Health & Fitness
A Love/Hate Relationship with Summer
Find out what makes battling the elements worth it for local musicians!
Sunscreen. Packs of water bottles. Crates of music and stands. Oh, and of course, those 40% chances of afternoon rainstorms. Welcome to summer.
Why do we love summer? Why do we enjoy leaving the safe and predictable confines of the concert hall to get eaten alive by bugs, picking up a little too much sun, and then getting monsooned on?
Don’t worry; this isn’t a cynical post. It’s actually quite the opposite! While there is a love/hate relationship with summer for our musicians at times, there is a simple answer to my question. Simply put, YOU are the reason we enjoy our “Music Under the Stars” summer concert series so much.
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Our outdoor concert series is where we meet many of our new audience members that come back for our indoor Subscription Series concerts. It’s a great opportunity to get up close and personal with the Fairfax community and show them the joy we get out of bringing music to our neighbors. I personally love swapping war stories with fellow outdoor music lovers.
The summer months are also a crucial part of the music education component of our program. In my experience, many of our outdoor audience members are young families that are giving the local arts scene a first try. What an honor it is to introduce them, and more importantly their children, to the wonderful world of community music! For many of our volunteers, the highlight of not only the summer, but the entire year, is the annual Children’s Concert and Instrument Petting Zoo at Veterans Amphitheatre.
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In my opinion, our summer concerts are in some ways our special gift for the Fairfax community. After all, is there anything more American than sitting down to watch the local band play some tunes from the town square? Granted, Fairfax is a little bigger than River City, Iowa, but we have lots of great outdoor venues across the region that, with the right lighting, can evoke scenes from that timeless classic, The Music Man. Pull up a chair, Norman Rockwell!
I truly hope you will be able to join us for a performance this summer. Our schedule is absolutely packed!
