Welcome to the first edition of our community newsletter, featuring some indepth looks at the people that make the music happen.
Welcome to AZ Phil's Community Newsletter Behind the Podium
Introducing Behind the Podium, Arizona Philharmonic’s first community newsletter designed to give you a glimpse into what and who it takes to bring consistently outstanding musical performances to our Prescott community. Please feel free to ask us any questions you’d like to have answered in our upcoming monthly editions.
From the Editor Sandy Farrell, AZ Phil Event Coordinator and Newsletter Editor
Who remembers the Judy Garland, Mickey Rooney movies about putting on a show? A bit saccharine now when you watch all that youthful, mouth-gaping enthusiasm.
“Judy will sing and I’ll dance, and we’ll put on a show,” says tousled-haired Mickey Rooney. That’s not verbatim, but I bet you remember it from re-runs. Although it’s not like that at Arizona Philharmonic, you would recognize the enthusiasm for and enjoyment of the pursuit of an art that for me is virtually noble.
A Glimpse Behind the Podium
This is Behind the Podium, Arizona Philharmonic’s first community newsletter, but sixth season, and I can tell you there is a smile on my face as I create this communication. I’m not a musician but I hope to help bring you news of the Philharmonic, its full season and individual concerts, the many people involved as Judy and Mickey were, in making a performance happen, to add knowledge and depth to your enjoyment.
I hope in each month’s edition to tell you about volunteers and their efforts to help in some way; musicians and their efforts for their art. There are behind-the-scenes jobs you may not know of but that have to happen to get a professional symphony to performance. Sometimes they can be nerve-wracking, last-minute decisions; (will they make it or won’t they?), and we applaud wildly when they pull it off. Sometimes they are decisions made months in advance. In some cases, one person is making sure a detail is taken care of that may come down to the wire.
The people, volunteers, musicians, of Arizona Philharmonic are your neighbors, friends, maybe relatives, because AZ Phil, based in Prescott, is your hometown, professional orchestra. I hope you already know of Arizona Philharmonic. I hope you have attended a symphony or two. I hope if you haven’t done so that you will give it a try. Visit AZPhil.org for concert and ticket information.
Editor’s Note:This community newsletter is in addition to the wonderful detailed missives focusing on the musical choices and concert highlights created by Henry Flurry, Executive Director
Note from the Wilds, July 2023 Henry Flurry – Executive Director
I’m writing to you from a serene campsite in western Wyoming. My wife Maria and I are concluding a memorable seven-week driving tour of the Western states. Our journey has been a beautiful blend of camping, visiting loved ones, exploring National Parks, playing music, and preparing for AZ Phil's upcoming season.It has been a lovely journey, filled with both familiar and new experiences of beauty and joy.
In a similar way, AZ Phil's seasons are beautiful journeys deliberately designed to offer both the familiar and new. We know that you seek experiences that are the best of the well-known, are exciting and new, or are bucket-list-worthy, and we craft our concerts with these preferences in mind.
I am confident that you will thoroughly enjoy each of our concerts. To start, we collaborate with professional musicians from across Arizona to elevate the performances. Some of the works they perform will be well-known classics, cherished for their familiarity and brilliance. Others will include must-hear works—pieces that should be on your live-music bucket-list. And there will also be delightful surprises—compositions you may not know, by composers waiting to captivate you. Familiar, Bucket-List, and New Experiences
Among the many familiar pieces I am eagerly anticipating this year are Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 9 and Arvo Pärt's Spiegel im Spiegel. As for the bucket-list works, keep an ear out for Robert Schumann's Piano Quartet in E-flat major and Beethoven's Symphony No. 4.Moreover, we have some new experiences in store, including Caroline Shaw's To The Hands, and special Christmas arrangements by former Prescottonian Mat Lanning.
We warmly invite you to join us on this season's musical journey. Keep an eye on your emails for updates on upcoming concerts, where you can learn more about the pieces you'll hear and the exceptional musicians bringing them to life.
