By Cabir Kansupada

The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra (CSO) has a long history of giving back to the community. During the summer of 2014, I volunteered at the Winterfield Elementary music camp sponsored by the CSO. While assisting professional musicians in teaching the classes, I was inspired by the confidence these students gained as they learned an instrument for the first time. Sensing a need, I organized student mentors to encourage and empower fellow student musicians. We were all brought together by the same desire: to help other students experience the thrill of music.

The Instruments for Kids program, sponsored by the CSO, accepts used instruments and repairs damaged ones to donate to music programs such as the one at Winterfield Elementary. The Tri-M Music Honors Society at my high school supports young artists to experience creativity, friendship, and expression though music. At our first pizza fundraiser, we raised over one hundred dollars to contribute to the Instruments for Kids program! We were ecstatic to see our efforts encourage the next wave of eager musicians and, like the CSO, give back to our community.

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Cabir Kansupada is a senior at Charlotte Country Day School and a Charlotte Symphony Youth Orchestra violinist.

Urban Sketchers Charlotte and artist Don Colley joined us at the dress rehearsal for Bachtoberfest II: Bach and Beer on October 22. Don is a Faber-Castell artist who is currently on a sponsored roadtrip across the US, sketching as he goes. Thanks to Urban Sketchers for joining us again!

I have been participating in "Bridging Musical Worlds," celebrating the legacy and life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. since January of 2009 (the date was the day before President Obama's first inauguration).

For the past six years A Sign of the Times of the Carolinas, a local jazz group, and musicians from the Charlotte Symphony (myself included) have presented a collaborative performance at The Historic Excelsior Club, the first African-American nightclub in Charlotte, to mark MLK Day.



Among the goals of this collaboration for the Charlotte Symphony is to expose audiences who may not necessarily have been to a Symphony concert to classical music in a setting other than the Blumenthal, and I applaud that. However, I feel that these concerts have served as outreach in both directions, helping symphonic musicians expand our horizons too.

An attitude trend among some classical musicians is that classical music is the apex of musical art; however, I have learned that this can be a rather tunnel-vision view.

The Excelsior experiences have been extremely beneficial to me because they take me out of my classical comfort zone. When the Symphony ensemble performs with A Sign of the Times, Tyrone Jefferson, the leader, encourages us to improvise; for most classical players, if you ask us to improvise a tune by ear, we freeze because there are not notes on a page! This is a skill which is second nature to jazz players...basically composing on the spot, which actually used to be an expected performance practice for classical musicians back in the 18th and early 19th centuries. To do this is both rather frightening and liberating, and I am grateful to the fact that Tyrone is very accepting and encouraging of our baby steps in that direction, no matter how tentative.

We are so fortunate to work with Tyrone, who served as the music director for the great James Brown. The things he learned about music (rhythmic feel, improv, etc.) from Mr. Brown he shares with his band, the young people who sit in on their rehearsals and with the Symphony players. Jazz has been called, on more than one occasion, "America's Classical Music." It is one thing for the Symphony to play arrangements of jazz works on a pops show, led by a classically trained conductor; it is a completely different level when one gets to play these pieces in a group which is steeped in that tradition and led by someone who thoroughly understands the style.

The performance venue and format of "Bridging Musical Worlds" at the Excelsior is quite different than a concert hall, but we Symphony musicians are given an extremely warm and gracious welcome by the audience and the jazz musicians. When we get into the jazz pieces, the classically trained musicians can be ducks out of water, but everyone from the band members to the people in the audience help us to swim.

There is a feeling of fellowship, mutual respect and goodwill that can be quite a rarity, and that has touched me deeply.

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Martha Geissler has been a violinist with the Charlotte Symphony since 1981. This year she is joined by fellow Charlotte Symphony musicians Jane Hart Brendle (violin), Joseph Meyer (Associate Concertmaster) and Matthew Lavin (extra/substitute cello).

WDAV 89.9 FM broadcasted our performance of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony on Friday, May 10, 2013. As you can imagine it takes a bit of work to do this. Here's just an idea of what the checklist and plan for the WDAV staff looks like...

1. Order high tech phone lines, called ISDN lines. The letters stand for Integrated Service Digital Network and it's the precursor to high speed Internet. They use these lines to get the stereo signal of the concert performance back to the WDAV studios for broadcast to radios and Internet and smart phone streams.
2. Secure Extra engineering Help Audio engineers set up microphones and sound boards, mix the music and monitor the sound. Broadcast engineers establish a connection and monitor the signal back to the studios.
3. A staff person directs the activities of the hosts and serves as liaison to the broadcast studios.
4. An executive producer plans the outline of the broadcast, acquires and produces interviews and writes a script for the hosts to follow.

Just a few other things WDAV Staff does...

• Spread the word about the broadcast and archive it, before and during, via social media and other digital platforms.
• Help with logistics, such as having dinner delivered.
• Coordinate activities with the Symphony and Performing Arts Center staff so that details such as when the concert actually starts and whether there will be any intermissions or encores, are all anticipated and planned for.

Thanks to WDAV's Frank Dominguez for these notes. In his words "it's a huge team effort, but one we feel is well worth it because of the ability it gives us to share a live concert performance with listeners who may not have the opportunity to attend."

After a successful first weekend season opener, the Charlotte Symphony is back for another dynamic, exciting season. For 80 seasons, this ensemble has sought to provide Charlotte with artistic excellence of a superior quality, and this year is no different.  From Kenny G to Carmina Burana, Bearden collages to Broadway Divas, Mendelssohn to Michael Jackson, the musical offerings are varied and thought-provoking. Nearly every weekend from September through May, this group of world-class musicians will be performing music from psychedelic rock to smooth jazz to film scores.

Is your artistic intake dependent on your favorite radio station, or are you a live music junkie? Are you a weekend art gallery sleuth or a garage band rock star? Does the thought of a concert hall excite you or make you want to run to the nearest sports bar? Do you find arts events stiff and old fashioned, or innovative and inspiring?

Or, do your interests lie somewhere in between?

Well, for arts aficionados and agnostics alike, this year the Symphony has something for everyone. From the family-friendly Lollipops series to the incredibly diverse Pops (this year's lineup includes Kenny G, the film music of John Williams, Cirque de la Symphonie, and Michael Jackson) to the extraordinary showcased pieces of the Classics series, the Symphony can meet the needs of every listener, especially those willing to sample new styles.

"Well... I'm more of a jeans and tee shirts kind of guy. On the weekends, I just want to kick back and relax."
Absolutely. We get it. That's why there's no dress code for any of our concerts, and you'll see everything from Gucci to Gap.

"But the Symphony is so old-fashioned! I mean, my grandma goes and that's just really not my scene. Maybe when I'm 60."
Pink Floyd? Michael Jackson? Cirque de la Symphonie? Broadway Divas? Many of the programs have very current music, accessible to all generations. Plus, give grandma some credit- she's had years of experience to decide what's worth listening to.

"I like the Symphony and I'm a huge arts fan, there's just so much to do in Charlotte and it's hard for me to choose!"
That's why there's the upcoming Tchaikovsky Festival, in Spring 2012, with collaborations between the North Carolina Dance Theatre, Opera Carolina, and the Symphony. Also, for visual arts lovers, there will be works of Charlotte artist Romare Bearden displayed at our first KnightSounds concert.

Every single decision from the Symphony, from programs and marketing to education and outreach are all crafted with the message to audiences, "the symphony is for you!" This is Charlotte's organization, a jewel in the crown of the Queen City, and one that Charlotteans should stand up for with pride.

See you at the Symphony!