Community is everything to the Winchester Orchestra
The Winchester Orchestra is now in its second year as a professional symphony orchestra in Winchester, Va. The orchestra regularly features musicians who also play in the National Symphony, Wolf Trap Opera, Maryland Symphony, Fairfax Symphony and other metropolitan orchestras.
A Beethoven festival weekend is planned on Valentines Day weekend, featuring a concert at the orchestra's home venue, the elegant George Washington Hotel in downtown Winchester, Virginia.
Winchester Orchestra music director and conductor Andrew Gekoskie says that, along with offering professional concerts in the Shenandoah Valley, the orchestra is also community-minded. One of the goals of the organization is classical music awareness outreach among every age and socio-economic level with a wide variety of classical concerts, children's programs, educational programs and community projects. This past year, for example, the Winchester Orchestra worked to collect food donations for the regional food bank as part of a Winchester-based “Feeding America Project.”
Young people are a constant focus of community outreach efforts. “That's our future audience,” says Gekoskie. “And who knows who's going to be the next Mozart? Who knows who's going to be the next Beethoven? We don't know. We want to give that opportunity to those kids who might have that desire, or who don't know that desire yet and we're going to expose that to them.”
One opportunity for this to happen will be at a Feb. 13 concert at the local Millbrook High School that Gekoskie describes as a family event. It's part of the "For the love of Beethoven" festival weekend. Every adult ticket purchased includes up to two free children's tickets. He said that the school is a good location to invite families to get involved, adding that the full-sized stage provides a lot of room. “So we'll be able to do as much Beethoven as we want.” The Winchester Orchestra will perform Beethoven's Triple Concerto and Symphony No. 4. at the school.
The following afternoon of Feb. 14, there will be a Valentines Day concert at the George Washington Grand Ballroom, which looks out over historic Old Town Winchester. Gekoskie says it's a great way to get away from the city pace and enjoy classical music in a relaxing atmosphere. The repertoire includes Beethoven's Symphonies No. 1 and 4.
Future events include a children's concert at Winchester's Discovery Museum on March 28, one of several such concerts planned for 2010, and an Arts Festival concert on April 23 at the George Washington Hotel.
The Winchester Orchestra is an independent, charitable organization, with part of its funding coming from donations and community support. But Gekoskie is quick to point out that it's all about giving back. "Whether its children, whether its adults, whether its underprivileged kids, we just want to be out there and say 'This is what we're all about' and 'this is what classical music is all about," he says.
A visitor to www.wincorch.org can get a the sense of the Winchester Orchestra's mission to introduce people to the world of classical music. There's a section providing a primer about classical music and symphony orchestras. There is also information about concert customs and courtesies than can help first-time concert-goers feel more comfortable with stage protocols, such as who arrives on the stage when and when it is appropriate to applaud.
It's this mix of providing world-class performances in the Shenandoah Valley, involvement in community support activities and a passion for exposing young minds to the possibility of classical music that makes the Winchester Orchestra unique.
“And, maybe you'll like it,” says Gekoskie. “If you don't then that's OK. But at least it's going to be there, that you can absolutely kind of get into an idea of 'Wow. What if? What if I were a musician? What if I were going to go into music? What if?'”
Young people are a constant focus of community outreach efforts. “That's our future audience,” says Gekoskie. “And who knows who's going to be the next Mozart? Who knows who's going to be the next Beethoven? We don't know. We want to give that opportunity to those kids who might have that desire, or who don't know that desire yet and we're going to expose that to them.”
The following afternoon of Feb. 14, there will be a Valentines Day concert at the George Washington Grand Ballroom, which looks out over historic Old Town Winchester. Gekoskie says it's a great way to get away from the city pace and enjoy classical music in a relaxing atmosphere. The repertoire includes Beethoven's Symphonies No. 1 and 4.
A visitor to