Cultural Renaissance
Preston has received a huge boost in its cultural life with the reintroduction of a city symphony orchestra after 50 years, as publicity manager Alex Roe MBE, explains
Up until the 1970s, the Preston Symphony Orchestra was at the centre of entertainment in the city. It played concerts in both Preston and Chorley and also accompanied the Preston Opera Company (POC) in its annual productions. The POC is still thriving today and has recently performed the Tales of Hoffman and is now accompanied by its own orchestra purely brought together for the shows under the direction of local conductor Helen Harrison.
It is believed that the conductor of the Preston Symphony Orchestra before it folded was Frank Salter – he moved out of the area and due to this, the orchestra ceased to exist. The loss of such a group meant that the city received a huge blow to its cultural life. There has not been an orchestra in Preston since the late 1970s. Frank, who died in 2017 aged 77, had founded the Preston Opera Company in 1965. He also gave lessons to the now famous Alfie Boe from Fleetwood.
Most towns and cities in England have an orchestra, whether it be professional or amateur, so Preston has been lagging behind and the people of the city have long been astounded that they did not have their own orchestra.
This year, local musician Matthew Price, a trombone player, decided to do something about it. He posted the idea of a new orchestra on Facebook and more than 40 musicians answered his call. Matthew then approached Lancashire County Council for funding. They suggested that he created a Crowdfunding appeal on Facebook to raise £4400. This was successful and the County Council then matched the amount – a huge sign that there was a need for an orchestra in the city.
The first meeting was held and it became obvious that local musicians were very keen to restart this once-wonderful orchestra. Players from all parts of Lancashire including Morecambe, Burnley and the surrounding area of Preston have now come together to form the group. This means that the standard is extremely high, so much so that members of the audience have been convinced it was a professional orchestra.
Auditions were held for the post of conductor and assistant, which were subsequently given to Marco Guidici and John Chapman, respectively. Marco, although Italian, now lives with his wife and family in Lancaster. John hails from Chorley. Marco conducts the Salford Symphony Orchestra as well as Ambleside Choral Society. John, a French horn player, is a leading light in the British Police Symphony Orchestra, which was founded by Alexander Roe MBE in 1989, who is now the principal viola in the newly-formed Preston Symphony Orchestra.
After the auditions for the conductor, two concerts were planned for 2024. The first concert was held at Ashton Methodist Church on 9th June and this sold out within three weeks of the release of the tickets. The concert was attended by the Mayor of Preston, Councillor Phil Crowe and the Vice Chair of Lancashire County Council, Alf Clemson who both concluded that the concert was a huge success and vowed to support the orchestra in the future. The evening ended with a standing ovation from the audience which went on for several minutes. The Preston Symphony Orchestra was back on the cultural map of the city.
Rumours were beginning to swirl round the city and Porsche Centre Preston contacted the orchestra and offered their assistance with publicity and advertising. This has now become a set partnership and they are looking to the future with the PSO. It is worthy of saying that a good friendship has developed between the two parties.
The orchestra was then approached by Preston’s Arts Association which invited the musicians to play at the Preston Arts Festival which is held every September in the city. The next concert for the Preston Symphony Orchestra is on Sunday 22nd September at St Leonard’s Church in Penwortham. Tickets were released on 10th June and two days later over half of the seats were sold.
So, what about the future? At present the PSO has booked a concert on the 8th December, again at St Leonard’s and two for 2025 at Chorley Town Hall. The committee are working extremely hard led by its Chairman Matthew Price.
The PSO have also been approached by local choirs to celebrate their special concerts and other groups are looking into how they can use this amazing resource.
Testament to the reception the city is giving to its newly-formed orchestra, the future is looking bright for Preston culture.
The PSO is in the process of registering as a charity which will help enormously with its finances. They have also set up a patronage scheme where members receive certain benefits during the year.
For more information on patronage please email: alexanderroe@hotmail.co.uk.
prestonsymphonyorchestra.co.uk
