The National Symphony Orchestra will perform in Charleston Monday. It's the 17th stop in the group's eight-day tour of the Mountain State.
WANT TO GO?
National Symphony Orchestra
WHEN: 8 p.m. Monday
WHERE: Clay Center
TICKETS: $10, $25, $35
INFO: www.theclaycenter.org or 304-561-3570
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- It's been a long and winding road for the National Symphony Orchestra to get to Charleston for a concert.
That eight-day journey, starting at home in Washington, D.C., has gone through Morgantown, Rowlesburg, West Liberty, Wheeling, Kingwood, Clarksburg, Elkins, Fairmont, Marlinton, Mill Creek, Glenville, Philippi, Beckley, Huntington, Mount Gay, Princeton and, finally, to Charleston. And that's not the end of the road; before they are homeward-bound, they will visit Clay and Eleanor, too.
"It's quite an itinerary," said Patricia O'Kelly of the orchestra.
The National Symphony, under the direction of principal conductor Ivan Fischer, will perform two concerts Monday at the Clay Center. The first is for schoolchildren; the second will be at 8 p.m., and tickets start at $10.
The grand tour of the Mountain State is the 20th such statewide adventure for the national orchestra, as part of its outreach to the nation. O'Kelly said they have it down to a science, now.
"But if we could go back and do Alaska again, it would be so much smoother," she said, laughing.
WANT TO GO?
National Symphony Orchestra
WHEN: 8 p.m. Monday
WHERE: Clay Center
TICKETS: $10, $25, $35
INFO: www.theclaycenter.org or 304-561-3570
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- It's been a long and winding road for the National Symphony Orchestra to get to Charleston for a concert.
That eight-day journey, starting at home in Washington, D.C., has gone through Morgantown, Rowlesburg, West Liberty, Wheeling, Kingwood, Clarksburg, Elkins, Fairmont, Marlinton, Mill Creek, Glenville, Philippi, Beckley, Huntington, Mount Gay, Princeton and, finally, to Charleston. And that's not the end of the road; before they are homeward-bound, they will visit Clay and Eleanor, too.
"It's quite an itinerary," said Patricia O'Kelly of the orchestra.
The National Symphony, under the direction of principal conductor Ivan Fischer, will perform two concerts Monday at the Clay Center. The first is for schoolchildren; the second will be at 8 p.m., and tickets start at $10.
The grand tour of the Mountain State is the 20th such statewide adventure for the national orchestra, as part of its outreach to the nation. O'Kelly said they have it down to a science, now.
"But if we could go back and do Alaska again, it would be so much smoother," she said, laughing.
"Once we know the big places where we'll be based, then the requests can be put together. When we start going through the list of possible events, we all have West Virginia maps in front of us."
Not each stop on the tour includes the entire orchestra. Six venues - Wheeling, Morgantown, Glenville, Huntington, Princeton and Charleston - get the full group. Other appearances are varied, according to Lou Karas, executive director of the Appalachian Education Initiative.
Karas' group is in charge of organization for the tour, soliciting requests for visits, and then, along with the NSO, making the tour puzzle pieces fit. "We've worked with the host sites around the state, with music teachers, faculty at colleges and universities, to make this work."
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History is in charge of the six main venues.
"Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith invited them for three years," Karas said, "and they finally accepted."
Karas takes care of the rest of the statewide experiences, including artist talks, small ensemble performances, master classes and other outreach events.
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience," Karas said. "We tried to make the outreach happen in communities where the full orchestra concerts aren't happening - Rowlesburg, Fairmont, Elkins. There were literally times when I had the state map on the floor, figuring out: 'Now, if some stay in Morgantown, some stay at Stonewall, will we have time to get them to Mill Creek?'"
The schedule wasn't final last week, because Karas was still working out details. "We're still finding out where semi-trucks will park on campuses, etc."
The cost of the statewide effort is covered by several entities. The Kennedy Center gets a grant from the U.S. Department of Education. Venues must cover the cost of a couple of stagehands as well as some advertising and marketing. The chamber music concerts costs come from the Abe Fortas Memorial Fund, and Massey Energy is a general sponsor of the entire trip. Arch Coal will help fund the Charleston concert. Ticket proceeds from the concerts generally go to the sponsoring venue.
It's taken three buses (plus two vans for the outreach efforts), two tractor-trailers, a crew van plus many personal vehicles to haul the people, equipment and instruments around West Virginia.
The Kennedy Center's touch on West Virginia doesn't end with the tour. Scott Tignor, Ritchie County High School band director and adjunct professor at West Virginia Liberty College, has been chosen to receive a four-week Teacher Fellowship as an outreach program through the National Symphony Orchestra's 2010 West Virginia Residency.
A composer from the state will be selected to create a piece for two to six musicians to be performed at the Kennedy Center sometime later this summer. Students Keith Michael, a senior at Wheeling Park High School, and James Worley, a home-school student from Berkeley Springs, have been chosen for the Kennedy Center's Summer Music Institute.
Reach Sara Busse at sara.bu...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1249.
