Greater Grand Forks Symphony Association (Grand Forks, N.D.)

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The Greater Grand Forks Symphony Orchestra originated in 1908 under the direction of Dr. George A. Stout, a member of the UND faculty. Initially called the Grand Forks Philharmonic Orchestra, it accompanied the Bjarne Male Chorus, a Norwegian choral group. The orchestra has maintained a regular concert schedule since 1911, except during World War II. Concerts were resumed in 1946. 1950 witnessed the formation of a more structured formalized symphony organization. The first meeting of the Grand Forks Symphony Association was held March 8, 1950. It was composed entirely of symphony personnel and was governed by a constitution and By-laws and an elected board of Directors. In 1954, the Board of Directors officially appointed a Citizens Committee which was in charge of the publicity of concerts and fund raising through the selling of symphony memberships. It also provided refreshments to orchestra personnel between rehearsals and concerts or after concerts. In 1960, the Committee began an annual large fund raising project, the Symphony Ball. The North Dakota Arts Council encouraged the Symphony Association to adopt amended by-laws, reorganize and to hold open auditions for all playing positions. This it did and the Symphony Association was reorganized to include a large Board of Trustees composed of 50-75 interested members of the community directed by a small Board of Directors elected from the Board of Trustees A Trustees were assigned to one or more working committees; such as Fund Raising, Special Projects, Long Range Planning, Mailing, Publicity, etc. In 1984, the Board of Directors hired a part-time manager. In addition to instituting a paid subscription policy for concerts, the Symphony Board of Trustees continued to raise money through charitable contributions, grants, and various fund-raising projects. Its major fund-raiser, the Symphony Ball, was replaced with a Fall Harvest Hoe-down in 1985. The Grand Forks Symphony, now a sixty member community orchestra, performs classical concerts, pops and special events five times a year. Guest artists from the U.S. and Canada join the symphony for performances including world premieres of new music. The Symphony Association now offers youth programs including a youth symphony, junior symphony, master classes, workshops and coaching in chamber music

From the description of Records, 1911-1972 (University of North Dakota). WorldCat record id: 755719244

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Active 1911

Active 1972

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