The Friends of the Symphony Present the Animated Orchestra

A Musical Adventure for the Young and the Young at Heart

The Animated Orchestra: A Musical Adventure for the Young and the Young at Heart, sponsored by the Friends of the Symphony, will be held at 2:30 pm on Sunday, March 13 at Timberline Church’s main auditorium. Under the baton of Maestro Wes Kenney, the award-winning Fort Collins Symphony will perform this family-friendly concert with the composer, Gregory Smith, narrating the event.

The Animated Orchestra is designed to introduce children to the instruments of the orchestra. This interactive musical story features a playful and curious ferret named Ari who wanders into Mr. Shraft’s musical instrument repair shop. Chaos ensues as Ari tries out all the instruments and finally falls asleep inside the tuba bell.

Join us to find out what happens next!  The concert will also premiere Gregory Smith’s newest piece, Shave and a Haircut. To showcase how a large orchestra works, the orchestra will perform these audience favorites: Gioachino Rossini’s William Tell Overture, Aaron Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man, and Joan Tower’s Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman.

This 60-minute concert is appropriate for all ages. Tickets are $5 per person or $20 for families (up to five people) and may be purchased at www.LCTix.com. The concert will be performed at Timberline Church, 2908 S. Timberline Road, Fort Collins.

Composer Gregory Smith has produced a wide range of music that entertains thousands daily at Disney theme parks and reaching millions on television networks. His family/educational symphonic works are among the most performed in the genre. Some of Smith’s best-known spectaculars include Wishes and Holiday Wishes for Walt Disney World, Remember Dreams Come True for Disneyland’s 50th anniversary, Disney In the Stars for Hong Kong Disneyland, and the daytime Castle Show at Shanghai Disneyland.

His broadcast credits range from major network themes including the ubiquitous CBS theme to underscores for the various Star Trek dramas, Warner Brothers cartoons, as well as sports themes for ESPN, TNT, ABC, and Headline News. The family/educational symphonic works of Gregory Smith have enjoyed over 1,000 performances by more than 200 orchestras around the United States and internationally.

The Fort Collins Symphony commissioned Smith to write VIBE, a STEAM-themed (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics) piece that was performed for over 4,000 Poudre School District 4^th and 5^th graders in 2018.

Concert Sponsors are an anonymous donor, City of Fort Collins Fort Fund, Colorado Creative Industries, Community Foundation of NoCo., Pattie Cowell & Sherry Pomering, David & Alison Dennis, FAN Foundation, Flood & Peterson Insurance, Robert Graziano, Carol Ann & Gary Hixon, Carol Ann Hixon Fund for Advancing Innovation & Imagination, Mary & Paul Kopco, Marty & Scott Marsh, National Endowment for the Arts, Dr. Ed Siegel, Dr. Peter Springberg & Janet Kowall, and the Wilmarth Foundation.