PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — The Northern Maine Chamber Society Orchestra will mark its 30th anniversary with a fall concert this weekend at the University of Maine at Presque Isle.
The program, which will begin at 3 p.m. Sunday in the multi-purpose room of the campus center, will include works from Gershwin, Beethoven and Bach, among others.
The community orchestra features about 40 accomplished string, brass and wind players from all over Aroostook County and New Brunswick and is conducted by Kevin Kinsey of Fort Fairfield. Several of the group’s founding members remain key players in the orchestra, including Susann Herold, concert mistress and president of NMCSO’s board of directors.
“The story began 30 years ago, when Sylvia Andrea, an organist, requested an ensemble to accompany her for a recital in the Caribou Methodist Church,” Herold recently recalled. “Afterward, our oboist, Peter Schaffer, asked if any of us knew Bach’s ‘Brandenburg Concerto.’ When we replied that we did, he invited us to his house for ‘wine, pizza and music.’ The rest is history.”
The group has performed under several conductors since its inception, perhaps most notably Harrison Roper of Houlton, who led the group for nearly 20 years and still plays brass and strings in the group. Waldo Caballero, violist in the Bangor Symphony Orchestra, served as conductor until Kinsey joined the group in 2012.
“The group has seen a lot of change throughout the last three decades,” Herold said. “Players have joined us from Canada and all over the state of Maine. We are very happy to have Kevin as our conductor now. Since joining on as our conductor, he has really managed to strike the balance between a fun and challenging atmosphere.”
Kinsey affirmed those sentiments.
“This concert is going to appeal to people of all ages and backgrounds,” he said. “We have both traditional and modern selections. People think classical music has to be ‘stodgy,’ and it’s just not. It’s going to be a very fun concert. I think we have managed to choose a program that’s not only enjoyable for the players but also appealing and enjoyable for an audience to listen to.”
Kinsey grew up in Martin, Michigan, and graduated from Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio, in 1984 with a bachelor’s degree in music education. He and his wife, Easton band director and NMCSO flautist Pamela Kinsey, moved to Maine in 1987, where he worked as a band director in the Maine school system for 25 years. He spent his first 12 years in Fort Fairfield, then worked for another 13 as director of the Presque Isle beginner band, as well as the UMPI band. He retired from education in 2012 and became ordained as a priest. He now serves in three local Episcopal churches. He began conducting for NMCSO in the fall of 2012.
Herold and Kinsey said they worked together to ensure this weekend’s program would be accessible and enjoyable to everyone. Most members of the audience will hear at least one song they recognize and probably at least one song that is new to them. Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” — and its merging of classical music with jazz-influenced elements — makes for a lively, all-American crowd-pleaser, according to the orchestra leaders. It also serves as a fitting convergence of the diverse musical backgrounds of orchestra members. Beethoven’s “Pastoral Symphony” was composed simultaneously with his more famous “Fifth Symphony” but is a more expressive and imaginative composition that might be a new experience for some listeners.
Kinsey also encourages those interested in joining the group to attend.
“We famously hear, ‘I haven’t picked up my instrument in 20 years.’ And that is exactly the kind of person we want to join the ensemble,” he said. “If you’ve got access to an instrument you haven’t played in a while, consider joining us. Come give it a try. You’ll probably find out it’s an enjoyable experience and a lot of fun.”
Admission to the concert is free, though donations are accepted. For more information, visit the Northern Maine Chamber Society Orchestra’s website at nmcso.org or visit the orchestra’s Facebook page.