I wrote an article about the Fresno Philharmonic for Symphony magazine
By Donald Munro
On the day of the last concert of the Fresno Philharmonic’s 2024-25 season, I’m happy to share a really cool thing I got to do recently: get published in Symphony magazine. The publication is the quarterly magazine of the League of American Orchestras.
The subject of the story is the orchestra’s recent world premiere of “Meguru: Dreams of Harvest,” a score by Hitomi Oba and Erika Oba that was inspired by the story of David “Mas” Masumoto, the poet-slash-organic-peach farmer who has brought such visibility to Fresno.
I got to spend some quality reporting time with conductor Rei Hotoda, the Oba sisters and Masumoto. From my story:
The goal: produce a commissioned piece that truly represents the community. The endeavor would include generous local donors willing to take a chance on new music, and a city with an arts sales tax willing to contribute public money. It would feature the work of a local visual artist, Chieko Delgado, who would illustrate Masumoto’s special-edition book, titled “Shadow Music,” produced for the concert. It would elevate the musicians of the orchestra, who participated in three workshop rehearsals and whose feedback helped shape the piece. The orchestra even arranged for a special “Philharmonic Peach” flavor at a local premium ice-cream shop—made from peaches picked by Fresno Philharmonic board members on a visit to the Masumoto farm at the height of summer’s harvest.
The premiere of “Meguru” wasn’t just a one-time event. It was the first in a series planned by the orchestra titled “Cultural Crossroads: Kisetsu” (“seasons” in Japanese.) The series builds upon the Fresno Philharmonic’s pledge to incorporate new music—particularly by women and people of color—into the culture of the orchestra and, perhaps, the ethos of the city itself, something evidenced by a slew of such pieces over the past eight years programmed by Hotoda.
I hope you have a chance to read my piece and relive the concerts, which were both sold out. In an exhilarating season, the event was a highlight.
STORY CONTINUES AFTER SPONSORED CONTENT
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bcwalkerj
I thoroughly enjoyed the “Meguru concert, and on the way home stopped at Ampersand for a pint of the delicious “Philharmonic Peach” ice cream. It was creamy and full of peach flavor. I wasn’t aware until reading this edition of your report that the peaches used for the ice cream were picked by the Philharmonic Board Members. That makes the memory even more special. Thank you! Congratulations on publishing in Symphony Magazine! That’s exciting.
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