Education & Community Engagement


Concerts for Children and Families

LolliPops
Come and Play
Pre-Concert Talks

LolliPops Children’s Concerts

The LolliPops Children’s Concert Series presents three Saturday morning performances by the Richmond Symphony perfect for children and families. Pre-concert festival activities at the Carpenter Theatre begin at 10am, featuring our musical petting zoo and other fun, interactive activities related to morning’s concert.

The Composer is Dead
Sat, Oct 31 – 11am
Erin R. Freeman, Conductor
Nathaniel Stookey, Narrator

This whodunit murder mystery provides an entertaining introduction to the instruments of the orchestra. Created in 2006 by Lemony Snicket and Nathaniel Stookey, The Composer is Dead opens with a dead composer, and all the sections of the orchestra are subsequently questioned as to who committed the crime. Halloween Fun.

Peter and the Wolf
Sat, Feb 20 – 11am
Erin R. Freeman, Conductor

Prokofiev’s beloved children’s classic recounts the story of a young boy who ventures out into the meadow, against his grandfather’s orders, to catch a wolf. The brave Peter, accompanied by the hunters and his animal friends, becomes the hero of his village. Come meet all the characters portrayed by the instruments of the orchestra:
The bird: flute
The duck: oboe
The cat: clarinet
The wolf: French horn
The grandfather: bassoon

Beethoven Lives Upstairs
Sat, May 8 – 11am
Erin R. Freeman, Conductor

The world-famous production of Beethoven Lives Upstairs features a lively exchange of letters between young Christoph and his uncle. Through a touching correspondence dramatically underscored with the composer’s most beautiful excerpts, Christoph comes to understand the genius and beauty of Beethoven’s music.

Come & Play

Sunday, Nov 22, 2009
2:30-5:00pm rehearsal
6:00pm concert
Verizon Wireless Arena at the Stuart C. Siegel Center at Virginia Commonwealth University
Reservation Form

Don’t miss your chance to perform with the Richmond Symphony! Musicians of all ages and levels of ability are invited to bring their instruments and play alongside the musicians of the Richmond Symphony under the baton of Associate Conductor Erin R. Freeman. This event is presented in support of music education in Richmond Public Schools through the Symphony @ School program. All event proceeds will be used for student instrument purchase and repair.
Supported in part by the Mary Morton Parsons Foundation’s Education Fund.

Please note: Euphonium/baritone players must be able to read tenor and/or bass clef. Percussionists encouraged to provide their own instruments (limited space is available). We will be unable to accommodate pianists and saxophonists due to orchestration constraints. Parts are available for musicians of all levels; parts will be tailored to fit the experience level of participants.

Pre-Concert Talks

Join Erin R. Freeman, Associate Conductor of the Richmond Symphony, Guest Conductors and Soloists in pre-concert conversations about the concert repertoire, the lives of the composers plus personal interviews with musicians. These informal, insightful discussions will help adult audience members get the most out of the evening’s performance.

All Pre-Concert Talks for Masterworks are on Saturday nights at 7:00pm in Rhythm Hall at Richmond CenterStage.

For more information about any of the Richmond Symphony’s education and community engagement programs, please contact:

Aimee Halbruner
Director of Education & Community Engagement
Richmond Symphony
612 East Grace Street, Suite 401
Richmond, VA 23219
Phone: (804) 788.4717 x130
Fax: (804) 788.1541