APRIL NEWSLETTER
April 2024
Upcoming Events
Apr 7: Relaxed Family Concert
Apr 12: MAESTRA FRIENDS Event
Apr 30: ACCENT: Thomas Søndergård
May 4: Symphony Ball
May 6: Kinder Konzerts in the Hall
May 22: Annual Fundraiser
As the spring blooms around us, we're excited to bring you a bouquet of exciting events and celebrations. This month we have an awesome ACCENT program featuring Thomas Søndergård. Keep reading for more details on all the fun events FRIENDS has planned for the month. Until then, let's keep the music playing and the laughter flowing!
ACCENT Finale: Thomas Søndergård
This is NO April Fools joke, tickets are flying out the door, get yours today!
Tuesday, April 30, 2024
Orchestra Hall Atrium
Reception: 6:00 PM - 6:45 PM
Program: 6:45 PM - 8:00 PM
Members: $40
Non-Members $45
Tickets at the Door: $60
Price includes appetizers and a drink
Get ready to experience ACCENT's grand Finale, featuring none other than Thomas Søndergård, the newly appointed Musical Director of the impressive Minnesota Orchestra. This exciting event will be hosted by MPR’s very own Melissa Ousley. A perfect culmination to ACCENT's successful events!
Relaxed Family Concert
Join FRIENDS for the Minnesota Orchestra's Relaxed Family Concert on Sunday, April 7, 2024. HERE, THERE, EVERYWHERE.
Bring a child to experience our sound factory at noon in the Atrium. Then attend the concert at 2:00PM.
Join the Minnesota Orchestra as they fly around the world through music by composers from many different corners of the Earth. From the United States, we will hear movements from James Price Johnson's atmospheric Harlem Symphony. And Then, to the Andes mountains in Peru with Gabriela Lena Frank's Leyendas: An Andean Walkabout and across the pond to Europe with music by Brahms and Shostakovich. We will also make a stop in Iran to hear Iman Habibi's Every Tree Speaks.
Minnesota Orchestra's Relaxed Family Concerts are designed for audiences of all ages, including individuals with autism or sensory sensitivities.
FRIENDS Member Benefit #6: Relaxed Family Concerts
Volunteer at the Minnesota Orchestra Relaxed Family concerts and receive a FREE ticket to the concert.
FRIENDS’ 75 Years of Note
Since 1949, FRIENDS has been creating connections to music. Join us as we commemorate our impact in the community and orchestrate a bright future. In celebration of more than 7 decades of FRIENDS, please select your favorite decade and dress in your own chic style. Vintage attire admired but not required.
Get your tickets today to our 75th Anniversary event! Individual tickets and sponsorship level tables are available for purchase!
Special Member Event: MAESTRA, Documentary
Friday, April 12
2:00 PM
FRIENDS Pricing: $10
The Main Cinema
We’re excited to announce that FRIENDS President Roma Calatayud-Stocks has arranged an exciting event for FRIENDS members and their guests — an exceptional showing of the documentary MAESTRA on April 12, 2024 at 2:00PM. The screening is part of the Minneapolis / St. Paul Film Society’s International Film Festival. The location is The Main Cinema in Minneapolis, 115 SE Main St., Minneapolis, MN. 55414.
MAESTRA, directed by Maggie Contreras, is "even more compelling as it profiles five fiercely tenacious orchestra conductors in the early stages of their careers who participate in France's La Maestra. Among the international competitors are Melisse Brunet, Tamara Dworetz, Zoe Zeniodi, Ustina Dubitsky, and Anna Sulkowska-Migon." The competition judges include renowned conductor Marin Alsop and other prominent female conductors.
After the film, connect with FRIENDS for Happy Hour at Aster Cafe in the same building and discuss the art of conducting.
Kinder Konzerts™ on the Road
Kinder Konzerts on the Road™ is an extension and enrichment of Kinder Konzerts at Orchestra Hall.™ It is an in-school, 5-day in-classroom residency program taught by skilled FRIENDS teaching artists, Katie Condon and Amanda Breininger, brought directly to under-resourced pre-kindergarten, kindergarten and first grade students in our Twin Cities communities. It is designed to positively impact and assist younger students, connecting music and musical concepts to literacy.
The residency includes a planning session with teachers, a professional development session, 4 classroom workshops taught by FRIENDS teaching artists, and a fifth workshop with FRIENDS volunteers providing a “hands-on” experience with a violin. The culminating event is an ensemble of Minnesota Orchestra musicians coming to the school to perform for the students, staff and parents. Thanks to funding from the Ciresi Walburn Foundation, since the fall of 2023, FRIENDS has completed residencies in Cityview, Bethune, Global Arts and Four Seasons, A Plus (On April 1, 2024).This program received the League of American Orchestra’s Gold Award for outstanding volunteer programming in multiple years, most recently in 2018.
FRIENDS at Kinder Konzerts in the Hall™
Your FRIENDS had a blast witnessing what a joy music can bring to the lives of young children. Here they are enjoying lunch afterwards.
FRIENDS Celebrates Women’s History Month
April Birthdays
Todd Chrzanowski - April 2
Nan Nelson - April 8
Patricia Rice - April 9
Duane Evans - April 10
Karen Holmes - April 11
Cynthia Courtney - April 11
Anna Lamb - April 17
Walter Tambor - April 20
Joanna Cortright - April 21
Peg Woellner - April 23
Kathryn Keefer - April 29
