SoBe Institute of the Arts Raises Funds to Record SYMPHONY NO. 4 (BIODIVERSITY)

There's always a story behind a symphony. Whether it is love, heartbreak, or a major life event, a composer always has inspiration. For Carson Kievman, the founder and Executive Artistic Director of SoBe Institute of the Arts (SoBe Arts), it is the environment and the planet's many ecosystems.

Kievman began writing Symphony No. 4 (Biodiversity) after a suggestion in 1998 from Dr. Robert Ginsburg, a renowned Professor Emeritus of marine geology and geophysics. Dr. Ginsburg believed that a musical piece could help to draw global awareness of coral reefs and ecosystems and perhaps persuade people to take simple actions that benefit the reefs.

Kievman says, "I became thoroughly inspired and began work on what would ultimately become an hour-long symphony."

To fund the project, Kievman started a Kickstarter campaign, which uses Internet crowd sourcing to fund the project. People who are interested in learning more or backing the project can access it at www.biodiversityrecordingproject.com.

Ke Chung Kim, Professor Emeritus at Penn State University commented on the project, [This recording] "representing beautiful sounds of life and sum of all those sounds of our cohorts in the world could produce a symphony of biodiversity that is the foundation of life and primary natural resources for humans and all other life forms, and all together keeps us going for perpetual future of our soul."

Symphony No. 4 (Biodiversity) is a four-movement reflection on biodiversity and the plight of our worldwide ecosystems: Glaciers (Rivers of Ice), The Great Swamp, Starving Angels, The Year of the Reef.

When the recording project is completed, proceeds from album sales will enable children from disadvantaged families to participate in arts education programs. Our community will benefit through free and low-cost professional concerts and productions at SoBe Arts.

The symphony will be recorded by the National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra (NPRSO) under the baton of distinguished conductor Delta David Gier during the Winter/Spring of 2014, with release of a CD and Digital distribution during the fall of 2014. A previous Kievman/Gier collaboration resulted in an immensely successful recording and CD release of Kievman's Symphony No. 2(42) on New Albion Records.