New name, higher goals
Southern Georgia Symphony unveils ambitious new plans
By JAKE HALLMAN
jake@connectstatesboro.com
The Statesboro-Georgia Southern Symphony is no more.
In a ceremony Tuesday, Symphony Association members and Georgia Southern University music faculty unveiled the symphony's new name: The Southern Georgia Symphony.
The new name marks a new direction for the orchestra, said Allen Henderson, chair of the GSU music department.
"A really great opportunity is before us to enhance music and arts in our entire region," he said. "We really think great times are ahead for the symphony."
Over the next few years, the symphony will become a regionally strong ensemble, he said, emphasizing growth, education and cultural and economic development. Six Statesboro performances are slated for its 2006-2007 season.
Symphony conductor Cheung Chau said that next year's season will bring big name guest artists and theme concerts, as well as a chamber music and chamber orchestra series of concerts. The symphony's expansion will also bring concerts to Savannah, according to organizers.
Eventually, the symphony will grow into a two-tiered ensemble, Henderson said, with a group composed primarily of students acting as a feeder system into the larger symphony.
"It's going to be several years before we get to that part," he said. "The emphasis right now is on broadening what we have."
The Southern Georgia Symphony is a regional ensemble, but has a strong local focus. Several businesses in the community have already signed on as sponsors of the ensemble.
"This is a significant contribution and a significant partnership," Henderson said.
As the ensemble grows, it will employ more professional musicians, encouraging them to return and live in the area, he said. Chau said the symphony will involve talented musicians in the area to build the orchestra.
"We hope and strive to continue enlightenment through building and understanding music in our society," he said. "We hope to bring enlightenment through inspiration of the power of music."
Albert Pertalion, director of GSU's Performing Arts Center, said that studies show a successful orchestra can bring a substantial economic benefit into a community.
Symphonic music at GSU started in the mid-1960s with a string ensemble. It expanded in 1974 with the founding of the symphony association and outreach programs that started in 1982. In the 1990s, the famed Magellan String Quartet began residency at GSU.
"We've seen a steady growth in the past decade," Henderson said.
Saundra Nettles, GSU's interim dean of the College of Graduate Studies, said orchestral performances can have a strong effect on viewers.
"There is nothing that compares to a live, symphonic performance," she said.
Nettles recalled attending Atlanta Symphony Orchestra youth concerts as a child. One, a performance of "Peter and the Wolf," grabbed her.
"It was just amazing," she said. "I was hooked." Since then, she's regularly attended symphonic concerts across the country. With the growth of the Southern Georgia Symphony, more young people like her will have the opportunity to learn and love music, she said.
The newly-christened symphony has two upcoming performances - one Monday, April 3 at 8 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center of Mozart's "Requiem" along with the Georgia Southern Chorale and four soloists, and a Pops Concert April 30 at 7 p.m. on Sweetheart Circle. The "Requiem" concert is $17.50 for regular admission, $12 for students under 18 and free for GSU students, and the Pops concert is free and open to the public.
Strauss Wind Serenade
Strauss was a German composer and conductor of the late Romantic era, particularly noted for his tone poems and operas.
Hear Strauss at our Bach, Barber and Strauss Concert February 17 & 18, 2007 »
