{"id":224,"date":"2013-01-30T20:51:01","date_gmt":"2013-01-30T20:51:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/?page_id=224"},"modified":"2013-03-28T15:24:36","modified_gmt":"2013-03-28T15:24:36","slug":"wso-culture","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/?page_id=224","title":{"rendered":"WSO Culture"},"content":{"rendered":"
\u201cThe symphony\u2019s value goes beyond musicality \u2013 it enhances our quality of living and our sense of community, and makes us feel proud and privileged to live in this city and in this country.\u201d<\/em> Melanie Paul Tanovich, (\u201cLetter to the editor.\u201d Windsor Star<\/i>, May 1, 2007).<\/span><\/pre>\n
Culture<\/b><\/p>\n
The Windsor Symphony Orchestra has partnered with many other forms of artistic expression from dance to visual art and sculpture. The Art Gallery of Windsor (AGW), for example, has enjoyed a long interchange of artistic expression and education with the WSO.\u00a0 The 2006-2007 WSO season was crafted around a theme of music and art, not only reproducing artwork from the Gallery\u2019s permanent collection in its brochures, but selecting music \u201cpainting a vibrant canvas of musical hues and textures,\u201d as John Morris Russell said in 2006.\u00a0 Windsor artist Shirley Williams was commissioned to provide the cover art for the season brochure. The AGW\u2019s curators, James Patten and Cassandra Getty took part in pre-concert talks and the annual Windsor Canadian Music Festival in February presented five new works inspired by visual artists and their art.<\/p>\n
\"Concert<\/a>The WSO has performed other visual art-connected concerts, such as chamber music at the Art Gallery of Windsor, and even performed outdoors at the Odette Sculpture Garden, on the banks of the Detroit River in a \u201cSunsets, Sculptures and Serenades\u201d concert in 1999. Other small concerts have been held at various branches of the Windsor Public Library.\u00a0 A popular instance today is the \u201cPeanut Butter n\u2019 Jam\u201d concerts held in the Nikola Budimir<\/a> branch.<\/p>\n
Dance is a natural partner of the WSO, and many pops and young people\u2019s concerts have featured professional and student dancers.\u00a0 The Windsor City Ballet Company directed by Janice Brode took part in the WSO\u2019s 1981 du Maurier Cabaret Series.\u00a0 In 1994, the WSO played host to Gizella Witkowsky and Serve Lovie from the National Ballet, for whom the orchestra played selections from \u201cThe Bartered Bride\u201d by Smetana and selections by Tchaikowski (The Journal<\/i>, December 1, 1994).\"Dancer<\/a><\/p>\n
Ten years later, the WSO continued its support of student dancers by inviting just about every <\/i>dance group in the city, to join the WSO in a \u201cSong and Dance\u201d pops concert including Hart School of Highland Dance, Teutonia Youth Dance Group, Napur Jhankar School of Dance, Windsor Barvanic, Ukrainian Dance Ensemble and HNM Dance Company with director Anh Nguyen.\u00a0 Marcel Beneteau, a francophone singer, songwriter and historian, also contributed his French folk songs from the Detroit River region.<\/p>\n
The WSO and Windsor Light Music Theatre (formerly Windsor Light Opera) celebrated their mutual 60th<\/sup> Anniversaries in January, 2008 with a celebratory co-production concert series featuring selections from Gilbert and Sullivan operettas and Broadway musicals with WLMT director Susan Belleperche and the Windsor Symphony Orchestra\u2019s John Morris Russell.<\/p>\n
Later that year in a unique performance of music and drama, conductor John Morris Russell arranged an adaptation of Dickens\u2019 A Christmas Carol<\/i> with local actors from Windsor Light Music Theatre and actor Alan Anderson from Portland, OR.\u00a0 The 25-minute retelling of the classic Christmas story with words and music was borrowed from a production originating with the Oregon Symphony Orchestra where Russell was a guest conductor.\u00a0 There was also an unusual guest appearance by tenor Ross Paul, who was better known at the time as the president of the University of Windsor.<\/p>\n
