Greensboro, NC – Imagine it – nearly 3,000 elementary school children captivated by the sights and sounds of the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra (GSO) performing live on the stage of the new Steven Tanger Center for the Performing Arts. This will be the reality in March and April 2020 as the GSO hosts their annual suite of Elementary School Concerts at the Tanger Center, filling the 3,000 seats twice a day for 3 days. To add even more excitement, GSO and Dr. Alejandro Rutty of UNCG have partnered for the third year to offer an interactive component to these concerts – the “Hey, Mozart!” Student Composition Program!
“Hey, Mozart!” encourages creativity and allows participating elementary students from Guilford, Alamance, Randolph, and Rockingham Counties to create and submit to GSO their original 15 to 30-second melodies. This year, GSO received over 85 submissions from these schools! Dr. Rutty and his students are currently working to orchestrate select student melodies into two-minute miniatures for GSO to perform during the Spring 2020 Elementary Concerts. The submissions selected for arrangement for orchestra are listed below:
- “Moona” by Beatrice Garrison, Altamahaw-Ossipee Elementary; Taylor Schmidt, music teacher
- “Diamond” by Aria Tonkins and “Sweet Tune” by Mia Zelaya, Pilot Elementary; Allison Ring Covey, music teacher
- “The Lion’s Den” by Ms. Stout’s Class, Level Cross Elementary; Miranda Walker, music teacher
- “Ocean Waves” by Zyania Garcia Hernandez, South Graham Elementary; Angela Windley, music teacher
- “Sweet Summer” by Dallas Smith, New Market Elementary; Amanda L. F. Boyd, music teacher
- “Butterflies” by Taylor Locklear, Pleasant Garden Elementary; Savannah Bittner, music teacher
- “Brandon’s Song” by Brandon Wooten, Sylvan Elementary; Faith Hollifield, music teacher
- “The Satellite” by Kendal Brunden and Mary Wade Chappell, EM Holt Elementary; MeganMaggiore, music teacher
- “The Sweet Dream” by Nam Tran, Florence Elementary; Virginia Williamson, musicteacher
- “Windwaker” by Ramel Phillips, General Greene Elementary; Beth Adams, music teacher
Expected attendance for the Elementary School Concerts across the four counties is over 18,000. The GSO will travel to Alamance and Rockingham County to perform for their students, while students from Guilford and Randolph County Schools and Asheboro City Schools will be some of the first in our area to witness a performance inside the new Tanger Center. A total of 9 concert performances will take place, all of which will include at least one student composition.
Who: Greensboro Symphony Orchestra; Participating elementary schools in Alamance, Guilford, Randolph, & Rockingham counties; Dr. Alejandro Rutty, UNCG professor; Dr. Evan Feldman, GSO Principal Guest Conductor
What: “Hey, Mozart!” Student Composition Program selections and GSO Elementary School Concerts
When: March 25, 26, 30 and April 2 & 3, 2020
Where: Steven Tanger Center for the Performing Arts and surrounding counties
Cost: Free for participating elementary schools – please note, these concerts are not open to the public