If you had to play a piece of music to describe a beloved family pet, what would it sound like? Even if you don’t know how to play an instrument, you might play the low notes on a piano long and slow in honor of a pet turtle, or pluck the high strings on a guitar to mimic the energy of a chihuahua.
In 1886 Composer Camille Saint-Saëns wrote his own musical safari, The Carnival of the Animals, featuring melodies for lions, kangaroos, roosters and more. And on Sunday, Mar. 27 you can hear it performed by the Bremerton WestSound Symphony at their annual OrKIDstra Family Concert!
“It’s a lot of fun for kids, whether they know music or not,” says Music Director Alan Futterman. “It’s filled with tricks and jokes — the song for the tortoise takes the familiar ‘can-can’ melody from Offenbach and plays it incredibly slow. The movement inspired by fossils features the xylophone to mimic the sound of bones.”
During the performance, members of the Peninsula Dance Theatre will perform in front of the orchestra — dressed in animal costumes, of course. The audience will also be able to see close-ups of the featured musicians on a big screen above the stage.
2021 Young Artists Competition winners Cyrus Yan (left) and Alec Rodriguez.
Musical storytime
If you’ve been enjoying the Bremerton WestSound Symphony’s musical storytime videos at bremertonwestsoundsymphony.org/family-musical-storytime, the OrKIDstra concert is also your first chance to watch a story unfold live and in-person!
Nationally renowned jazz vocalist Eugenie Jones will be reading The Jazz Fly, a picture book about a very musical fly and his jazzy friends. Jones will be accompanied by the Bremerton WestSound Symphony Youth Jazz Ensemble, who will improvise musical illustrations to the story, and a projector will display pictures from the story. You can even pick up your own copy for The Jazz Fly at the show!
Winners of last summer’s Bremerton WestSound Symphony coloring contest will even get to step on stage to conduct the orchestra!
Music for kids, by kids
The entire OrKIDstra Family Concert is designed with children in mind — pieces are short, and total playing time is less than an hour. After the show, families are welcome to take a selfie with a costumed lion from the Bremerton Central Lions Charitable Foundation, who is sponsoring this year’s concert.
Not only is the concert filled with kid-friendly music, it’s also filled with young performers. The Carnival of the Animals features 2021 Young Artists Competition winners Cyrus Yan and Alec Rodriguez, The Jazz Fly is performed by the BWS Youth Jazz Ensemble, and the winners of last summer’s coloring contest will even get to step on stage to conduct the orchestra!
Call 360.373.1722 or email info@bremertonsymphony.org to reserve your FREE tickets to OrKIDstra, happening Sunday, Mar. 27 at 3 p.m at the Bremerton Performing Arts Center. Learn more at bremertonwestsoundsymphony.org.
Proof of COVID-19 vaccination or negative test required for entry regardless of age, all patrons must wear face masks at all times. Read the full COVID-19 policy at bremertonwestsoundsymphony.org/covid-19-update.
