Cleveland Orchestra and Lakewood Community Join Forces for Neighborhood Residency

By: BWW News Desk Mar. 19, 2014

The Cleveland Orchestra and the Lakewood community are joining together to present The Cleveland Orchestra at home in Lakewood, a neighborhood residency that began on February 17, 2014, when Cleveland Orchestra Assistant Conductor Brett Mitchell visited the Lakewood High School Chamber Orchestra to assist in preparation for an Ohio Music Educators Association State Ensemble Adjudicated Event. The four-month residency of educational programs and performances for all ages culminates in an intensive week of free events from May 17-24, 2014. The centerpiece of the Orchestra's activities in Lakewood will be a public Cleveland Orchestra concert led by Music Director Franz Welser-Möst at Lakewood Civic Auditorium on Saturday, May 24, at 7:30 p.m. A delayed broadcast of the concert will be presented by WVIZ/PBS ideastream, and a live broadcast of the concert will air on WCLV 104.9 ideastream. Tickets will be distributed throughout Lakewood beginning on Saturday, April 26. (See list of distribution locations below.) The television broadcast will feature a composite of community collaborations, musical performances, and joint events and activities throughout Lakewood.

The Cleveland Orchestra at home in Lakewood will encompass more than a dozen educational activities taking place in Lakewood schools, joining Lakewood's robust music education program with the artistic resources of The Cleveland Orchestra. Cleveland Orchestra musicians are serving as ensemble coaches (orchestra, band, chorus); competition jurors; mock audition guides; career advisors; celebrity chefs (Celebrity Chefs of The Cleveland Orchestra at Lakewood High School's Ranger Café), and more. In April, the Orchestra will perform an Education Concert for Lakewood elementary school students, Fairy Tales in Music, led by Kelly Corcoran. Participating schools include: Horace Mann Elementary, Emerson Elementary, Hayes Elementary, Lincoln Elementary, Grant Elementary, Harrison Elementary, Roosevelt Elementary, and St. Edwards High School. Music education events also take place at Harding Middle School, Garfield Middle School, and Lakewood Catholic Academy.

The intensive residency week begins with performances by Cleveland Orchestra musicians, Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra musicians, the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus, and the Cleveland Orchestra Children's Chorus. The first events are on Saturday, May 17, at 10:30 a.m. at Root Café and Blackbird Baking Company. Also on May 17, a surprise event will take place at 11 a.m. at Nature's Bin, a natural foods store and vocational training center for people with disabilities.

PORCHestra, an evening of music on Lakewood's front porches sponsored by Charter One, takes place on Sunday, May 18, beginning at 4 p.m., featuring Cleveland Orchestra musicians, Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra musicians, and community musicians performing on Lakewood porches, culminating with a concert outdoors at the Lakewood Public Library at 6 p.m. Prior to the event, volunteers from the Orchestra, Charter One, and the community will renovate two front porches chosen by LakewoodAlive.

On Tuesday, May 20 at 1:30 p.m. Cleveland Orchestra musicians will perform at the Barton Senior Center. On Wednesday, May 21 at 6 p.m., Cleveland Orchestra musicians will perform on the deck at Pier W restaurant, as the launch of Pier W's outdoor summer concert series. On Thursday, May 22 at noon, Cleveland Orchestra musicians will give a concert at Lakewood Hospital. On Friday, May 23 at 6 p.m. Cleveland Orchestra musicians perform at Vosh Nightclub, and at 7 p.m. there is an ensemble performance by Cleveland Orchestra musicians at Mahall's.

Also on Friday, May 23, the Orchestra will perform a free Education Concert for high school students at Lakewood Civic Auditorium, titled Romeo and Juliet. Lakewood High School students are reading and studying Shakespeare's famous play during the month leading up to the concert. Students will see the story unfold through music and theater when The Cleveland Orchestra teams up with Great Lakes Theater Festival actors to bring Prokofiev's, Tchaikovsky's, and Bernstein's versions of Romeo and Juliet to life.

