Local orchestra hosts ‘petting zoo’

By Glenne White

Special to The Winchester Star

Winchester — “We want the community to know who we are and what we offer,” said Steven Shafran, director of development for the Winchester Orchestra — now in its second season.

To reach this goal, he, his wife Carol (who co-leads the marketing of the orchestra), and Music Director Andrew Gekoskie will oversee a special educational event for area families Saturday and Sunday.

“It is a rare opportunity for Valley residents,” said Shafran of the upcoming petting zoo.

The event begins at 9:30 a.m. each day, with stations set up around the lobby of the new Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in Kernstown. At each of the stations, children can examine different musical instruments. They can touch them, ask questions, and learn the names and the sounds each instrument makes.

Other stations will have music- and art-related activities for the children as they wait their turn “to pet” the various instruments. Some area businesses and organizations that have developed a relationship with the orchestra will be on hand to lend support.

After the “meet the instruments” segment of the program, the audience will move into a theater. There, Tom Teasley, percussionist and world-traveling educator, will perform his “interactive” hour-long solo show.

Teasley, based in the Washington area, is known for his integration of Eastern and African music into the music familiar in Western culture. Tri-state area teachers who have worked with Teasley see his approach to music education as flexible and appealing to all age groups. His techniques include integrating electronic and acoustic instruments and introducing audiences to unfamiliar music from around the world.

Some of the percussion instruments with which he travels are from India, Brazil, Cuba, and the Middle East. They have names such as djembe, doumbek, riq, and pandiero — all are hand drums.

The Shafrans noted that supervised play and babysitting will be available for children too young to enjoy Teasley’s one-man show.

After Teasley’s performance, several short Bugs Bunny/Looney Tunes films relating to music will complete the program.

“This programming, we hope, will entertain children in a positive way,” said Shafran. “Sometimes, music is the only approach that can bring diverse groups together.” With a folder of articles at hand, the Shafrans reiterated some ways music helps to educate — through discipline, memory, cooperative learning, and practice, practice, practice.

Although the Winchester Orchestra generally performs classical programs, Shafran said “we include diverse music to make our programs more interesting and rewarding for all families.”

His wife Carol, who also oversees the website — www.winorch.org — said: “Our goal is to educate future generations as well as to entertain.”

The Winchester-based orchestra also performs regionally, records its repertoire, and provides music education through outreach programs and events.

The orchestra has no permanent home, but is trying to make itself available and become known in the community.

Performance venues this season include The George Washington Hotel, the Alamo, and Millbrook High School. Future events include a Beethoven Festival in February and a children’s concert in March. Along with the performance season, an online auction, with many items related to music and entertainment, continues through Monday.

As part of community outreach, orchestra members lend their support to other area nonprofit organizations. A chamber group of orchestra members recently played at a Habitat for Humanity function; other members participated in the Winchester International Children’s Festival in October.

The vision of Gekoskie when he founded the Orchestra in June 2008 was to create a professional orchestra that would be “committed to changing lives though music’s extraordinary power to communicate ... educate, and entertain.”

Meet the Orchestra

Meet the Orchestra with Instrument Petting Zoo, Tom Teasley, & Movies will take place Saturday and Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to noon at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in Kernstown, south of Winchester. The cost is $12 per person.

Tickets may be purchased at AATR Video, Incredible Flying Objects, Kidz Play, and The Little Gym in Winchester. For online ticket purchases, visit www.winorch.org. Reservations are suggested, since seating is limited. Any remaining tickets will be sold at the event. Call 540-533-4126