Musical Musings

Behind waltzes and white dresses, young women supporting local youth drive the Debutantes Program of Sarasota and Manatee Counties. The Debutante Program's most recent graduating class achieved a major fundraising milestone: As an auxiliary of Sarasota Orchestra's youth and education programs, the Debutantes have raised more than $1.5 million to benefit Sarasota Orchestra's education programs to date. Funds raised go to instrument and equipment purchases as well as scholarships for students of the Sarasota Youth Orchestras and Summer Music Camp.enture.

Hugh Steele was an underclassman at Wabash College in Indiana when he discovered himself to be a truly diehard classical music fan. "During what they called 'hell week,'" he remembers, "one day the seniors played Ravel's Boléro for 24 hours straight on the house intercom system—and I loved it."

In his final season as Sarasota Orchestra’s Principal Pops Conductor, Andrew Lane prepares to lead our upcoming Pops concert, "My Favorite Things." In this interview, Andy reflects on his time with Sarasota Orchestra and tells us about an exciting new musical venture.

Maria Wirries, an emerging Broadway singer whose career took root in Sarasota, will return to her hometown in early March to perform as a featured soloist with Sarasota Orchestra in our season's second Pops concert, My Favorite Things.

When violinist Sarah Chang makes her Sarasota Orchestra debut in a little over two weeks, she'll have crested the third decade of a music career that has crisscrossed the globe and produced 20 albums. Chang ran the Olympic torch in 2004, took a spot in Newsweek's "20 Top Women on Leadership" in 2006, and was honored as a 2008 Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum for her professional achievements, commitment to society, and potential for shaping the world's future. In 2011, the U.S. Department of State formalized her cultural ambassadorship by naming her an official Artistic Ambassador. Learn more about Sarah Chang's evolution from child prodigy to international ambassador for the arts in our latest blog post.

Concert Details

Sarasota Orchestra's Education Department has coordinated a truly historic holiday event to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Sarasota Youth Orchestras [SYO]. On December 21, nearly 50 SYO alumni will perform side-by-side with the Youth Philharmonic. The combined orchestra will represent all six decades of the SYO's history—and in the case of two string players, multiple generations of SYO musicians!

“There’s an old joke that if you stand on a street corner of any great American city and sing the first few bars of Wagner’s ‘Ride of The Valkyries’ to passersby, 90% of the world will find the mantra ‘Kill da wabbit’ popping into their heads.” In this exclusive blog for Sarasota Orchestra, conductor George Daugherty delves into the indelible association Looney Tunes with Wagner—and Rossini, Liszt, J. Strauss, von Suppé, Smetana, Tchaikovsky, Donizetti, and any other number of golden age composers. 

The personalities that make up the Sarasota Orchestra are truly extraordinary. Each musician is unique as an artist and contributor to our great community. Likewise, the personal connections that our musicians form with patrons are equally unique and special. Throughout the years, we have heard many beautiful stories of friendships that have formed both on and off the stage. This is one such story about Sarasota Orchestra's principal bassoon Fernando Traba, and the patrons who left a lasting impact on his life and his playing. Stories like this illustrate how music is so much more than an art form. It brings people together in a way that nothing else can.