The Cleveland Orchestra at home in Lakewood concludes on Saturday, May 24 with a free community concert by The Cleveland Orchestra under the direction of Franz Welser-Möst at Lakewood Civic Auditorium. The program will feature Cleveland Orchestra Principal Trombone Massimo La Rosa as soloist in Ferdinand David's Concertino for Trombone and Orchestra. The program opens with Richard Strauss's tone poem Don Juan and also includes three pieces by Johann Strauss Jr.: Waltz: From the Mountains, Czárdás from the operetta Ritter Pázmán, and the overture to the operetta Die Fledermaus. Free tickets to this concert will be available at designated locations throughout Lakewood (see list below), beginning on Saturday, April 26.

"Creating a 'grass roots' opportunity for Lakewood to experience perhaps the greatest orchestra in the world at a very personal level is a cultural experience that we will remember for years to come. Our increasingly vibrant commercial corridors and neighborhoods will be made ever-more-so by the music and the musicians," commented Lakewood Mayor Michael P. Summers. Ian Andrews, executive director of LakewoodAlive, Lakewood's nonprofit economic development organization, said, "We are ecstatic to have been chosen as The Cleveland Orchestra's destination for immersion into a Northeast Ohio community. Lakewood is known for its commitment to the arts. The Orchestra's events will strengthen this commitment and showcase the city's great quality of life, local organizations, restaurants, schools, and businesses that make our community special."

The Cleveland Orchestra has a long history of appearing in Lakewood, going back to 1920, when the Orchestra first performed at Lakewood High School. The Orchestra returns to Lakewood in May for the first time in 29 years, under the leadership of Music Director Franz Welser-Möst. The Cleveland Orchestra's first music director, Nikolai Sokoloff, brought the Orchestra to Lakewood in March of 1920, and with the exception of Erich Leinsdorf, each music director has performed there with the Orchestra. The Orchestra continued performing at Lakewood High School through the early 1930s, and then performed at Hilliard Square Theater in 1933 and 1934. In April 1955, Music Director George Szell began leading concerts at the Civic Auditorium, and performances continued there until 1985 with Music Director Christoph von Dohnányi.

The Cleveland Orchestra introduced neighborhood residencies in May 2013 in the Gordon Square community of Cleveland. The activities, including a Cleveland Orchestra Concert at Saint Colman Catholic Church, were taped and aired by WVIZ/PBS ideastream. WCLV 104.9 also broadcast the concert on radio.

The goals of the neighborhood residencies are to bring increased visibility and vibrancy to greater Cleveland's neighborhoods, build community through arts and culture in tandem with local partners, and offer more people the opportunity to engage with the music and the musicians of The Cleveland Orchestra. The culminating week of activities will include solo and chamber music performances in unique locations, educational programs at local schools, and new artistic collaborations with neighborhood arts and cultural organizations.

All events are free and open to the public. General admission tickets for the Cleveland Orchestra concert at Lakewood Civic Auditorium on Saturday, May 24 at 7:30 p.m. will be made available on a first-come, first-served basis, beginning on Saturday, April 26, during regular business hours. Tickets are limited to 4 per person.

Ticket distribution locations:

Breadsmith of Lakewood

18101 Detroit Ave., Lakewood

7 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Breakneck Gallery

17020 Madison Ave., Lakewood

2 p.m. - 9 p.m.

Geiger's Clothing & Sports

14710 Detroit Ave., Lakewood

10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Good Goat Gallery

17012 Madison Ave., Lakewood

Lakewood Hardware

16608 Madison Ave., Cleveland

8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Madison Avenue Car Wash

11832 Madison Ave., Lakewood

8 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Marrell Music

13733 Madison Ave., Lakewood

10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Spin Bike Shop

14515 Madison Ave., Lakewood

10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Vance Music Studios

16426 Madison Ave., Lakewood

10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Virginia Marti College of Art and Design

11724 Detroit Ave., Lakewood

9 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Educational Events in Lakewood for schools:

Monday, March 24 at 10:30 a.m. & 11:15 a.m.

Lakewood Catholic Academy, Grade 5

Learning through Music

"Musical Story Writing"

Wednesday, April 2 at 1 p.m.

