The Corvallis-OSU Symphony Orchestra Experience
By: Hailey Silver
The Power of Harmony
“Music and the arts are central to education…They bring communities together which is increasingly important.”
-Jayathi Murthy
Silence falls over a packed crowd as the baton of the conductor takes its first stroke -- leading a wave of crying instruments demanding the audience to listen to their story. The atmosphere of the Corvallis-OSU Symphony Orchestra’s Fall Concert is heavy with emotion through the combined efforts of each string, wind, and percussion musician on this unique stage.
Music is a universal language for everyone in the auditorium from stage, to the very back corner of the new PRAx Concert Hall. Panning the room you see emotion vibrating and hitting every single person in attendance -- for music is capable of shaping how we process and experience life. It comes as no surprise then that Oregon State President Jayathi Murthy calls music and the arts “central to education,” and a force that “brings communities together, which is increasingly important.” At the Holiday Concert a month later.
The Corvallis-OSU Symphony Orchestra is a community example of that unifying power. As a collaborative bridge between students, professional musicians, and the Corvallis music enjoyer -- the symphony invites everyone to experience artistry at its most transformative.
Every Instrument blows, vibrates, and strikes in tandem, echoing a fundamental lesson: that while every voice may sound different, together they can create something breathtaking. How lucky is it that Corvallis gets to witness this harmony -- a community coming together to listen, learn, and play? Music holds space for us all -- the first-time listener, the seasoned performer, and everyone in between.
What else, after all, can you see so clearly with your eyes closed?
A Collaborative Journey
At the heart of the Corvallis-OSU Symphony Orchestra is a unique collaboration that bridges generations of musicians in and around the area. Here, students play side-by-side with seasoned professionals, building a dynamic learning environment which allows for the many student musicians at OSU to fine-tune their artistry. For students like Elijah Durbin, the symphony orchestra’s librarian, this experience is transformative:
“Being next to a professional has helped me make a lot of progress… At the start of the term, the students play the principal parts before the professional players come in. Then we move forward to learning our second parts when the professional members join, and we adjust to their feedback.”
This process which starts with leadership -- and is followed by collaboration -- mirrors the very essence of orchestral performance. Each section, musician, and each note relies on the others to complete the puzzle and make something beautiful. Guest conductor and Director of Bands at OSU – Dr. Erik Leung – captures this sentiment perfectly by stating “The orchestra is an intricate moving puzzle that gets put together to illustrate a story.”
While the mentorship is important going both ways, President of the Symphony Society – Libby Ramirez – shares her admiration for the professional members in the community who work around the conflicting schedules of all members to share their valuable insights and play harmoniously with the student musicians in the orchestra. Ramirez highlights how “Several of our community members don’t even accept their checks.” Showing the dedication to the music at the forefront of these professionals' purpose.
Mentorship is more than just those performing however, and for students like Anika Anderson -- who don’t study music, but hold a deep passion for it -- direction from conductor Dr. Leung is just as important for development. “Dr. Leung wrote pretty specific notes for us that were intense but helpful”. This sentiment holds true for both students Anderson and Durbin who connect both of their experiences in the orchestra this year to a learning experience with a professor leading the charge.
This collaborative journey of student growth, professional mentoring, and constructive director guidance -- reveals the orchestra as more than a collection of instruments. It is a community of individuals striving for a common goal -- to serve the music and bring it to life. For Durbin, this collaboration also represents something deeply personal that many musicians can surely connect to -- “How can I make my sound as progressive as possible?”
"I would love the audience to come away with the sense that they heard something new, or something they heard before in a new way. I want the audience to leave our performance feeling a sense of attachment and spiritual connection."
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Building Community Through Music
On a level more intimate than viewership, community is fostered through the support of the community to ensure the show continues to go on. Since its development in 1906, the Corvallis-OSU Symphony Orchestra has had its fair share of hardships. This resilient program has “Continuously operated through wartime and covid.” Libby Ramirez highlights this statement as she thinks about what her role means for the sake of this organization. “My role is the catch-all, I form decision making points and gather info to distill down to present to the board.”
