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The Symphony
of the Hills (SOH) brings superb classical orchestral music to audiences in
the Hill Country of Texas. Based at Schreiner University in Kerrville, the
orchestra comprises students and faculty from the University,
students from communities around Kerrville,
and
experienced professional musicians from the Hill Country and nearby cities,
such as San Antonio and Austin.
The 2007-2008 Season marked
the beginning of two performances for each concert--one on Thursday at 7:30
pm and the other on Sunday afternoon at 2:30 pm
The Symphony of the Hills
Association is a non-profit Texas corporation with a two-fold mission: Bringing
superb classical music to audiences in the Hill Country of
Texas and improving the musical skills of its instrumentalists, especially
Schreiner University students.
It is the conviction
of the Officers and Directors of the Association, and of the conductor and
musicians of the orchestra, that the orchestra performs a valuable
service through providing fine music to area residents, thus enhancing the
quality of life to all who embrace classical symphonic music.
History of the Orchestra1:
The SOH is an outgrowth
of a community orchestra begun in the late-1990s by retired Schreiner
University professor Dr. Charlotte Marrow. The original volunteer orchestra
presented two concerts a year. In appreciation for her vision and efforts,
in 2000 the SOH board named her to the honorary post of Conductor Emeritus.
In 2001, under the
leadership of Dr. Tim Summerlin, President of Schreiner University, the
orchestra was reorganized into a professional group with a separate board of
directors comprising various community leaders. The Symphony of the Hills
Association was born. Joe Herring, Jr. was one of the founding
board members and later served as President of the Association. The
original board voted to establish a four concert season, charge admission to
the concerts and pay the musicians. This certainly set the bar much higher
than it had been previously, since paying audiences expect professional
performances and musicians who are paid for their services definitely
demonstrate a higher level of commitment to the orchestra.
Concerts in the first two
seasons (2001/02 and 2002/03) were held in Dietert Auditorium on the campus
of Schreiner University while the community awaited the completion of
renovations to the 834-seat Cailloux Theater (click
here for additional information.)
Since the 2003 move to
the Cailloux Theater, the SOH has had a remarkable success. The past three
seasons have seen sold-out, leading the Board to consider expanding the
number of concerts.
Beginning with 2007/2008
season, the Board chose to double the number of offerings of each concert.
Instead of a single presentation of each concert on Thursday evenings,
the orchestra now
is offering an additional presentation of the same concert on Sunday
afternoons, thus immediately doubling the number of seats available for each
program. The number of patrons increased to more than 1,200 at the initial two presentations of the 2007-08 season;
each subsequent concert has seen an increase in attendance, but there are
still seats for students in the area who receive free admission.
1) Jay Dunnahoo Ed.D.,
2007. |