In Sunday’s (10/3) San Diego Union-Tribune, James Chute writes, “The San Diego Symphony may be celebrating its 100th anniversary, justly proud of being the oldest symphony orchestra in California, but it isn’t erecting any monuments or looking backward. … The symphony has moved from the status of a financially feeble and artistically erratic organization to an economically stable and musically energized public resource as it prepares to open a star-studded centennial season Friday at Copley Symphony Hall. ‘This orchestra is indispensable to the community,’ said Mitchell R. Woodbury, chairman of the symphony’s board. ‘Some 200,000 people a year are exposed to what we do. We’re not just an orchestra that performs in Symphony Hall for classical musical audiences, as important as that is. We’re everywhere.’ Even in a down economy, attendance at last season’s Masterworks concerts at Copley Symphony Hall kept pace with earlier seasons, attracting 57,241 ticket buyers. The orchestra’s recent Summer Pops series at the Embarcadero set a record, attracting approximately 62,000 patrons and earning $1.8 million. … It’s hoping to raise as much as $50 million toward roughly doubling its endowment, and it’s working to expand its community support and attract more individual donors.”
Posted October 4, 2010
