Dear Music Lovers and Supporters,
Our 13th offering is an orchestral medley from the musical West Side Story. Leonard Bernstein composed the music. The recording is from a concert by the BSO in March 2017 and is on YouTube: BSO plays West Side Story. The medley incorporates music from the songs “I Feel Pretty,” “Maria,” “Something's Coming,” “Tonight,” “One Hand, One Heart,” “Cool” and “America.”
About the musical, Maestro Fred Devyatkin writes, “Music from West Side Story. Leonard Bernstein shows he is as much a master of the popular medium as he is at conducting Beethoven or Mahler. Enjoy!”
The other news is the origin story for “The Prodigy Project,” established by Bruce Kinsey to provide young classical-musician superstars the opportunity to perform as professional soloists for their first time with a Symphony Orchestra.
Bruce played trumpet with his high school’s jazz band. In his junior year, Louis Armstrong visited his town and he was blown away by the experience of watching the star on stage. He felt the music and energy in the concert hall as much as he could hear it.
After the concert, Bruce met and talked with Armstrong and then bought every Louis Armstrong record he could find. He listened to all of them but they were unable to reproduce the wonder he felt at the live concert. The pursuit of musical emotion followed him throughout his life.
In 2016, he conceived the Prodigy Project, which identifies young, potential 21st Century Superstar musicians and offers them the opportunity to perform for their first time as professional soloists, creating musical as well as emotional magic with the Beaufort Symphony Orchestra.
As Bruce puts it, “People don’t cry listening to recordings. People cry at live performances.”
Thank you to everyone who has donated to the Beaufort Symphony Orchestra. Donations to the Prodigy Project will help us financially to prepare to bring in a young artist once things open up. We are grateful for your consideration and generosity.
Sincerely,
Entire BSO Board & Musicians