While true, this statement is an understatement for the hard work she, and the volunteer-based society do for the students and professional musicians in the symphony. This group “Started in the 60’s as an all women's group that did all the fundraising.” According to Ramirez. Since its creation, the group has developed a more crucial role for the symphony, as it handles the financial aspect of the whole show, and generates grants and donations to support the performances and scholarships some of the music students rely on.
While the Symphony Society has changed since its previous all-woman fundraising group, Ramirez shows that their mission still stays the same. Stating “Its goal was to move the symphony to the next level.” Which this group shows in spades.
This inner-symphony support resonates with the student participants as well. Building the foundation for a musical relationship with peers is what Anika Anderson states as “cathartic for students that aren’t majoring or focusing in music.” Student music librarian Elijah Durbin agrees as he has a similar connection with this unique program offered to OSU students, saying that -- “As a double major, this gives me a chance to play in a serious music ensemble. It’s really great that it’s giving so many people the opportunity to play.”
The solace student musicians find in this program will never change as their passions gain a platform. But one thing that has changed within the last year is the physical space this symphony has to express these performance-based passions.
With the development of the Patricia Valian Reser Center for the Creative Arts -- or as the community knows it as -- the PRAx, a new avenue of opportunities have been opened to support and highlight these local artists. Durbin points out its growing impact after the success of their sold out Fall Concert performance.“You see advertisements and more people getting engaged with the student music programs.”
The complex and continuously growing support and development of the Corvallis-OSU Symphony Orchestra is evident with all the efforts from every direction aiming to lift up and showcase the hard work of these musicians. Libby Ramirez says it best -- “It really takes a village, and it shows that music transcends it all. Community is so important.”
The Legacy and Future of the Symphony
With change around every corner it's often hard to picture the future of most entertainment-based groups and organizations. But with the growing success of orchestral groups such as this one, it’s refreshing to look forward positively as the community prepares for the next performance from the Corvallis-OSU Symphony Orchestra.
Under the leadership of conductor Leung, the orchestra is exploring new avenues of inclusion and diversity in its programming. For Leung, music is a bridge to untapped possibilities:
“I think of the symphony in the 21st century as a vehicle for introducing people to a new scope of music. It’s about bringing more diversity to our programming -- having it resonate with younger audiences.” Leung’s vision embraces both tradition and innovation.
He sees the symphony as a place where audiences can experience music they know and love, while also discovering something entirely new -- stating that his goal for every show is to have audience members “leave our performance feeling a sense of attachment and spiritual connection.” With something like the symphony bringing together audience members of all ages and backgrounds, he emphasizes the importance of creating a new experience for everyone in attendance. Saying, “I would love for them to hear something new, or something familiar in a new way.”
The vision of this symphony's future wasn’t always so clear as they recently were tasked with figuring out who would lead this group as previous conductor Marlin Carlson retired after 54 years with the symphony orchestra. Libby Ramirez recounts his impact saying “Marlin Carlson, fought for the importance of relationship and mentorship in the orchestra” This mentorship is the groundwork of what makes this Corvallis group so special and unique.
With big shoes to fill, all guest conductors including Dr. Leung go forward to paint whatever story they want to illustrate with the power of each instrumental choice they make and direct. In this legacy of harmony, the symphony continues to honor its past while building a vibrant, inclusive future -- one performance at a time.
The Sound of Shared Experience
The Corvallis-OSU Symphony Orchestra offers something rare. As individuals, there is seldom a moment where you are given the space to breathe and simply appreciate life. As one glances around the room while the percussion instruments rattle, and the cellist’s slide across their strings so intentionally -- you are given that rare moment. A moment where everyone -- on stage and off -- pause to take part in a collective act of beauty.
It is artistry that demands your attention, holds your breath, and leaves you on the edge of your seat or comforts you in the quietest, most cathartic corner of your soul.This feeling is worth following and fostering -- and what better way to support that than getting out into our community and making this symphony’s presence known.
As Libby Ramirez illustrates -- it’s refreshing to have a part in this kind of artistry for “There is so much passion from every corner of the process.” This doesn’t just hold true for the performers and the curators of this experience either. If you hold a space in the concert hall as the symphony begins to play, then you are sharing in that passion and contributing to the artistry.
