Thursday was opening night of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra's new season.
Typically, the orchestra would hire a big name performer to kick things off, but this year, music director Ward Stare said he wanted to shine the light on the orchestra itself.
“They are an extraordinary group of musicians and so I thought, what better way to kick off my first full season, my inaugural season as music director, than to feature the orchestra, so we have four amazing works on the program; very different works that will show off the orchestra in a variety of ways."
Stare will conduct four works including The Sorcerer's Apprentice, which Walt Disney made famous in Fantasia; a tone poem by Tchaikovsky, Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings, and the Pines of Rome by Italian composer Ottorino Respighi.
The concert tonight begins with a red carpet reception aimed at attracting young professionals.
Stare said the RPO has successfully used social media and other methods to expand its audiences.
"And I think it's all helping to break down those perceived barriers that we're elitist or that we're distant or that it's unapproachable or something that you don't have anything in common with, because that's not the case at all."
Stare said the RPO has a bright future. In addition to capitalizing on its artistic excellence, he believes the orchestra can inspire the music field to connect with audiences in new ways.
