Non-profit of the Month: November 2008 - Santa Monica Symphony

Yes, one can sit at home and listen to KUSC or pop in a CD of classic music.

But unless you have a trunk load of money the sound coming from the FM radio in your car or the boom box at home isn't anywhere near the quality of sound of a live performance.

Alas, running an orchestra is an expensive proposition. Thus, community based ensembles have serious financial challenges.

The kick-off of the Santa Monica Symphony's 2008-2009 season was a special affair with KUSC's Rich Caparella making the opening remarks before introducing the Mayor of Santa Monica, Herb Katz. Mayor Katz explained how the SMS is funded by a mixture of sources but that 75% comes from the participating public. Mayor Katz then turned the show over to music director Allen Robert Gross. Maestro Gross encouraged those in the audience who could donate to do so. He also shared that music fans in the Southern California area may have heard that the economic troubles has hit the Pasadena Symphony hard forcing the cancellation of part of their season and possibly the entire season.

I'm not in the business of crowd estimates but I'd venture that there were over 500 in the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium for the event. It was a delight to see the range of ethnic faces in the audience. Also, it warms my heart so see young and old couples make a date night of a concert.

The program for the night included a mix of crowd pleasing 19th century works.

It began with an operatic work, Siegfried's Rhine Journey from Gotterdammerung. This was followed by the delightful Violin Concerto by Bruch. Katia Popov was the soloist. The final movement of the concerto really makes you sit up and take notice and as the last notes faded into the ether, the audience rose up in applause. After the intermission, Good Friday Spell from Parsifal got the audience ready for wonderful emotional roller coaster ride of Tchaikovsky's Romeo and Juliet.

After the show, I made it a point to send a donation to the SMS. They started in 1945 and may they see 2045 and beyond!

Please consider supporting the local orchestra or school based orchestra near you! Let's keep "old school" music alive in the 21st Century!