You may have seen billboards around town where the SSO reminds you that “Music Makes Your Life Better”.
With all of the medical and mental health research that has been done on the effect and impact of music on our lives, our mental health, our spiritual health, making the claim that it makes your life better isn’t even being bold. It’s stating a blatant fact – there is concrete proof that adding music to your life makes a profound difference.
What if going to a concert once a month changed your life?
It increases the body’s production of dopamine, it improves heart health, aids in pain management, combats depression, and strengthens memory…doses of wellness that we all critically need right now.
We gently kicked off our new season last week with Murdoch in Concert. I’ll be 100% honest and say that I didn’t feel ready for a new season – not unprepared, but frankly unsure of leaping into a new year just yet. Before the concert I felt like a kid not wanting to go back to school yet.
And then, the lobby opened. People poured in; folks gathers round to solve the “lobby murder” and grab a drink and pick up their Harden and Huyse; rushed to settle into their seats and cheer as Michael walked out for his 42nd season. And sure enough, as the music played, the whole room changed. Small at first, and then in a wave.
All that medical research spilled across the stage into the seats and we were all moved by the vibration of sound.
Magic happened.
In this post-pandemic world suffering from geo-political stressors, coming together for live music created absolute magic. A room full of people who barely knew each other, found themselves inside the sound as a community – and in that moment we left the outside world behind.
Social media and the internet and all the other things that are supposed to “bring us together” have been tearing us apart for years now. It’s caused us to want to stay home, to stay in our control zones and not venture out because people and noise have become overwhelming.
But as I witnessed the joy on everyone’s face at intermission, it dawned on me that the concert itself creates community. Our hearts synchronized (because that’s what the vibration of live music does to an audience watching an orchestra), and we all connected with each other as our bodies reconnected with ourselves.
Season 95 is now here – what a remarkable thing to think that this city has been vibrating to the sound of an orchestra for 95 years. This season may just be our best yet, with something for everyone.
You like classical? We’ve got Vivaldi and Brahms and Schumann and Handel and Shostakovich and Mozart and Beethoven.
You like romance? We’ve got Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky and Puccini’s Tosca (ok, well Tosca starts with romance and ends in death….but the music is romantic as heck!)
You like rock? We’ve got Saskatoon’s own Kashmir bringing Led Zeppelin to life and our YXE Divas with Christmas hits.
You want super stars? The world’s greatest percussionist of all time, Dame Evelyn Glennie is going to blow you away in October!
You want hometown heroes? An attempted list: Julia, Bede, Casey, Andrea, Spencer, Jayden, Kashmir, Kevin, Stephanie, Katya, Oli, choirs, Tania!, and Janna and all the YXE Divas. Who did I miss??
You want something off the beaten path? Dive oceans deep with the whales of National Geographic in November, or get philosophical with Constantinople in February!
Feeling patriotic? Elbows up on the musical strength of a nation this November with True North with music by Sonny Ray Day Rider, Zosha di Castri, Sammy Moussa, and so much more.
Can’t make it to the concert? Watch it on ConcertStream.tv!
You want to find the meaning of life? Honestly, I suspect that if anyone can lead you there, it’s likely Kinan Azmeh and Dinuk Wijeratne next May.
Magic. Hearing live music, experiencing an orchestra in full flight, it’s magic. It makes your life better. It fosters community in a world craving it.
We, the musicians, the staff, the volunteers, and me – we all want you to come and make magic with us.
Take the leap, get seats, and let’s make music together.
See you at the symphony,
Mark Turner, CEO
