Muskegon, Michigan, May 31, 2023—Concertgoers will take a musical journey from the ocean to the cosmos when Music Director Scott Speck and the West Michigan Symphony present the 2022-2023 Season Finale, culminating with Gustav Holst’s epic work The Planets. The concert will open with Peter Maxwell Davies’s An Orkney Wedding with Sunrise, complete with solo […]
Edward “Kip” Hickman will perform rarely heard work for trombone and orchestra Muskegon, Michigan, May 3, 2023—Edward Hickman has been the Principal Trombone of the West Michigan Symphony since 2013 and the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra’s Principal Trombone since 2001. He is a familiar face to West Michigan concertgoers, and the low brass section he fronts […]
Children from 36 schools in six area counties will play recorders along with West Michigan Symphony MUSKEGON, MI, April 26, 2023—Few things in life are more impressive than getting to play along with a 60-piece live orchestra, no matter what your age. For a fourth grader, it’s more than impressive—it’s life changing. Couple that with […]
Muskegon, Michigan, December 20, 2022— WMS Principal Percussionist Matthew Beck returns to The Block with a program featuring music by Steve Reich, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Igor Stravinsky, among others, at 5:00pm Saturday, January 14. Joining him will be CMU faculty member and former WMS timpanist Andrew Spencer, along with pianists Patrick Johnson from MSU and […]
Muskegon, Michigan, November 22, 2022— West Michigan native, pianist, and consummate performer Rich Ridenour will lead the West Michigan Symphony during its Home for the Holidays concert, putting a fresh twist on a beloved local tradition of joyful, heartwarming family fun, seasonal favorites, and a carol sing-a-long. Joining him for this year’s performance—scheduled for 7:30 […]
Muskegon, Michigan, October 18, 2022—Venezuelan-born pianist Gabriela Martinez returns to West Michigan after nearly 10 years to perform the Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 with Scott Speck and the West Michigan Symphony. The concert, held at 7:30 pm Friday, November 4, will also feature Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 and Adolphus Hailstork’s Fanfare on “Amazing Grace.” […]
“Tune Up” will provide Muskegon Elementary students with free instruments and instruction Muskegon, MI, September 19, 2022— Beginning this fall, elementary students in Muskegon’s Marquette and Oakview Elementary schools will be given an early start in instrumental music. A new program called “Tune Up” will provide aspiring young musicians with their own string instrument and […]
Concert will feature music from Star Wars, Jaws, E.T., the Indiana Jones movies and more Muskegon, Michigan, September 13, 2022— What would Star Wars, Jaws, and Raiders of the Lost Ark have been without the music of John Williams? This great American composer knew just how to write music that enhanced the mood of whatever […]
“Zonjic Meets Motown” features Detroit’s soul vocal group Serieux performing Temptations classics Muskegon, Michigan, August 10, 2022— Pop, Funk, R & B, Motown, and All that Jazz will be on the bill when jazz flutist Alexander Zonjic teams up with the West Michigan Symphony, conductor Terry Herald, and Serieux… Michigan’s leading R&B vocal group. With […]
2019 and 2021 Economic Impact Estimates Illustrate Value of Arts & Cultural Institutions Muskegon, MI – The economic impact of arts and cultural institutions and festivals on the Muskegon County economy is substantial, according to estimates recently released by Visit Muskegon, the county’s convention and visitors bureau. Arts and cultural institutions and festivals in Muskegon […]
