hills Golf Club, said to be the biggest such collection west of the Mississippi. If you’re a fan of golf — or of history — it’s a great reason to make the trip to the South San Jose course.
Also on the museum front, the Brandenburgs were also passionate supporters of the plan to create a San Jose Fire Museum. The Brandenburgs donated $1 million to the museum nonprofit to secure old fire station No. 1 on Market Street in 2015, and Lee and Diane were there personally to deliver an oversize check, even though the ceremony was held on their wedding anniversary. (Lee serenaded his bride there with “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes.”) Which brings up my third memory. The Brandenburgs loved big band music, and back when Symphony Silicon Valley had its free Summer Pops series, they would sponsor one of the outdoor concerts and dance on the San Jose State lawn to the sounds of Benny Goodman and Glenn Miller.
Lee Brandenburg’s loss will be felt by the community, but he certainly gave us a great deal.
NEW YEAR’S REVOLUTION
>> A lot of people were happy to see 2017 go, and partygoers literally burned up their frustrations at the New Year’s Eve bash at the Naglee Park home of San Jose real estate agent Georgie Huff. Presidential tweets? Those went into the bonfire held every hour. Fake news? Up in smoke. Alternative facts like those in “The Art of the Deal”? Leftover ashes. There was even a version of the infamous “wall” in front of the home’s walkway. but this one was more of a vertical welcome mat, inviting everyone, from scientists and liberals to environmentalists and immigrants — even the media!
Well, almost everyone was welcome. The invite encouraged people to come dressed as they like, “just no long red ties or small hands.”
“People were really loving it because it was like a cleansing of 2017,” Huff said. “It was very cathartic.”