The Annapolis Symphony Orchestra (ASO), located in
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...
, has been in operation since 1962. Its founders include
Kenneth W. Page, a well-respected civic leader in the Annapolis area during the 1960s who was also the music director of the Annapolis High School band. The ASO has hosted guests such as Cuban violinist
Guillermo Perch
Guillermo Perich is a Cuban violinist. He has worked with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Havana Philharmonic, the Mischakoff Quartet, the Walden Quartet, the Saint Louis String Quartet, and as a violis ...
and
Charlie Byrd
Charlie Lee Byrd (September 16, 1925 – December 2, 1999) was an American jazz guitarist. Byrd was best known for his association with Brazilian music, especially bossa nova. In 1962, he collaborated with Stan Getz on the album '' Jazz Samba' ...
. It inspired composer
David Ott
David Ott (born July 5, 1947) is an American composer of classical music.
Born in Crystal Falls, Michigan, Ott's works include four symphonies, an opera (''The Widows Lantern''), the ''Annapolis Overture'', written for the Annapolis Symphony Orc ...
to create the ''Annapolis Overture'', which premiered in 1993. José-Luis Novo has been the music director since the 2005–2006 season.
For 50 years, the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra has served as the leading performing arts organization in Maryland’s capital city. Formed in 1962, the ASO now features 70 professional musicians who perform a variety of symphonic music for audiences of all ages. It is the largest performing arts organization in
Anne Arundel County. The ASO currently produces and presents five Lexus Classic Series concerts, four Education Concerts, two Family concerts, one Holiday Pops Concert and one free Pops in the Park Community Concert. The Pops in the Park and two joint concerts with the United States Naval Academy bring the ASO before thousands of new audience members each year. The ASO sponsors numerous award-winning education and outreach programs in community schools, reaching thousands of school children from diverse backgrounds. With a budget of $1 million annually, the ASO is governed by a 25-member volunteer Board of Trustees and operated by a professional staff of five full-time employees and led by renowned Music Director, José-Luis Novo. Previous music directors were
Leslie Dunner
Leslie Byron Dunner is an American composer, conductor, clarinetist, and college professor.
Dunner's first appointment as music director was with the Symphony Nova Scotia in 1996. He remained with that orchestra for three seasons.
In 1998, whil ...
(1998–2003),
Gisele Ben-Dor
Gisèle Ben-Dor ( Buka; born 26 April 1955) is an American Israeli orchestra conductor of Uruguayan origin.
Conductor
Ben-Dor was born in Montevideo, Uruguay, to Polish Jewish immigrant parents. She graduated from the Rubin Academy of Music ...
(1991–1997),
Peter Bay Peter Bay is Music Director of the Austin Symphony Orchestra.
Life
He graduated from the University of Maryland and the Peabody Institute.
He has previously been Music Director and Conductor of the Britt Festival Orchestra in Oregon, Music Dire ...
(1983–1990), and
Leon Fleisher (1970–1982).
See also
Music of Annapolis
The music of Annapolis, Maryland, played a major role in the music history of the United States during the colonial era and has since produced a number of notable musical institutions and groups.
Early music
In the 1710s in the colonial United S ...
External links
www.annapolissymphony.org
References
*
Musical groups established in 1962
1962 establishments in Maryland
Annapolis, Maryland
Orchestras based in Maryland
Tourist attractions in Annapolis, Maryland
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