More than 2,100 grade school students recently enjoyed a live musical experience provided last week by the LaGrange Symphony Orchestra during its annual Children’s Concerts.
Over 1300 third-grade public, private and home-schooled students from Troup and Meriwether County filled Callaway Auditorium during two concerts on February 23. In Valley, almost 800 students from Chambers County, Lanett city schools, Springwood School and Chamber Academy came to Langdale Auditorium on February 24 to experience their own memorable moments of music.
Each performance included music from famous composers like John Williams, Leroy Anderson, Edvard Grieg, and John Philip Sousa. The concerts also included a performance of The Thrill of the Orchestra by Russell Peck. “Thrill” introduces the families of instruments that comprise a typical orchestra.
Many children dressed up for the occasion, a first-time visit to a live performance for most of the children. One young attendee was even spotted wearing opera gloves. All students received a booklet from the LaGrange Symphony before the performance, which provided them with a teacher-led classroom lesson to prepare for the concert and to write stories and answer questions after the concert about what they experienced.
Professional storyteller Carol Cain developed the narrative for the concert and delighted the students throughout the concert as she “told the stories” of the music they would hear. A highlight of the event was a few individual students going on stage to actually conduct the orchestra during each concert. Several of the students demonstrated remarkable skill and may have a musical future ahead of them.
Studies have shown that music has the power to transform lives, facilitate change, inspire greatness, and create community. It even has the ability to unite an entire community.
“Contributing to arts education for elementary students is an investment that generates returns that last a lifetime,” said Raylene Carter, LaGrange Symphony Executive Director. “For over 27 years, the LaGrange Symphony Orchestra has been creating memorable moments of music through concerts, educational initiatives and enriching musical experiences for the entire community. We are grateful for the support of our donors and corporate partners whose contributions allow us to continue these important initiatives.”
The West Point Fund of the Community Foundation of the Chattahoochee Valley provided major funding for these Children’s Concerts. Additional support was given by Chick-fil-A on Lafayette Parkway in LaGrange.
Celebrating 27 years of enriching our community through music, the LaGrange Symphony Orchestra offers multiple youth programs in addition to our classical concert series provided by our adult orchestra.
