Grand Rapids Symphony
Encyclopedia
The Grand Rapids Symphony is a regional orchestra located in Grand Rapids
, Michigan
, USA
. At the end of its 75th Anniversary Season, the Symphony made its debut in New York City’s Carnegie Hall
on May 21, 2005. The Symphony has presented concerts throughout Michigan
and is heard on broadcasts by WBLV
. In 2003, the Symphony 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 Michigan and the Upper Peninsula. The orchestra performed at Ferris State University
, Interlochen Center for the Arts
, Lake Superior State University
, Northern Michigan University
and Michigan Technological University
, where the Symphony was the premier entertainment for the grand opening of the Rozsa Center for Performing Arts. The Symphony also sponsors the Symphony Chorus, Grand Rapids Symphony Youth Chorus, Grand Rapids Youth Symphony and Classical Orchestra and provides the orchestra for performances by Opera Grand Rapids and the Grand Rapids Ballet Company. The music director is David Lockington
and the associate conductor is John Varineau
.
Each year the Grand Rapids Symphony collaborates with the local community to bridge cultures by presenting a concert titled “Symphony with Soul” featuring national and local African-American guest artists. A percentage of the proceeds from this event supports the Symphony’s “Young, Gifted & Black Scholarship Fund,” created in 2005 through a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The scholarship fund pays for instrument training for young African-American students in the Grand Rapids area.
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...
, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. At the end of its 75th Anniversary Season, the Symphony made its debut in New York City’s Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
on May 21, 2005. The Symphony has presented concerts throughout Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
and is heard on broadcasts by WBLV
WBLV
WBLV & WBLU-FM , collectively known as "Blue Lake Public Radio," are two public radio stations in the Grand Rapids / Muskegon, Michigan area, owned by the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp.- Sources :**...
. In 2003, the Symphony performed in Detroit’s Orchestra Hall
Orchestra Hall
Orchestra Hall may refer to:*Symphony Center, home of Orchestra Hall in Chicago, Illinois*Orchestra Hall *Orchestra Hall...
as part of inaugural activities for the remodeled Max M. Fisher Music Center. In 2000, the orchestra toured Northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula. The orchestra performed at Ferris State University
Ferris State University
Ferris State University is a public university with its main campus in Big Rapids, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1884 as the Big Rapids Industrial School by Woodbridge Nathan Ferris, an educator from New England who later served as governor of the State of Michigan and finally in the US Senate where...
, Interlochen Center for the Arts
Interlochen Center for the Arts
Interlochen Center for the Arts is a privately owned, 1,200 acre arts education institution in Interlochen, Michigan, roughly 15 miles southwest of Traverse City...
, Lake Superior State University
Lake Superior State University
Lake Superior State University is a small public university in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. It is Michigan's smallest public university with an enrollment around 3,000 students. Due to its proximity to the border, notably the twin city of Sault Ste...
, Northern Michigan University
Northern Michigan University
Northern Michigan University is a four-year college public university established in 1899 located in Marquette, in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. With a population of nearly 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students, Northern Michigan University is the Upper Peninsula's largest...
and Michigan Technological University
Michigan Technological University
Michigan Technological University is a public research university located in Houghton, Michigan, United States. Its main campus sits on on a bluff overlooking Portage Lake...
, where the Symphony was the premier entertainment for the grand opening of the Rozsa Center for Performing Arts. The Symphony also sponsors the Symphony Chorus, Grand Rapids Symphony Youth Chorus, Grand Rapids Youth Symphony and Classical Orchestra and provides the orchestra for performances by Opera Grand Rapids and the Grand Rapids Ballet Company. The music director is David Lockington
David Lockington
David Lockington is currently the music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony, a regional orchestra located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S.. Lockington assumed this position in January 1999...
and the associate conductor is John Varineau
John Varineau
John Varineau is the associate music director for the Grand Rapids Symphony, as well as the director of the Grand Rapids Youth Symphony and Classical Orchestra. He has a bachelor's degree in music from the University of Wyoming, and a master's degree, also in music, from Yale University. He is...
.
