Headlines

Laura dunbar becomes new education director

still time to sign up for "good vibrations" camp

Dead Composers Society is for young professionals

Program Ads Are Available for the 08-09 Season

Hi everyone!

August is here and the summer is winding down. Didn't it go fast? At the Ann Arbor Symphony, we are putting the finishing touches on our season, "The Fine Art of Music." Did you know we've been making great music for 80 years? When you have a chance, you should take a look at our history and see how it all came about.

Soon, we'll be sending out Family brochures. I think they're pretty fun--retro with a timeline showing our available programs for young people at each stage of growing up. We haven't mailed them yet, but you can get a sneak peak of the pdf by clicking here.

The Family concerts are just $5 for children and $12 for Adults. Plus, there's always time to order single tickets for the Classical Series, and subscriptions are still available too! Single tickets are between $10 and $47 each. We also have a new College Student rate: $15 gets you the best available seats in the house on the day of the performance. In other words, you buy your tickets, and you find out where you're sitting when you arrive at the Michigan Theater. Order single tickets for maximum flexibility and subscriptions for maximum savings. Order all tickets online here.

Thank You
Arie sent out a special appeal in June, so that we could meet our budgetary goals for the 07-08 season before the end of that fiscal year. Thanks to you and the Ray & Eleanor Cross Foundation, we balanced the budget to ensure more great music ahead!

Glenn Bugala
Marketing Director

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Laura Dunbar becomes new Education and Outreach Director

Rebecca Pagels Cheskidov, who served as our Education and Outreach Director for the past two years, has left the A²SO to become Assistant Director of Development at MSU College of Communication, Arts, Sciences. Under her direction, this area of our operations has grown leaps and bounds. She was always full of ideas, and she introduced a number of new initiatives, including Side-by-Side Concerts, Petting Zoos and all of the activities the precede a Family Concert. She will be missed, and we wish her the best in her new endeavors.

She has been replaced by Laura Dunbar, who has served as instructor, recruiter and marketing associate for The Cathedral Choir of Metropolitan Detroit; she was a Youth Choir director for St. Paul's Episcopal in Rochester, New York; and she has been involved in choruses from New York to Michigan. She has a BA in Music (Voice) from the University of Rochester, and she is working toward an MBA from Eastern Michigan University.

We are excited about the love of music and the energy that Laura brings to our team. Be sure to welcome her to the A²SO when you see her!

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Still time to sign up for "Good Vibrations" Camp

If you have kids in grades 2-4, there is still time to sign up for the "Good Vibrations" Camp, August 18-22! The A²SO has teamed with the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum to explore how sound is generated, how humans hear, and how instruments and the human voice can make beautiful music. During the first half of the day, campers will have a chance to make musical instruments, play musical instruments, learn simple conducting patterns, explore symphonic music, move to the music, learn about sound waves and how the human ear hears, and so much more! Then, after lunch, the class will work together to create a MUSIC VIDEO, premiering it for parents on the last day of class. This camp will be collaboratively (and harmoniously) taught by Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum and Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra staff.

We want to take a moment to thank the Pinckney School District for the generous donation of Orff instruments for use during this camp.

To register for this fun and memorable camp, fill out the Hands-On Museum's Summer Camp Registration Form and fax (734.995.1188), mail (220 E. Ann St., Ann Arbor, MI 48104) or drop it off at the Museum during regular business hours. For availability and more information call 734.995.5439.

DATES August 18 - 22, 2008
TIME 9:30am - 3:30pm
COST $300 per person (10% discount for Hands-On Museum members)
LOCATION Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum
AGES students entering grades 2-4

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Dead Composers Society for Young Professionals

If you or someone you know is 21-39 and gets their groove from classical music, then they need to know about A²SO's Dead Composers Society. This is a group of young professionals that gets together on concert nights for munchies, drinks, hang-out time and the concert.

The price for one night is $26, and that covers everything. Plus this year, we're sitting together in the DCS 'playpen'--an area in the balcony that usually costs $39 a pop! You get a coupon for 2-for-1 chocolate from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory just for coming to the concert with DCS.

If you're 21-39, you can't afford to pass this up! Just go to TICKETS, select A2$O Bucks and select Dead Composers/DCS.

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Program Ads Are Available for the 08-09 Season

Do you work for a company that values community involvement and classical music? Do you want to show your community that you support arts and culture? If so, I urge you to support the A²SO--Washtenaw County's largest Arts employer--by taking out a program ad for our 80th Anniversary Season! We are selling space in our concert programs between now and August 15th.

• 48% of the A²SO’s patrons earn more than $100,000, and 81% make more than $50,000.

• Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra program books are distributed free of charge to all of our 12,000+ audience members.

• 88% of our audience lives in Ann Arbor, 52% are Ann Arbor residents of 25 years or more.

• Over 50% of our patrons spent money before or after an A²SO concert; 30% spent $25 or more.

• A²SO audiences visit restaurants, cafes, bars, clothing stores, and bookstores on concert nights.

For questions or prices, contact Lori Zupan or Mary Steffek Blaske at 734/994-4801. We hope to see your company represented at our first concert of the season!

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