Catch the San Diego International Organ Festival Free All Summer in Balboa Park

Every summer Monday, the San Diego International Organ Festival takes over the Spreckels Organ Pavilion – open air, Balboa Park at dusk, and one of the most remarkable musical instruments on the planet filling the space around you.

The Spreckels Organ Society puts on the annual series every week this summer, and it won’t cost you a cent.

San Diego International Summer Organ Festival

The World’s Largest Outdoor Musical Instrument

The Spreckels Organ isn’t just impressive on paper – 5,098 pipes, some stretching 32 feet tall, plus nine percussion instruments built into the pavilion itself. Hearing it live is something else entirely.

Under the direction of Civic Organist Raúl Prieto Ramírez, it continues to draw world-class performers to San Diego from five countries this season alone.

Solo Recitals, Duos, and Full Orchestra

The early weeks feature solo organ recitals from acclaimed international artists Alcee Chriss III, Isabelle Demers, Thomas Gaynor, and David Higgs. From there, the program expands into duets and larger collaborations.

August brings an organ duo performing four hands and four feet, a Barcelona piano and organ night with M. Teresa Sierra and Prieto Ramírez, and a full Festival Symphony Orchestra concert with San Diego Symphony Orchestra Concertmaster Jeff Thayer.

Two Nights You Won’t Want to Miss

On August 31, the pavilion hosts a not-so-silent movie night pairing Buster Keaton’s Sherlock Jr. with Charlie Chaplin’s The Immigrant, both scored live on the organ by Clark Wilson.

The season closes September 7 with the Labor Day Classic Rock Concert featuring ORGAN-ISM – the only rock band in the world built around a real pipe organ – performing hits by The Doors, Led Zeppelin, Van Halen, Aretha Franklin, and more.

Free Monday Nights, Plus Sunday Afternoons at 2 PM

Every San Diego International Organ Festival concert is free admission, made possible by the Spreckels Organ Society’s sponsors, donors, members, and volunteers. The 90-minute performances run at the pavilion in the heart of Balboa Park.

If Monday evenings don’t work, the pavilion also hosts weekly concerts every Sunday at 2 PM. It’s one of those San Diego summer experiences that’s easy to take for granted and hard to beat.