Each year the Grand Rapids Symphony collaborates with the local community to bridge cultures by presenting a concert titled “Symphony with Soul” featuring national and local African-American guest artists. A percentage of the proceeds from this event supports the Symphony’s “Young, Gifted & Black Scholarship Fund,” created in 2005 through a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The scholarship fund pays for instrument training for young African-American students in the Grand Rapids area.
Concert Series
The Grand Rapids Symphony presents eight concert series intended for young children through adults:- The Richard and Helen DeVos Classical Series
- Pops Series
- SymphonicBoom Series
- Rising Stars Series
- Coffee Classics
- Lollipop Concerts
- Family Series
Conductors
| 1930–1940 | Karl Wecker |
| 1940–1942 | Thor Johnson Thor Johnson Thor Martin Johnson was an American conductor. He was born in Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. He studied at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was president of the Alpha Rho chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity. He was the first recipient of the fraternity's national... |
| 1942–1946 | Nicolai Malko |
| 1946–1948 | Rudolph Ganz Rudolph Ganz Rudolph Ganz was a Swiss pianist, conductor and composer. He claimed direct descent from Charlemagne.-Biography:... |
| 1948–1954 | Jose Echaniz |
| 1954–1958 | Désiré Defauw Désiré Defauw Désiré Defauw was a Belgian conductor and violinist.He was professor of conducting at the Brussels Conservatory and was the first conductor of the Orchestre National de Belgique from 1937... |
| 1959–1964 | Robert Zeller |
| 1964–1968 | Carl Karapetian |
| 1968–1973 | Gregory Millar |
| 1973–1979 | Theo Alcantara |
| 1980–1985 | Semyon Bychkov |
| 1986–1997 | Catherine Comet Catherine Comet Catherine Comet is a French-born American conductor who was the music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony and the American Symphony Orchestra. She received the Seaver/National Endowment for the Arts Conductors Award in 1988.-External links:*... |
| 1999–present | David Lockington David Lockington David Lockington is currently the music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony, a regional orchestra located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S.. Lockington assumed this position in January 1999... |
Discography
- 1993 David Ott Symphony No. 2 and Symphony No. 3, Catherine CometCatherine CometCatherine Comet is a French-born American conductor who was the music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony and the American Symphony Orchestra. She received the Seaver/National Endowment for the Arts Conductors Award in 1988.-External links:*...
, Conductor - 1995 Donald Erb,” Three Concertos, featuring Richard Stoltzman, clarinet; Miriam Fried, violin; and Ava Ordman, trombone; Catherine CometCatherine CometCatherine Comet is a French-born American conductor who was the music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony and the American Symphony Orchestra. She received the Seaver/National Endowment for the Arts Conductors Award in 1988.-External links:*...
, Conductor - 1995 Happy Holidays with the Grand Rapids Symphony, John Varineau, Conductor
- 1996 Grand Rapids Symphony Piano Pops with Rich Ridenour; John Varineau, Conductor
- 1997 Saint-Saëns Symphony No. 1 and Symphony No. 2, Catherine CometCatherine CometCatherine Comet is a French-born American conductor who was the music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony and the American Symphony Orchestra. She received the Seaver/National Endowment for the Arts Conductors Award in 1988.-External links:*...
, Conductor - 1999 Grand Rapids Symphony Piano Pops II with Rich Ridenour; John Varineau, Conductor
- 2000 Aaron Copland, American Images, David LockingtonDavid LockingtonDavid Lockington is currently the music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony, a regional orchestra located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S.. Lockington assumed this position in January 1999...
, Conductor - 2005 Live from Carnegie Hall! David LockingtonDavid LockingtonDavid Lockington is currently the music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony, a regional orchestra located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S.. Lockington assumed this position in January 1999...
, Conductor - 2006 Invention and Alchemy, David LockingtonDavid LockingtonDavid Lockington is currently the music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony, a regional orchestra located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S.. Lockington assumed this position in January 1999...
, Conductor - 2007 Adolphus HailstorkAdolphus HailstorkAdolphus Hailstork is an American composer and educator. He grew up in Albany, New York, where he studied violin, piano, organ, and voice....
, Symphony No. 2 and No. Symphony 3 - 2008 "One of Us, Portrait of a Humble Healer" John Varineau, Conductor
External links
- Grand Rapids Symphony Official site
- Grand Rapids Symphony Youth Chorus