The WSO has also supported the literary arts through the years, more recently with the recording of well-known children\u2019s author Christopher Paul Curtis\u2019 <\/a>adaptation of his own short story, \u201cLast Minute Lulu\u201d which he read to an orchestral music accompaniment.\u00a0Windsor\u2019s first Poet Laureate, Marty Gervais (who also writes under C.H. Gervais) read poetry commemorating the anniversary of the Bi-Centennial of the War of 1812 at a special concert and city-wide commemoration on September 25, 2012.<\/p>\n
The Windsor Symphony Orchestra and Detroit<\/b><\/p>\n
In terms of Canadian ensembles, the Windsor Symphony Orchestra is unique in its proximity to a much larger American counterpart, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra which is just a twenty-minute drive over the international border.\u00a0\u00a0 Rather than being overshadowed by this larger ensemble, the WSO has thrived on a special relationship with American musicians and patrons.<\/p>\n
The very origins of the WSO were supported by Detroit musicians and conductors. Peter C. Allan, a founding conductor was able to draw on the expertise of Fred G. Vallance, the associate conductor with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.\u00a0 One of local band leader Ernest Rennie\u2019s early groups was called the \u201cBorder Cities Orchestra\u201d in order to reflect the towns on the international border, before Sandwich, East Windsor, Walkerville and Windsor were amalgamated. The migration of musicians to and from Detroit was assured.\"Hart<\/a><\/p>\n
Reviewers in the Windsor Star<\/i> often called on conductors, particularly founder Matti Holli, to reflect on the WSO\u2019s relationship with Detroit.\u00a0In 1969, Holli emphasized the advantages, musing that musicians have the advantage of the larger market for their talents, and students can access a variety of teachers, while still being able to play with the WSO as grounding for their musical development (Windsor Daily Star<\/i>, September 20, 1969).<\/p>\n
The WSO has welcomed guest orchestras and conductors from Detroit through the decades.\u00a0November 26, 1972 was designated \u201cSymphony Day\u201d to mark the WSO\u2019s 25th<\/sup> Anniversary, and both the WSO and Detroit Symphony Orchestras gave concerts during a landmark day at the Cleary Auditorium.<\/p>\n
Guest artists have enjoyed the special relationship between the two cities and performed with the WSO.\u00a0 Michigan\u2019s Rackham Symphony Choir joined the WSO in 1973.\u00a0 In 1975, a special celebration of the region\u2019s French and American roots brought guest conductor Andre Ameller from the Dijon Symphony, with Detroit\u2019s Cass Tech High Concert Choir sang Offenbach\u2019s \u201cNeighbours\u2019 Chorus\u201d from La Jolie Parumeuse.<\/i><\/p>\n
The International Youth Symphony was a truly international initiative founded by Matti Holli in 1966.\u00a0 Ten years later, 83 members were evenly divided between Canadians and Americans, with rehearsals in Detroit\u2019s Christ Church near the Windsor-Detroit tunnel and performing 6 concerts a year, also split evenly between the two cities.\u00a0 This group survived a few transformations over the years and is the foundation of the Windsor Youth Symphony Orchestra today.<\/p>\n
The Windsor-Detroit Freedom Festival has also benefitted from the help of the WSO as the orchestra staged a fundraising concert, \u201cThe Beatles and Beach Boys meet Bach and Beethoven\u201d with Detroit\u2019s Own Teen Angels at the Fox Theatre in 1982.\u00a0 In 1984, the WSO was commissioned to help stimulate business for the newly opened Hilton International hotel in Windsor with a concert at Orchestra Hall in Detroit to encourage Americans to visit Windsor for concerts and stay overnight at the nearby hotel.<\/p>\n
There have been quite a few homages to the Detroit \u201cMotown Sound\u201d through the years. In 2001, the \u201cDetroit! Detroit!\u201d show brought some of Detroit\u2019s\u00a0 top musicians to sold-out crowds in Windsor and was a highlight of the season.\u00a0 The General Manager of the WSO, Mina Grossman-Ianni, formed the idea of the program with jazz impresario Hugh Leal.\u00a0\u00a0 The guest conductor was American John Morris Russell, then a candidate for the position of WSO conductor.\u00a0 Guest artists featured master trumpeter Marcus Belgrave and soloist Dee Dee McNeil of Motown Record fame.\u00a0 The playlist included light classics and orchestral medleys of the music of Stevie Wonder and jazz arrangements of Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong, \u201cToward the end of Sunday\u2019s concert, audience members showed their approval by rising spontaneously from their seats and cheering and sing along in a Belgrave-led chorus of When the Saints Go Marching In\u201d <\/i>(Windsor Star, <\/i>April 9, 2001).<\/p>\n