Wishing you joy and anticipation for the musical wonders that lie ahead! - Henry Flurry, Executive Director
EXTRA! EXTRA! - Arizona Philharmonic Orchestra Moves to
Ruth Street Theater
Sandy Farrell, AZ Phil Event Coordinator and Newsletter Editor Arizona Philharmonic has several changes to tout, aside from announcing a new season. The change that is expected to have as much impact on the audience as the music is the change in permanent venue to the beautiful Ruth Street Theater (RST).
Recent Upgrades to RST
The 700-seat Ruth Street Theater (RST) opened in 1993 and sits on the grounds of the Prescott High School campus. Recently, major renovations have taken it “out of the 1990s and into the current century, for color, capacity, interior and exterior,” says Amy Van Winkle, Community Theater Events Manager for the Prescott Unified School District. For instance, the sound system was designed specifically for RST, with 10,000 watts of “awesomeness,” and is one of the top five, high school sound systems in Arizona. Read the story here.
Abby's Column
Abby Coffey, Co-Executive Director
Hello all, and welcome to the Arizona Philharmonic community newsletter. I am Abby Coffey, the new Co-Executive Director, and writer for Abby’s Column. I am so thrilled to be part of AZ Phil, and to have the opportunity to help this wonderful organization progress as it continues to grow and better serve the Prescott community.
Planning for Growth You might be wondering what exactly it means to be a Co-Executive Director - it is indeed a mouthful to say when I introduce myself! Essentially, as Arizona Philharmonic grows, it will continue to create new staff positions to better meet the needs of the organization. Part of these expanded staff roles will be the creation of the Artistic Director - a role that will be filled by founder and current Executive Director, Henry Flurry, beginning in the 2024 - 2025 season. For now, Henry and I are working together to create a succession plan of the best way to transfer existing administrative, executive responsibilities while new responsibilities emerge as AZ Phil grows. By the end of this season, we will move into two distinct, collaborative roles of Executive Director and Artistic Director, working together to bring high quality programming and outreach to the Prescott area.
In the meantime, you will see a lot more of me at AZ Phil performances all around the community, including new events and collaborations we are planning (more on that later, stay tuned!). I hope to see you at our opening night performance, Serenades and Symphonies, at the beautiful Ruth Street Theater on September 10th. It will be a moving performance of Classical and Romantic era orchestral music, sure to engage each audience member, and leave them feeling refreshed and invigorated. I look forward to meeting you there!
Art 4 All™
Art 4 All is a fundamental component of Arizona Philharmonic’s efforts to bring professional orchestra music to all interested members of the community.
In our Art 4 All program, AZ Phil offers donate-what-you-can audience opportunities to anybody in the community who otherwise could not afford a ticket.
If purchasing tickets for a concert does not fit into your or a friend’s budget, you may sign up for Art 4 All coupons at AZPhil.org.
Arizona Philharmonic
Excellence in Arts and Culture Award 2021
We invite you to come to one of our monthly Volunteer Introduction meetings.
We could use your help realizing our vision of professional music, community arts building, and authentic youth outreach. Let us know if you'd like to volunteer, apply for our board, or host a musician during their visit.
Reach out to us, and we'll get back to you very soon.
Arizona Philharmonic (AZ Phil) is beginning its sixth season in 2023-2024 as Prescott's regional professional orchestra, presenting large and small concerts that engage and inspire listeners. Based in Prescott, AZ Phil draws musicians from across Arizona and is committed to offering transformative music, while nurturing community participation and supporting the needs and growth of the Prescott area performing arts scene. Recognized in 2021 by the Prescott Chamber of Commerce for Excellence in Arts and Culture, Arizona Philharmonic is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization performing at Prescott High School’s Ruth Street Theater. Ticket information, sponsorship and volunteer opportunities can be found at AZPhil.org and on Facebook.
Upcoming Behind the Podium Newsletters will include:
Musician Interviews
Meet Larry Levenson, Volunteer Coordinator and Organizational Wizard
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.
Please note that our ticketing site's email preferences do not synchronize with MailChimp.
