The Cleveland Orchestra announced details of the Around the Region Celebration, a special series of performances throughout Northeast Ohio to celebrate its 100th season and to thank citizens for supporting the Orchestra for the past century. Around the Region events are in addition to the Orchestra’s yearly slate of Education and Community programs that inspire future generations and reach more than 60,000 people annually.
The performances will be presented by the organization’s resident ensembles — The Cleveland Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra Chorus (COC), Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra (COYO), Cleveland Orchestra Youth Chorus (COYC), and Cleveland Orchestra Children’s Chorus and Preparatory Chorus (COCC & COCPC).
Around the Region highlights will include:
On November 9, 2017, The Cleveland Orchestra will travel to Lake County to present its “Beethoven and Prometheus: A Hero’s Journey” Education Concert at Lakeland Community College for approximately 1,000 students from Lake County middle and high schools. The concert will be performed in Lakeland Community College’s gymnasium in order to accommodate as many students as possible. Prior to the concert, participating schools will receive preparation materials and a Spotify playlist of the music featured.
The Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra will perform a free community concert in Lorain County on November 28, 2017 at 7 p.m. COYO will perform works by Beethoven, Barber, and Prokofiev — giving Lorain County residents an opportunity to enjoy the power of classical music, free in their community.
The Cleveland Orchestra travels to Akron to perform for Akron Public Schools students on February 8, 2018. The Orchestra’s In-School Performance of the Education Concert “Civil Rights: Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,” combines music and drama to trace the life journey of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. For many students, concerts like these are their first experience with classical music.
On March 6, 2018, at 12:30 p.m., during Cleveland Orchestra Advocacy Day in Columbus, nearly 200 youth musicians from around the region who make up the COYO and Cleveland Orchestra Youth Chorus will perform for state legislators and staff in the atrium of the Ohio Statehouse. This performance by some of the region’s most talented young people will help to illustrate the importance of music as part of a well-rounded education for all students, during March, Music in Our Schools month. COYO and COYC will be joined in their advocacy efforts by Cleveland Orchestra Executive Director André Gremillet and a host of other advocates, volunteers, and Cleveland Orchestra staff.
To celebrate The Cleveland Orchestra’s 100th Season and the launch of its second century, a free community birthday party will be held as part of the annual Star-Spangled Spectacular concert in Downtown Cleveland, brought to you by Cuyahoga Arts & Culture and sponsored by KeyBank. This annual tradition provides free access to live classical music for thousands of Cuyahoga County residents each year, and the 2018 concert will serve as a very special “thank you” to the Northeast Ohio community for its support of the Orchestra over the past 100 years. Music Director Franz Welser-Möst will lead this special concert on July 6, 2018, on Mall B in Downtown Cleveland. In addition to a concert of patriotic favorites, the evening will include food trucks, birthday surprises, and a spectacular fireworks display (weather permitting).
More information, including a complete calendar of events, can be found at clevelandorchestra.com.
