Thankfully, not every musical success story depends on Auto-Tune and TikTok. In less than two years, the Radford University Community Symphony has grown from 40 to 72 musicians and currently fills the 350 seat Davis Performance Hall with their performances.
The project began when Wayne Gallops, Chair of the Music Department, initiated an outreach effort in fall of 2022. Using everything from social media to word of mouth, Gallops corralled students, alumni, university faculty, and community members.
“Having connections and knowing who to reach out to in the community is key,” Gallops said. “Our department and faculty have deep connections to local and regional musicians who enjoy playing and performing.”
Those connections are important since symphony must have woodwinds, brass and percussion instruments that are not necessarily commonly played.
“We’ve been blessed with participants who play some of the more ‘exotic’ instruments like double reeds, French horn, cello and bass so we can perform with a full complement of musicians and sections” Gallops explained.
After initial meetings in early 2023, they were ready for their first concert in April, performing a mixed repertoire including “Capriccio Italian” by Tchaikovsky and “The Prayer.”
The symphony orchestra shows a great deal of diversity, especially in terms of the age range. Some musicians are retirees while others are in their mid-teens.
One of the younger members, Mason Scott, plays the French horn. He is a senior at Patrick County High School and lives just over the state line in Lawsonville, North Carolina. It’s an hour and a half to and from Radford for weekly rehearsals, but he generally gets home at a reasonable time.
“I joined this ensemble to have more opportunities to play and so far, it’s been worth it,” he said. It is good experience for Scott who composes and plans to major in music education and performance in college.
On the other end of the scale is retiree, Rhea Epstein, who lives in Blacksburg and plays violin.
She joined because she loves the music and was inspired to sign up because of Vladimir Kromin, the director of the university’s Chamber Strings Ensemble and first chair violinist.
“I've been studying with Vladimir for the last six to seven years,” said Epstein, who first picked up a violin at age eight.
“I think I'm helping to fill out the ranks,” she said. “String players seem so few these days.”
Sitting next to Epstein is Radford University student Timothy Damankah, who studies Biomedical Science and plans to be a physician. He began playing music at age six on a piano keyboard, but he is a violinist in the group.
“After working away at organic chemistry and other intensive classes, these rehearsals can be quite therapeutic and fulfilling,” Damankah said.
“Music performance and original composition are near and dear to my heart,” Damankah explained. “Being involved in music has made life much more enjoyable, thrilling, and exciting.”
While he has performed in public several times, the most recent concert on Nov. 19 was his first with a full symphonic orchestra.
That show packed the house, performing the “Egmont Overture” by Beethoven, “Danzon No 2” by Arturo Marquez and popular music from “The Lion King” and Paul McCartney.
Gallops is amazed by the talent and dedication of his players and proud of what they have accomplished in a short time.
“The University Community Symphony personifies what a university is all about,” he noted.
“We provide deep and diverse educational opportunities, outreach to and interaction with the community, recruitment connections for high school students, and serve as an arts centerpiece for the New River Valley.”