Statements
Mission
The mission of the Bryan Symphony Orchestra is to engage, educate, and enrich our community through the performance of live music.
Background
The Bryan Symphony Orchestra at Tennessee Tech University gave its first concert in February of 1964 under its original name, the Tech Community Symphony Orchestra. Founded by James Wattenbarger, chairperson of the TTU Music Department, the orchestra was intended to be a professional-level ensemble that would serve as a cooperative effort between the university and the Cookeville community and use the musical resources of the university and nearby cities. The orchestra draws professional musicians from all over middle and eastern Tennessee as well as utilizing the talents of TTU music faculty, and it takes great pride in the select inclusion of outstanding student players who perform alongside their teachers and mentors. A member of the League of American Orchestras, the BSO is managed by an independent board, consisting of representatives of the community and Tennessee Tech University. The Music Director is a member of the TTU faculty and an advisory member of the board. The daily operation of the BSO is in the hands of the Executive Director, who reports directly to the board and of the part-time box-office manager, who helps with office support and patron relations. Over the years, the orchestra has presented annual subscription concerts, which are regularly sold out, children's concerts, outdoor concerts in the Cookeville area, and several "Pops" concerts featuring guest artists such as Doc Severinsen, Roberta Flack, Chet Atkins, Mark Louis Bellson, Claire Chase, Mark Kosower, and Rachel Barton Pine. A number of composers have conducted their own works with the BSO, including Aaron Copland, Morton Gould, Vincent Persichetti, Pulitzer Prize winner Karel Husa and retired TTU professor Robert Jager. In 1995 and 1998, the Bryan Symphony Guild, now part of the Association, won the American Symphony Orchestra League's Sally Parker Award for its support of the orchestra's educational program. In 2003, the association won the American Symphony Orchestra League's Gold Ribbon Award for innovative fund-raising.
Impact
The purpose of the Bryan Symphony Orchestra Association is to provide funding and support for the Bryan Symphony Orchestra and to plan, fund, and implement outreach activities in the Upper Cumberland region. Such activities are designed to increase awareness of the value of orchestral music and support music education for all ages. Accomplishments in the past year include: 1. Successful guest artist collaboration with a participation in a pilot after-school string instruction program in collaboration with Tennessee Tech University for Putnam County Elementary Schools. 2. A free annual education concert to include all fourth-grade students in Putnam,Warren and Cumberland. 3. Increased financial participation by local businesses and individuals. 4. A balanced budget. 5. Increased relations between BSOA donors and BSO staff and musicians. Goals for the coming year: 1. Increased fundraising to produce two full productions of Puccini's 'La Boheme' 2. Continued collaboration with local schools for educational outreach and expanding the education concert to include local private schooled and home-schooled children 4. Continued increased relationships with business donors in the community. 5. Maintaining a balanced budget while increasing programming. 6. Partnering with Tennessee Technological University to implement a student internship program. 7. Bringing the BSOA staff to two full-time members from its current one full-time and one part-time positions. 8. Creating archival database of all previous concert programs, print productions, and concert recordings.
Needs
1. Greater corporate support for program and operational needs 2. Staff support for expanding programs 3. A larger volunteer base 4. A larger performance hall 5. Increased awareness through advertising outlets throughout the Upper Cumberland and Middle Tennessee regions
CEO Statement
The Bryan Symphony Orchestra at Tennessee Tech University is proud to serve the beautiful the Upper Cumberland region. The BSO is the result of a successful 60 year collaboration between Tennessee Technological University and the surrounding communities - particularly Cookeville. Support is strong in the community both from the university as well as from local businesses and private individuals. The Bryan Symphony Orchestra offers Upper Cumberland residents an advantage of living in a metropolitan area, a professional symphony orchestra, even though the Upper Cumberland is primarily a rural area. Some of our subscribers live only a few minutes away from the Bryan Fine Arts Building on the TTU campus, the venue for our subscription concerts. Knowing our subscribers and donors on a personal level is a priority for the BSOA's staff and board. The Bryan Symphony Orchestra feels that the personal relationships we are able to build with our patrons, and knowing a majority of our audience base is a unique experience that larger organizations cannot offer. The BSO not fiscally be able to offer as many concerts in one season as larger budget orchestras, high artistic quality is music director, Dan Allcott, and the BSO's number one priority. In recent years, the organization's growth has been focused on our educational efforts. Educational outreach in our community is one of the very important ways that we share the efforts of businesses and private citizens in continuing to make our region an outstanding place to live. In addition to scholarships for Tennessee Tech students, nine years ago the BSO reinstated the Education Concerts for all Putnam County 4th graders. Four years ago, Warren County fourth-graders were added and last season the Cumberland County fourth-graders were also included. We had over 2,200 fourth-graders attend the free education concert experience this year. During the fiscal year 07-08, the BSO helped provide funding for a pilot string program in the elementary schools. This program resulted from a collaboration between among 3 groups: the BSO, Putnam County Schools, and TTU and evolved into the String Program. Strong community collaborative relationships and high artistic goals have been the key to the BSO's success and will remain our formula for bettering our community for the future.
Service Categories |
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| Primary Category: | Arts, Culture & Humanities - Symphony Orchestras |
| Secondary Category: | Arts, Culture & Humanities - Music |
| Tertiary Category: | - |
Areas Served
The Bryan Symphony Orchestra is located in the town of Cookeville, TN. A micropolitan region located in Middle Tennessee. Cookeville has a population of 35,000 people, however it serves a much larger surrounding area of nearly 100,000 people.
| TN - Cumberland |
| TN - DeKalb |
| TN - Fentress |
| TN - Jackson |
| TN - Overton |
| TN - Pickett |
| TN - Putnam |
| TN - Warren |
| TN - White |
| TN - Smith |
