By Cecilia Nasmith/Northumberland 89.7 FM/Today’s Northumberland
So many arts organizations are still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, and you can see the progress being made by Northumberland Orchestra Society Dec. 15 as they kick off a new season with their Christmas In Northumberland show.
This is the first season – and, in fact, the first concert – with new Artistic Director and Conductor Patrick Headley.
Headley joined the orchestra about 10 years ago as bassoonist. He thoroughly enjoyed those years with Music Director John Kraus, and they became good friends. When Kraus moved on, Headley put his name forward, and heard the good news in September.
That was a tight time line to put together a December concert, but he said he took courage from the words of Leonard Bernstein: the only two things you need for greatness are an idea and not quite enough time.
Previous director John Kraus was a tough act to follow, NOS President Marie Narini said, but Headley is taking them forward.
“He’s just over the moon to be there, and his excitement shows every rehearsal,” Narini said.
“He’s very diligent with contacting the orchestra with what’s going to happen at rehearsals, and if this doesn’t work what can we do to make it work.
“You ask him and, a few hours later, it’s done.”
The Dec. 15 show Christmas in Northumberland is at 3 p.m. at Cobourg’s Trinity United Church, the venue where they have performed for a good 40 years (“most of our tenure as an orchestra,” Narini noted), as well as their rehearsal spot since just before COVID.
It’s an afternoon concert, “so we can catch more people not wanting to go out at night.” It’s also an ideal time, she pointed out, to enjoy an afternoon concert followed by a nice dinner out. In fact, a future plan for the orchestra might be to explore some partnerships with local restaurants for such an occasion.
Headley is pleased to showcase one of Tchaikovsky’s works that does not get as much play as some of the others – his First Symphony.
“The first two movements are subtitled Winter Daydreams and Land of Desolation, Land of Mists,” he said.
“It paints a picture of a winter landscape. You can hear the wind, you can hear the winter storm come to fruition before it relaxes and peacefulness comes back again. It’s a wonderful symphonic work that doesn’t get a lot of attention, for some reason.
“The whole second movement is just one melody that gets varied and thrown around and played with until it becomes something almost unrecognizable,” he said.
“For me, it’s one of the best romantic symphonies out there. Tchaikovsky has this ability to write the most incredible slow movements, and this one is certainly right up there.”
There’s also a sort of Christmas festival portion of the program with traditional North American and British selections, Narini added.
“Patrick is very energetic and excited about this. He not only puts a new spin on things, he’s making a mark on it himself, and we are quite happy with that.”
He also inherits the post at a time when the group is struggling to avert insolvency, with a press-release appeal going out to the community outlining the havoc the pandemic wreaked on this group in terms of its membership and audience base as it enters its 46th season.
Founded in 1978 by Dr. Phillip Schaus as the Northumberland Orchestra, it merged with the local choral society the following year. Along with its decades of music, it also has included and encouraged young local musicians, many of whom are now pursuing professional musical careers.
As one of the region’s few true community symphony orchestras, its musicians and board of directors are amateur volunteer musicians who come from all walks of life to share their love of making music and connecting with the community.
But that doesn’t pay the bills for things like printing costs and rehearsal and concert space. They have chipped away at expenses, and part of the process was the loss of the choir. This has necessitated their recent change of name from Northumberland Orchestra and Choir to Northumberland Orchestra Society.
“Ironically, the pandemic hurt our membership and audience numbers, and yet there’s a growing need year to year for creative outlets and community connections as people are increasingly experiencing burnout in their lives,” said Concertmaster Victoria Yeh in her fundraising appeal.
“We’re hoping that the broader community will recognize the important role we play and will reach out to support us at this pivotal time.”
As part of this effort, a silent auction is planned for the concert.
You can support the NOS by contacting Narini at info@northumberlandmusic to join the group as a musician member, to donate a silent auction, to buy a program ad or to make a tax-deductible donation.
And you can get your tickets for the Dec. 15 concert at the Victoria Hall Concert Hall box office.
“I think it’s really important that we have this in Cobourg, this incredible institution that has been around – this is our 46th year now,” Headley stated.
“Smaller communities like Cobourg very rarely have an orchestra that has been able to succeed for so long, and that is because of the support of the community.
“We have been hit with COVID really hard, as most ensembles have been. We are trying to get back and make sure everybody’s aware that this orchestra does not belong to the musicians, it does not belong to the board, it does not belong to me, it belongs to our community.
“We want to make sure the community is aware and involved in the future success of this ensemble. We are grateful for this support, and ultimately the biggest thing we would like is just a large audience to hear this incredible music we are working on.”
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love
