Redlands Community Orchestra Gives Inaugural Concert

The Redlands Community Orchestra held its inaugural concert on Nov. 10 at the Redlands High School Clock Auditorium. Newly founded by bassoonist Melinda Morang and conducted by James Benanti, the orchestra played the Academic Festival Overture by Johannes Brahms; Capriccio Italien, Opus 45, by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky; and Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Opus 93, by Ludwig Van Beethoven. “I love hearing and having the great masters going through my mind again,” said violinist Rosalee Baumgarten. “I find it going through my mind day and night and just feel so uplifted by it, and it’s been wonderful to get together with other people that have the enthusiasm for something like this.” Baumgarten had played the violin from age 10 to her senior year in high school. When she got to college, she had to choose between opera and violin and went with the former. “But now I’m a senior citizen and can’t sing anymore and so I wanted to have music in my life again,” she said. “I accidentally stumbled on (Morang) who was starting it. I had been playing the violin alone at home in my bedroom for a couple years, trying to resurrect an old violin-playing talent from years ago, and was looking for a place to play. And so this was the perfect opportunity." Double bassist Janine Leslie, who is from Rialto, has been playing the instrument for two years. Prior to learning it, she played electric bass. “When I got into college, they told me that I had to learn the double bass so I picked it up,” she said. A performance major at Cal State San Bernardino, Leslie heard about the orchestra through a friend who had told her to email Morang. “I love it,” she said. “I’m in the beginning.” Before founder Melinda Morang moved from Michigan to Redlands in the summer of 2012, she played the bassoon in a community orchestra. “I really loved it, and then I moved here and was a little disappointed that there was no local community orchestra within short driving distance,” she said. “You have to go to Claremont or Riverside.” She began sending out emails in March to local high school band directors, scoring the interest of James Benanti, who is in his 12th year as the Director of Instrumental Music at Redlands High School. After a conductor was secured, she took the summer to build the orchestra membership through online sign-ups. The orchestra’s first rehearsal was in the beginning of September, once a week. “It seems to be meeting a need for a lot of people,” said Baumgarten, commenting on the enthusiasm of the community orchestra members. “The ultimate goal is to probably play three or four concerts [a year],” said Morang, who added that the orchestra is looking for more string players, and interested musicians may sign up by visiting RedlandsCommunityOrchestra.org. Morang shared that Benanti picked the evening’s particular repertoire for two reasons: he wanted something familiar to the audience, and the selections were in the public domain, as the newly formed orchestra is not yet licensed to play copyrighted music. “I’m having a great time working with these absolutely fantastic musicians,” said Benanti. “Like, really talented people. [It’s been] a great start, and I’m really excited about where we’re gonna be in the future.”