The Southwest Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra presents
Assisting the Generations
The Southwest Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra opens its season with “Assisting the Generations,” a concert to benefit the Senior Friendship Center in Fort Myers. The performance takes place on Sunday, October 23rd at 4pm at the STARS Complex. The STARS Complex is located at 2980 Edison Ave. in Fort Myers. Tickets to Assisting the Generations cost $10 for adults and $5 for students and may be purchased by calling the Southwest Florida Symphony Box Office at 239-418-1500, in person at the Southwest Florida Symphony Box Office, located at 8290 College Parkway, Suite 103 in Fort Myers or at the door on the day of the concert.
The Southwest Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra commences the program with students from throughout Lee County performing works by Tchaikovsky, Borodin, and Haydn. Conductor Roland Forti will direct the Concert Orchestra in Tchaikovsky’s passionate Romeo and Juliet Overture, Carrie Lane Gruselle’s Two Songs of Newfoundland, and Michael Story’s Cumberland Cross. Conductor Kayla Lisa will direct the Sinfonietta comprised of talented young musicians who will perform Night Shift by Richard Meyer, Three Kabalevsky Dances by Harry Alshin, and Ghost Carnival by Erik Morales.
Concertmaster of the Southwest Florida Symphony, Reiko Niiya, will present Elbert Wu (1st violin), Claire Schreiber (2nd violin), Cecilia Schreiber (viola), and Carly Fulcher (cello) in the performance of Borodin’s entrancing String Quartet No.2, First Movement. This quartet was dedicated to Borodin’s wife in 1881. William Larsen, principal flutist of the Symphony, will have Sarah Taylor (flute), Kaitlyn Calcagino (flute), and Maddie Fales (Clarinet) play Allegro Marziale from London Trio No.4 by classical master composer Haydn.
Southwest Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra Info
Originally called the Palm Coast Youth Symphony, The Southwest Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra was founded in 1988. It was an organization that afforded young people in the greater Fort Myers area the opportunity to learn and perform great classical music. In 1999, the Palm Coast Youth Symphony merged with the Southwest Florida Symphony and continues today as part of the Symphony’s family of affiliates. The Southwest Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra’s mission is to provide the opportunity for individual growth of musically talented youth through training and performance of the highest quality orchestral literature, to develop pride and self-esteem in young people from all cultural backgrounds through individual musical achievement, to instill values and discipline through musical experiences that can be carried through life, and to perpetuate support of professional classical music by enriching local culture and by providing future musicians and audience members for major orchestras.
Southwest Florida Symphony General Information
The Southwest Florida Symphony is the only professional orchestra in Lee County and the one of the oldest on Florida’s gulf coast. It enters its 56th season this year, having made its debut as a community orchestra on April 15, 1961. Conducted by Arlo Deibler, the Symphony began its life as a community orchestra and its original roster consisted of 24 musicians. It performed in community centers and schools throughout Lee and Collier Counties. It has since grown to become Lee County’s only professional symphony orchestra, filling Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall with symphonic music enthusiasts and a roster consisting of more than 65 world-class musicians. The Southwest Florida Symphony’s 56th year promises to be a season of continued enthusiasm as internationally acclaimed Maestro Nir Kabaretti leads the symphony into another season of blockbuster performances. Maestro Kabaretti is the fifth music director in the organization’s history. His presence and caliber of musicality garnered record setting attendance at many of the symphony’s 2015-16 Masterworks Concerts. The Southwest Florida Symphony’s mission is to present outstanding music for the enrichment, entertainment, and education of the broadest possible public.
This season features the Southwest Florida Symphony’s signature Masterworks Classical Concert Series, (November 12, 2016 30 Years at Barbara B. Mann Hall; January 21, Cellobration; February 18, Let’s Dance; March 25, A Night at the Opera; and April 22, Magnificent Mahler), a special Holiday Pops concert entitled The Holidays in Paradise on December 12 at the Village Church at Shell Point, December 13 at First Presbyterian Church in Bonita Springs, December 15 at Flagler College in St. Augustine and December 17 at Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall; its Pops Series (Big Band Through the Decades on February 3 & 4; A Gershwin Experience on March 3 & 4; and Debby Boone on April 7 & 8), a chamber series called Small Stage Symphonies℠, performed at BIG ARTS on Sanibel Island (January 12 and March 8), at Sanibel Community
Church (on February 7), Southwest Florida Performing Arts Center (August 27, 2016, January 13 and March 10), The Village Church at Shell Point (August 25, 2016, February 9 and March 9), and at the Sidney & Berne Davis Arts Center (August 26, 2016 and February 8).
Assisting Hands Info
This concert is possible through the generosity of Mr. Robert Thomas, owner of Assisting Hands in Fort Myers. Assisting Hands is a private health agency which allows retired seniors to stay at home as long as possible by providing a variety of much-needed services. Serving the community, they have realized there is a large need for food for seniors struggling under a fixed-income. As part of the program, students will volunteer their time at 9:00 am, the day before the concert, to pack food at the Dr. Piper Center and distribute the packages to seniors throughout the community.
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Event: Assisting the Generations
Date: Sunday, October 23rd, 2016
Location: STARS Complex, Fort Myers
Time: 4PM
Tickets: $10 for adults, $5 for students
For more information, call the administrative office at (239) 418-0996 or the box office at (239) 418-1500 or visit www.swflso.org
