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For the past five seasons, generous donations to the Focus on the Music campaign have helped to restore the music library’s collection, which was destroyed by the flood waters of Tropical Storm Allison. Your contributions for music, bowings and instruments have built the library’s holdings back up to 1,823 catalogued items, including scores, sheet music and reference materials.  Thank you!        

The Fanfare Project
This season, in partnership with American Express, Houston Symphony announces The Fanfare Project.  During the 1986-1987 season, the Houston Symphony commissioned more than 20 fanfares from American composers to commemorate Texas’ sesquicentennial.  The original materials were lost in the flood and must be repurchased from the composers.  Beginning with this season and continuing with three fanfares a year, the Symphony will introduce these pieces to a new Jones Hall audience.  This September, Joan Tower’s Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman will open the project.  Former Composer in Residence Tobias Picker’s Old and Lost Rivers was premiered by the Houston Symphony in 1986, and will be presented in November.  Finally, John Williams’ Celebration Fanfare will wrap up the project for the season in April 2009.

American Express seeks to preserve our rich and diverse cultural heritage and applauds efforts to preserve and rediscover important cultural works.

Focus on the Sound
Part of the Focus on the Music campaign seeks to replace and add to the Symphony’s instrument collection.  Numerous times throughout the season, the Symphony must rent instruments in order to meet the demands of a composition.  While these are quality instruments, constant temperature change and frequent moving is harmful to these finely tuned and calibrated instruments.  Proper maintenance is also crucial.  This could be done consistently by our musicians and crew, which would extend the useful life of an instrument.

Matching Gift Incentive
This is the third year of a 2:1 matching challenge created by an anonymous donor.  Pledges for music, instruments or equipment qualify for the match and help raise an additional $5,000 for the library each year for five seasons.  Please help us meet this challenge again this year!

Benefits in recognition of your gift include:

What does your gift support?

Preparing and Editing Music-

Most string parts come to the library without any bowings.  These marks tell the musician when to change bows.  Bowings effect the way a phrase is articulated and influence how a musician approaches a passage of music.  In some pieces, dynamic markings and cuts must also be added, all by hand.  This is extremely precise and detailed work.  The work done by the Houston Symphony librarians in preparing music for the orchestra is critical in eliminating wasteful rehearsal time spent discussing bowings, dynamics and articulations. 

Materials and Supplies-
Like any library, the Houston Symphony music library purchases reference books, shipping supplies, envelopes, binders, erasers, pencils and other materials for use in preparing the music for musicians.  Frequently, rental music goes through extensive restoration in order for it to be legible, especially on a dimly lit stage. 

Please call (713) 337-8530 to donate now!