City residents pack Fort George Park for the PGSO’s annual Pops In The Park concert

Prince George, BC – There was ‘something’ for everyone who attended the Prince George Symphony Orchestra’s first concert of the 2013-14 season and, therein, lies the key to the PGSO’s growing popularity.

Maestro Kevin Zakresky invited youngsters in the crowd to help him conduct a small portion of yesterday’s free Pops In The Park concert at Fort George Park, ( click on photo at right for demonstration) before offering up a medley of Billy Joel tunes "for the Dads" in the audience.

The local orchestra is not only surviving, it’s thriving.  PGSO General Manager, Marnie Hamagami says attendance figures have been exceeding goals.  "We have had much fuller houses over the past eight months – there’s just more people coming, and more people buying subscriptions and single tickets, so that’s fantastic for us."

Hamagami says, "I think a large part of that is Kevin’s energy, what he’s brought to the community in his return to Prince George."  Zakresky returned to his hometown last spring to assume the post of Artistic Director, ending the PGSO’s year-long search.

Musicans and management reached a three-year contract over the summer that, Hamagami says, signals how well everybody is working together heading into the new season.  "We’ve all been able to sit down and talk about the places we want to go and the things we want to do with orchestral music in this community and how we’re going to present that."

The ‘how’ and ‘where’ are proving to be innovative ventures that are attracting city residents who may not typically venture to the symphony.  Hamagami points to last season’s collaboration with the local band, Out Of Alba, which resulted in a sold out show that "was brilliant for everybody".  An encore performance is set for the spring.

She says a chamber music concert series on the last Friday of every month at the local cafe, Ohh Chocolat, has been wildly popular, as well.  "The goal is to take away the formality," says Hamagami.  "People clap whenever they want, they can talk to the musicians.  It’s very interactive and it’s very relaxed."

And, after the orchestra joined with the L’heidli T’enneh Khas’tan Drummers to play at the Elders Gathering in July, the PGSO GM says she received calls from orchestral executives across the continent wanting to know how such a relationship was forged.  The two groups are set to perform together again at the PGSO’s first mainstage concert on October 5th, Mozart and More.

Hamagami is also new to her position and Prince George, arriving last December to take on the responsibility.  She says both she and Kevin feel they have a unique opportunity to be on the cutting edge of innovation in orchestral music.  "And the reason is this:  we are a small organization – we don’t have the weight of 500 years of tradition, we don’t have terrible relations with the musicians – we have a community that is extremely supportive."

"Supportive, both in terms of purchasing tickets," says Hamagami.  "And with partners, like Ohh Chocolat, willing to take a chance on these innovative ideas."