The North Oregon Coast Symphony continues its 2023-2024 season with two concerts in March. Designed to please audience members of all ages, the performances will feature Greg Smith’s Zoo Song. This musical story of a young person’s first visit to the zoo is a wonderful form for introducing the various orchestral instruments, as each animal in the story is represented by a musical “voice.” The narrator will be Deac Guidi, a local professional opera singer who has performed throughout the northwest region. He also teaches Speech Communication at Clatsop Community College.
Continuing the animals theme, the program includes three short pieces from Saint Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals. A solo cello, string bass, and clarinet portray an elegant swan, a lumbering elephant, and a cuckoo calling, all accompanied by pianist Diane Amos.
Other highlights of the concerts include the orchestral work Irlande by Augusta Holmès, the familiar Pomp and Circumstance by Edward Elgar, Julius Fucik’s Entry of the Gladiators, and Elmer Bernstein’s Great Escape March.
The first concert will take place on Saturday, March 16, at St. Catherine Episcopal Church (36335 N. Hwy 101, Nehalem, OR) beginning at 3:00 pm.
The second concert will be on Sunday, March 17, at the Bob Chisholm Community Center (1225 Avenue A, Seaside, OR) beginning at 3:00 pm.
Admission for both concerts will be: $10 Adults, ages 18 and under FREE (children 12 and under with adult supervision).
Tickets will be available at the door only for both concerts. Cookies and refreshments will be available at intermission.
The North Oregon Coast Symphony is very pleased to be the recipient of a $3,000 Small Arts and Culture grant from the Fred W. Fields fund of the Oregon Community Foundation. The grant is intended to support the orchestra’s general operations and will go a long way towards helping it meet its mission of providing live classical music to audiences in the north Oregon coast region. Operating expenses include the cost of sheet music, advertising, printing, insurance, rehearsal & venue fees, and conductor services. These cannot be funded by concert receipts alone, and this grant will help ensure the ensemble’s continuing success.
The North Oregon Coast Symphony (NOCS) is a non-profit organization of local musicians and volunteers who gather to rehearse and perform classical music programs for the community’s enjoyment. Participating musicians come from a 100-mile span along the coasts of northern Oregon and southern Washington.
This all-volunteer, non-profit orchestra offers concerts, chamber ensembles, music education, student scholarships, and ongoing opportunities for community members to become involved as performing musicians or support staff. NOCS musicians range in age from high school to adult, and proficient to professional ability. Veteran music educator Cory Pederson serves as the conductor and artistic director. Concerts are typically offered in two venues, three times a year.
For more information about NOCS, please visit the website: nocsymphony.org
The Oregon Community Foundation is a nonprofit platform for people of all means to make a lasting difference in their communities by supporting causes they care most about. OCF offers donors the opportunity to create their own named charitable funds, providing flexible, efficient, and tax-effective ways to ensure their charitable giving achieves the greatest possible impact, right now and into the future. A gift from the estate of Fred W. Fields in 2011 was used to create the fund for the NOCS grant. During their lifetimes, Fields, an engineer who owned the Coe Manufacturing Company from 1976 to 2000, and his wife, Suzanne, contributed generously to education and art institutions in the state. For more information about OCF, visit the website: oregoncf.org