Lakewood Civic Auditorium

14100 Franklin Blvd., Lakewood

Cleveland Orchestra Education Concert for Lakewood Elementary Schools

Fairy Tales in Music

Wednesday, April 2 at 2:15 p.m.

Lakewood High School

Mock Auditions

Monday, April 7 at 10:30 a.m. & 11:15 a.m.

Lakewood Catholic Academy, Grade 5

Learning through Music

"Musical Story Writing"

Monday, April 7, at 9:30 a.m.

Lakewood High School

Lakewood High School Band coaching with Brett Mitchell, Cleveland Orchestra Assistant Conductor and Music Director of the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra

Wednesday, April 23 at 8:30 a.m.

Harding High School

Harding Middle School Choir coaching with Lisa Wong, Cleveland Orchestra Assistant Director of Choruses and Director of the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Chorus

Thursday, April 24 at 12:20 p.m.

Garfield Middle School

Garfield Middle School Choir coaching

Friday, May 9 from 8:30 a.m. - 10:50 a.m.

Garfield Middle School

Band Clinic/Career Panel: Garfield Middle School Band

Saturday, May 10 at 7:30 a.m.

Garfield Middle School

Adjudication of Middle School Instrumental Competition

Monday, May 12 at 11 a.m.

Harding Middle School

Band Clinic/Career Panel: Harding Middle School Band

Monday, May 19 at 12:20 p.m.

Garfield Middle School

Orchestra Clinic/Career Panel: Garfield Middle School Orchestra

Tuesday, May 20 at 8:30 a.m.

Harding Middle School

Orchestra Clinic/Career Panel: Harding Middle School Orchestra

Tuesday, May 20 at 10 a.m.

Lakewood Catholic Academy, Pre-school through Kindergarten

Musical Rainbow program with a Cleveland Orchestra musician

Tuesday, May 20 at 11:00 a.m.

Lakewood High School

Lakewood High School Chorus coaching with Lisa Wong, Cleveland Orchestra Assistant Director of Choruses and Director of the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Chorus

Friday, May 23 at 10:10 a.m.

Lakewood Civic Auditorium

14100 Franklin Blvd., Lakewood

The Cleveland Orchestra in Concert

Franz Welser-Möst, conductor

Romeo and Juliet

Saturday, May 24 at 7:30 a.m.

Harding Middle School

Adjudication of Middle School Instrumental Competition

FREE ADMISSION, PUBLIC EVENTS:

Monday, May 5 at 12 noon

Lakewood High School, Ranger Café

14100 Franklin Blvd., Lakewood

Celebrity Chefs of The Cleveland Orchestra

Lunch menu available for purchase

Saturday, May 17 at 10:30 a.m.

The Root Café

15118 Detroit Ave., Lakewood

Blackbird Baking Company

1391 Sloane Ave., Lakewood

Solo and duo performances by Cleveland Orchestra musicians

Saturday, May 17 at 11 a.m. SURPRISE

Nature's Bin

18120 Sloane Ave., Cleveland

Sunday, May 18 at 10 a.m.

Lakewood Baptist Church

14321 Detroit Ave., Lakewood

"The Mosaic of Music" - Worship and fellowship with particular emphasis on the power and persuasion of music, particularly in an intercultural context. Lakewood Baptist Church is home to the largest ethnically diverse mainline congregation within Lakewood, 45% of which are Karen refugees from Burma.

Sunday, May 18 at 4 p.m.

PORCHestra

An evening of music on Lakewood's front porches and at Lakewood Public Library, sponsored by Charter One featuring Cleveland Orchestra musicians, Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra musicians, and community musicians. Visit clevelandorchestra.com/Lakewood in May for porch locations.

Sunday, May 18 at 6 p.m.

Lakewood Public Library (outdoors)

15425 Detroit Ave., Lakewood

Front Porch Concert with Cleveland Orchestra musicians

Monday, May 19 at 7:30 p.m.

Lakewood Family YMCA

16915 Detroit Ave., Lakewood

Kickball Game with Cleveland Orchestra musicians and staff

Tuesday, May 20 at 1:30 p.m.

Barton Senior Center

14300 Detroit Ave., Lakewood