Board President gets Mauied!

Board President Jennifer Pittsley and John Raitz were married in Hawaii in February. Our best wishes for a long and prosperous future!

ALL THAT GLITTERED

CSO celebrated its annual Gala Dinner Concert & Auction on January 24, 2009 at the Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront. Over 200 guests attended the event and raised over $50,000 for the Portland Columbia Symphony Orchestra.

Attendees were especially enthralled with violinist Brandon Garbot's magnificent performances in Massenet's "Meditation" and Sarasate's Carmen Fantasy.

Thank you to our Auctioneer Tom Fletcher, Director of Sponsorship with the Portland Trailblazers (pictured below with CSO Executive Director Betsy Hatton), all the Auction Donors, the hard-working CSO Board Members, and generous Patrons for a successful evening of beautiful music and fundraising.

Honoring Marty Hernandez

CSO was proud to honor one of our faithful volunteers, Marty Hernandez, this week at the Annual Golden Notes Luncheon hosted by the Gresham Chamber of Commerce.

In addition to playing in the orchestra for twenty years, Marty is the self-appointed social coordinator that makes sure birthdays, weddings, graduations, babies are appropriately celebrated with cards, gifts, and parties. She also takes days off of work to help run our fundraising events such as the golf tournament and the annual Gala.

What is so great about Marty is that she does all this without being asked and with such a gracious spirit---Thank you Marty---you are truly an inspiration and we appreciate you!

Just a Little Wolf

One of the amazing things about live classical music is the opportunity to be transported to another time and place.

Like childhood.

Like listening to the LP or cassette of Peter & The Wolf with the stirring narration of Peter Ustinov or Leonard Bernstein while you danced around the living room.

And new generations of children still get introduced to the instruments, sounds, and the magic of music through this timeless work.

Portland Columbia Symphony Orchestra is proud to produce its version of Peter & The Wolf complete with puppets from Tears of Joy as part of their annual Holiday Gift to the community. In case you missed the performance, take a look at the awe and wonder on these faces as they 'pet' the Wolf, bang and blow on instruments in the 'petting zoo', and appreciate original artwork created by students at Concord, Markham, and Woodlawn Schools.

The Portland Strings, under the direction of Camilla Wilson Scott, presented a special pre-concert Christmas Medley. Special musical guests the Encore Singers from the Portland Symphonic Girlchoir joined the orchestra for second half holiday music including a carol singalong.

In this crazy busy season, take some time to let yourself be transported.

The Arts are Good for Business

Staff members Betsy Hatton and Shelly Williams along with CSO Board Member Katherin Poitras attended the Gresham Chamber of Commerce Economic Summit on Friday, October 17. The theme was "The Arts are Good for Business." The Chamber honored our friend and colleague, Tobias Andersen for his contribution to the arts in Gresham through his work at Mt. Hood Repertory Theatre. Other inspiring artistic moments throughout the day came from musicians Michael Allen Harrison and Juliann Johnson, comedic writer Marc Acito, acrobat performers Do Jump!, and well-known national actors Fankie Faison and Roscoe Orman.

One of the highlights of the summit was the 3-D presentation of the new Center for the Arts Plaza, which is on its way to being completed by early December. Included in the design are four pillars of public art, a spectacular vertical fountain, and LED ground lights. We applaud the leadership in Gresham for their commitment to making the arts a priority in their city with the development of the new Center for the Arts. www.gcfta.org

Another exciting project getting underway in the Portland Metro area is The Right Brain Iniative, which seeks to collaborate with artists, businesses and schools to get art back into the curriculum. http://www.therightbraininitiative.org/images/RightBrainFactSheet.pdf

Touching the Heart Ladies Luncheon-September 22, 2008

Over 100 ladies met together at the Governor Hotel to raise funds for Columbia Symphony's education program, MEET the BEAT. In the backdrop of the beautiful Heritage Ballroom, the ladies enjoyed fine dining, dazzling jewelry and Jo Malone fragrances, and were treated to heart messages from Sarah Johnson, Betsy Hatton, and Teri Sorensen. An octet of string musicians from the Symphony performed and then 20 young musicians from the summer chamber music program joined them on stage for Mozart's Divertimenti. Over $12,500 was raised to support MEET the BEAT, the comprehensive education program that includes two animal-themed concerts, an Audience Outreach Ticket Program, and a summer chamber music program.