GREEN BAY (NBC 26) — The Green Bay Civic Symphony is once again benefitting from this year's Give BIG Green Bay fundraiser.
- Watch the symphony put on a concert
- Meet two of the musicians who make the live performances possible
- Hear why they hope to break down barriers to entry for classical music in the community
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story.)
During this year's Give BIG Green Bay day of giving, the Green Bay Civic Symphony will get the community's help putting on a concert of music we already know and love. I'm Pari Apostolakos and I learned how the funds raised will help them break down barriers.
Taylor Giorgio is the Green Bay Civic Symphony Concert Master and Violinist.
"Each concert is unique and is challenging for the musicians but also enjoyable for the audience," Giorgio said. She said what makes being in the Symphony so special is playing alongside people from all different walks of life.
"We have doctors and lawyers and professional musicians like myself," she said.
Giorgio of course loves playing music, but the true joy is in sharing it.
"Having a symphony that's right here in the heart of Green Bay with people that know people in the community ... People are coming to see their friends play in the symphony and it feels very connected and like the real heart of the community," Giorgio said.
"It's very easy to fall into a trap where all of the arts that we consume are online and certainly the availability of that is wonderful," Dan Marbes, Civic Symphony President and Principal Trumpeter said. "But, there's something really magical about live arts and live music."
That's something Marbes knows all too well after getting the group through the pandemic. He says the Civic Symphony will use funds raised by the Give BIG Green Bay day of giving to buy the rights to perform music by John Williams in concert. Williams composed scores for blockbuster films like "Jaws", "E.T.", "Star Wars", "Harry Potter", "Jurassic Park" and more.
"Part of our objective, especially after COVID is finding ways to make what we do relevant and engaging to the community. So, we try to balance playing serious music, very serious music, and music that people know," Marbes said. "No matter what walk of life you come from, no matter what amount of exposure to classical music that you have, we want to welcome you in."
The Civic Symphony just celebrated their 30th anniversary.
