Guitarist Edgar Cruz keeps ringing in the New Year
By the time Edgar Cruz brought Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” to its epic conclusion and whirled into the drama of Ernesto Lecuona’s flamenco standard “Malaguena” on Wednesday afternoon, a couple dozen patrons had gathered at the second-floor railing at Penn Square Mall and a teenage girl was dancing feverishly along.
“He’s incredible. I love how much he interacts with his audience. I think he’s got a pamphlet with over 200 requests he can do on the spot,” said Rachael Crawford, cochairman of the Opening Night 2019, during the mall promotion for the New Year’s Eve celebration. “(We’re) very glad to have him back.”
Produced by the Arts Council Oklahoma, the family-friendly downtown OKC New Year’s Eve festival is set for 7 p.m. to midnight Monday at Bicentennial Park and surrounding venues. In its 33rd year, Opening Night will feature live local entertainment on nine stages, a children’s area, food trucks, the traditional New Year’s Eve ball raising, fireworks and, new this year, the New Year's Cheers wine and beer tent.
“I remember the first year they did it over 30 years ago. I was one of the entertainers that performed that night, and after that, they kind of started putting me on every year,” said Cruz, who this year will perform four sets inside the Oklahoma City Museum of Art’s Noble Theater.
“At Opening Night especially, people come from all over Oklahoma … and they’ll come out no matter how cold it is or windy or icy or snowy or cloudy or warm. They’re gonna be there. I’ve always admired that about Opening Night fans, that they will come out no matter what. Of course, the numbers might be smaller, but we’re still talking 10,000 people. So, I’ve always been impressed with the turnout.”
Family tradition
From the time he started playing guitar at age 14, Cruz knew he wanted to be a musician. His late father, Manuel
Cruz, was a guitarist who pioneered traditional Mexican and mariachi music in OKC and inspired Edgar not only to make music but also to put on a show.
“When I started playing professionally back in the ‘70s, I remember taking every opportunity I could to perform in front of the public. And as a young teenager, I knew that they were having volunteers perform at the Festival of the Arts, so I inquired. … They kept asking me back every year — or I would ask if I could play every year — and it just started to grow. I would ask about the Paseo Arts Festival and Opening Night and any other festival in town . ... You build fans and they come back and see you. And everything just goes from there,” Cruz, 56, said.
“People love music — and I love to play . ... Whether it’s one person in the audience or 2,000, it’s the same for me. I get the same amount of joy, especially if they’re enjoying it. Then, it’s just magic.”
In a matter of moments
Wednesday, Cruz zipped through covers of Mason Williams’ “Classical Gas,” the Rolling Stones’ “Paint It Black,” the holiday classic “Carol of the Bells,” the Eagles’ “Hotel California” and a Beatles medley inspired by his 18th and 19th albums, 2014’s “Cruzin the Beatles” and the June release “Yesterday Tripper.”
“I was raised on rock ‘n’ roll, so as a solo guitarist, I wanted to learn all my favorite rock ‘n’ roll songs, except I didn’t want to mess with a band. … So, I decided to do all the parts on my own,” he said with a grin.
Hard-working musician
The Oklahoma City University alumnus is a rarity in his hometown: Not only is he a fulltime solo independent musician, but he also is a fingerstyle guitarist, meaning he makes music without a guitar pick.
“For every hour I’m performing, there’s at least five to 10 hours of emails and telephone calls to back that up, to make it work, to keep playing 300-plus gigs a year,” said Cruz, who also performs in a trio called The Brave Amigos.
“One of my goals is to perform and show people that guitar playing is not just strumming and singing. It’s more than that. … People that are like, ‘I didn’t think “Bohemian Rhapsody” could be played on one guitar,’ well, I didn’t either . ... When I sat down and started arranging it and pulled it off six months later, it to this day has inspired the world of guitar players to start doing my arrangement.”
Cruz has performed throughout the United States, Europe and South America and headlined the prestigious Chet Atkins Guitar Festival in Nashville, Tennessee. He knows many Oklahoma artists who have taken their talents to bigger cities or more scenic spots, including his brothers, Manuel Cruz III, a painter based in California, and Mark Anthony Cruz, a fellow guitarist in Austin, Texas.
“I could have done that, but I was so successful here, I just stayed here and my family’s here,” Cruz said. “I’ll be doing a performance, and these parents will walk up to me with their kids and not only tell me how much their kids liked it, but the parents will say, ‘Hey, I remember when you came to my kindergarten.’ … And that always makes it worth it."