WSO and Local Industry<\/b><\/p>\n
As Windsor has been known as an industrial city as well as a cultural hub, it is fitting to note the various connections that the Windsor Symphony Orchestra has with local industry.\u00a0 From the Musician\u2019s union, to the CAW and corporations, the WSO and the public have benefitted from these partnerships.<\/p>\n
Most WSO musicians have been members of the American Federation of Musicians, Windsor Local 566 for most of the chapter\u2019s 101-year history.\u00a0 Celebrating the centennial of the union with an exhibition at Windsor\u2019s Community Museum in 2011, it was noted that the musician\u2019s union is one of the oldest in the city.\u00a0 The union endorsed the foundation of the WSO, and one of the early names was the \u201cWindsor Federation of Musicians Symphony Orchestra\u201d in 1947.<\/p>\n
When she retired from touring as a professional musician, Celia Hardcastle, who as a woman had once been required to get permission to join the union, opened a sheet music store in downtown Windsor that effectively became the de-facto headquarters for the Local 566.\u00a0 When the WSO hired new musicians, first right of refusal was given to union members before spots were opened to students, although students likely became members in due course.\u00a0\u00a0The union also cooperated with WSO volunteers to steer the orchestra through difficult financial straits in the 1980s.<\/p>\n
\"WSO<\/a>Conductors Laszlo Gati in the 1980s and Susan Haig in the 1990s attempted to stage concerts in local factories, with varying degrees of success.\u00a0 Usually, these were small groups of musicians in quartets and quintets.\u00a0 This didn\u2019t stop the local auto workers\u2019 and other trade unions from supporting the symphony with funds and ticket purchases.<\/p>\n
The ultimate union connection occurred in 1998, when Canadian Auto Workers president Ken Lewenza took to the stage with the WSO as narrator of Peter and the Wolf.<\/i>\u00a0 Susan Haig, who was a popular speaker at service club and organizations\u2019 meetings, shared with the Windsor & District Labour Council that Lewenza was very qualified for the role, with a \u201c\u2019strong voice \u2026 and he speaks with a lot of passion,\u2019\u201d encouraging local union members to feel welcome at WSO concerts (Windsor Star, <\/i>October 14, 1998).<\/p>\n
The WSO relies on corporate support to supplement subscription income. Early sponsorship came from tobacco companies, such as du Maurier, which underwrote a concert series for the 1979-80 season.\u00a0 Government regulations on cigarette advertising halted this income.\u00a0\u00a0Hiram Walker Distillery (now owned by Beam Global Spirits and Wine) is an example of a corporation that has not only sponsored the WSO, but executives from the firm have also served on the WSO Board.\u00a0 This allows the WSO to benefit from executive corporate experience.\u00a0 In turn, the WSO is a drawing-card for Windsor-based development organizations to attract new businesses to culture-rich Windsor.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe symphony\u2019s value goes beyond musicality \u2013 it enhances our quality of living and our sense of community, and makes us feel proud and privileged to live in this city and in this country.\u201d Melanie Paul Tanovich, (\u201cLetter to the editor.\u201d Windsor Star, May 1, 2007). Culture The Windsor Symphony Orchestra has partnered with many other forms of artistic expression Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/224"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=224"}],"version-history":[{"count":45,"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/224\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2389,"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/224\/revisions\/2389"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.windsorpubliclibrary.com\/engine\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}