Grand Rapids Symphony

The Grand Rapids Symphony, a 2006 Grammy Award nominee for Best Classical Crossover Album, is a regional orchestra located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA. [1][2] The orchestra celebrated its 75th anniversary season by making its debut in New York City's Carnegie Hall on May 21, 2005.[3][4]

Founded in 1930, the mission of the Grand Rapids Symphony has been to share great music that moves the human soul. The orchestra presents more than 400 performances each year, touching the lives of some 200,000. The organization also implements 16 education programs that benefit over 80,000 Michigan residents. The Grand Rapids Symphony is in its 86th season in 2015-16.

In 2013, the GRS joined the ranks of the International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians (ICSOM), one of five player conferences within the American Federation of Musicians, representing the largest, professional orchestras in the United States.[5]

The Grand Rapids Symphony has presented concerts throughout Michigan and is heard in West Michigan on broadcasts by WBLU-FM (88.9) and WBLV-FM (90.3). In 2003, the GRS performed in Detroit’s Orchestra Hall as part of inaugural activities for the remodeled Max M. Fisher Music Center.

In 2000, the orchestra toured northern Lower Michigan and to Michigan's Upper Peninsula with performances at Ferris State University, Interlochen Center for the Arts, Lake Superior State University, Northern Michigan University and Michigan Technological University, where the Grand Rapids Symphony was the premier entertainment for the grand opening of Michigan Tech's $20 million Rozsa Center for Performing Arts, which opened in October 2000.[6]

The Grand Rapids Symphony was nominated in 2006 for a Grammy Award for Best Classical Crossover Album for its recording, "Invention & Alchemy," featuring harpist and composer Deborah Henson-Conant. "Invention & Alchemy" also was recorded for a DVD, which has aired on PBS-TV in the United States.

The GRS sponsors the Grand Rapids Bach Festival, which was launched in 1997 and is held every other year in Grand Rapids. The Grand Rapids Symphony also collaborates with Opera Grand Rapids and with Grand Rapids Ballet in live performances.[7]

Musical organizations that are part of the larger Grand Rapids Symphony include the Grand Rapids Youth Symphony and Classical Orchestra, both led by John Varineau; the Grand Rapids Symphony Chorus, a 140-voice, adult, volunteer chorus directed by Pearl Shangkuan; and the Grand Rapids Symphony Youth Chorus, directed by Sean Ivory.

The most recent music director, David Lockington, stepped down from the post in May 2015 to become music director laureate, the first in the Grand Rapids Symphony's history. [8] Associate conductor is John Varineau, who is in his 31st season with the Grand Rapids Symphony as well as in his 28th season as conductor of the Grand Rapids Youth Symphony during the 2015-16 season.[9][10] Robert Bernhardt was named principal pops conductor in 2015.[11]

The Grand Rapids Symphony collaborates with its local community to bridge cultures with an annual concert titled “Symphony with Soul” featuring national and local African-American guest artists. A percentage of the proceeds from this event supports the Grand Rapids Symphony's Mosaic Scholarship Fund” created in 2005 through a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The scholarship fund provides musical instruments and music lessons for young African-American and Latino students in the Grand Rapids area.

Concert Series

The Grand Rapids Symphony presents eight concert series annually during the fall and winter from September through May, and one concert series in the summer in July and August.

Conductors

1930–1940 Karl Wecker
1940–1942 Thor Johnson
1942–1946 Nicolai Malko
1946–1948 Rudolph Ganz
1948–1954 Jose Echaniz
1954–1958 Désiré Defauw
1959–1964 Robert Zeller
1964–1968 Carl Karapetian
1968–1973 Gregory Millar
1973–1979 Theo Alcantara
1980–1985 Semyon Bychkov
1986–1997 Catherine Comet
1999–2015 David Lockington

Discography

References

  1. ↑ "Complete List of Grammy Nominees". SFGate. December 8, 2006.
  2. ↑ "Grand Rapids Symphony". Michigan Chronicle. January 25, 2000.
  3. ↑ Bernard Holland (24 May 2005). "The Journey of a Symphony and Its Entourage". The New York Times. The Grand Rapids Symphony came to Carnegie Hall on Saturday night and brought a good part of the city with it.
  4. ↑ "Carnegie Hall: Grand Rapids Symphony". American Record Guide. September 1, 2005. the Grand Rapids Symphony, celebrated its 75th anniversary by renting out Carnegie Hall
  5. ↑ Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk (September 2, 2013). "Grand Rapids Symphony musicians join ranks of major American orchestras". MLive.com.
  6. ↑ "Weekend events". Muskegon Chronicle. February 15, 2007.
  7. ↑ "Rapidly getting grander Arts scene flourishes in Michigan's second city". Daily Herald. October 13, 2002. Grand Rapids Symphony, Michigan's only professional ballet company
  8. ↑ Kaczmarczyk, Jeffrey. "Grand Rapids Symphony's David Lockington conducts final concert tonight as music director". MLive.com. MLive. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  9. ↑ "Sanderling may get second job". St. Petersburg Times. May 22, 2004. Lockington is music director of The Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra
  10. ↑ "Jazz band, symphony share swingin' night". Muskegon Chronicle. January 20, 2007. Associate conductor John Varineau led The Grand Rapids Symphony
  11. ↑ Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk (January 26, 2015). "Why Bob Bernhardt is joining Grand Rapids Symphony as its next principal pops conductor". MLive.com.

External links

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