Maestro talks Concert on the Green, season tickets
Do you hear that buzz reverberating around town as the Susanville Symphony kicks of its 21st season with its 10thannual Concert on the Green at the Historic Lassen County Courthouse at 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28?
Oh, yes, every September for a decade now, patrons and music lovers have gathered their lawn chairs and their personal munchies and refreshments to go lounge on the lawn outside the historic courthouse during a fall evening to enjoy the wonderful, unusual and unpredictable sounds Maestro Ben Wade and his collection of musicians have painstakingly prepared for them.
This year is no exception.
“This concert is going to be fun,” Wade said. “It’s brass and rock bands. It’s going to be saxes and trumpets and trombones. We’re playing Chicago, we’re playing Steely Dan, and we’re playing ‘Play That Funky Music White Boy.’ We’re playing all these fun songs with horns in them. We’re doing some Edgar Winter ‘Frankenstein,’ some Neil Diamond, we’re doing all that kind of stuff. No classical music — it’s all stuff you can sit and listen to, with even a little bit of ‘Margaritaville’ thrown in — no horns on that!”
Wade shared his vision of this year’s Concert on the Green.
“We had a band come play, and they played almost all of the second half a couple of years ago,” Wade said. “And people were like, ‘We could have listened to this for hours.’ So I got the idea then to do something a little bit like this, but to make it higher energy with all the horn sections.”
Maestro Ben Wade conducts the Susanville Symphony at a previous Concert on the Green at the historic Lassen County Courthouse.Season passes
As Wade pondered the Symphony’s 21st season, he said, “It’s so great, I can’t believe that we’re still going on.”
Tickets are on sale now, and the maestro encouraged the community to purchase season passes.
“We’re in the middle of our membership drive,” Wade said, “and it’s so important people buy season tickets. It’s a tax write-off, it supports the arts. We need that.”
Season passes are $150 each. General admission tickets are $35 in advance ($40 at the door). Season memberships are also available by calling (530) 310-8111 or seeing Denise at Susanville Dental Care, 720 Ash St.
A number of personal season memberships are available — Silver Tier Member ($150 includes a season ticket and a Silver Tier listing in the program); Gold Tier Members ($300 includes two season tickets and Golden Tier listing in program); and Platinum Tier Membership ($450 or more includes three season tickets and a Platinum Tier listing in the program).
Corporate memberships also are available — Musicans’ Circle ($750 or more includes two season tickets, listing as a Musicians’ Circle member and a half-page black and white ad in the program); Concert Master’s Circle ($950 or more includes two season tickets, listing as a Concert Master’s Circle member and a half-page color ad in the program); Maestro’s Circle ($1,150 or more includes four season tickets, listing as a Maestro’s Circle member and full page black and white ad in program); Conductor’s Circle ($2,250 or more includes six season tickets, listing as a Conductor’s Circle member and a full page color ad in program); and Benefactor’s Circle ($5,000 or more includes eight season tickets, listing as a Benefactor’s Circle member and a full-page color ad in program).
Seating for all concerts is on a first come, first serve basis. Priority seating in the Main Hall reserved for personal and corporate memberships. Single tickets will be seated in the side room. Tickets are non-refundable and exchanges are subject to availability.
Tickets also are available at the Lassen County Chamber of Commerce and Margie’s Book Nook or by calling the Symphony Hotline at (530) 310-8111.
The 2024/25 season
10th annual Concert on the Green
5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28
Historic Lassen County Courthouse
Legends of the Fall
7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 19
Smith Farm
A Susanville Christmas
7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 13
2:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 15
United Methodist Church
Susanville Swing Band
7 p.m. Saturday, March 29
Veteran’s Memorial Hall
Susanville Pops Concert
7 p.m. Saturday May 17
United Methodist Church
Click here to purchase tickets or visit the Symphony’s website.
