the orchestra
VIOLIN 1
Ryan Rogers, Concertmaster
Ashley Rigdon
Mary Rogers
Ty Maisel
VIOLIN 2
Perry Combs, Principal
Frank Rives
Ann McNally
Norman Wood
Anne Turner
Gwen Combs
Tyler Dennis
VIOLA
Leslie Wood, Principal
Kathy Wellman
Tammy Luke
Jane Klinck
CELLO
Matthew Warren, Principal
Lee Jackson
Bridgeet Olugbala
Julia Pieper
Rebekah Miller
BASS
Richard Brown, Principal
Glenn Hale
FLUTE
Allison Talley, Principal
Martha Morgan
OBOE
John Dickson, Principal
Lori Nail
CLARINET
Meghan Brock, Principal
Fred Rushton
BASSOON
Darryl Harris, Principal
Sally Cohen
FRENCH HORN
Bonnie Shows, Principal
Ellen Matthews
Trey Bennett
Jay Bennett
TRUMPET
Anne Berthold, Principal
Lloyd Turner
Mike Beasley
TROMBONE
John Retherford, Principal
Michael Weidick
BASS TROMBONE
Paul Lavallee, Principal
PERCUSSION
Teddie Carroll, Principal
Sherwood Berthold, Sr.
Sherwood Berthold, Jr.
TIMPANI
Jason Matheny, Principal
History
The MCO is a community orchestra composed of approximately forty musicians who perform classical chamber music for the public free of charge in the Jackson metropolitan area. We perform at least three concerts during each season. The orchestra began in 1984 when Gary Robinson, a graduate student in music education at Mississippi College, invited local musicians, most of whom are non-professionals, to join him in forming a community orchestra as part of a school project. Through the generosity of such benefactors as the Gertrude Ford Foundation, Stuart C. Irby, Jr., Muller Addkison, Jr., State Farm Insurance Company, Dr. and Mrs. Charles Jackson, Dr. and Mrs. Michael LeBlanc, and many other contributors, we have had the good fortune of continuing to present excellent programs free of charge to the public. Its programs have become a valued cultural asset to the metropolitan area.
Artistic Director Wayne Linehan is a professional musician who plays trumpet with the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra and is an adjunct music professor at Millsaps College and Mississippi College. Bob McNally, for many years concertmaster of the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, is a highly respected violinist throughout the country. Our non-professional musicians freely give hours to practice and performances. A few selected students from area institutions including Hinds Junior College and Belhaven University are given opportunities to develop their talents in an orchestra setting.
Our concerts have been performed in past years in the historical setting of the Old Capitol State Historical Museum. Because renovations caused by Katrina took away that space, St. Andrew's Episcopal Cathedral graciously allowed us to begin performing in their beautiful sanctuary, where we currently hold our concerts.
Those organizations or persons who underwrite an entire season, or one performance, or more, are invited to submit promotional materials for inclusion in the program as a thank you. All contributors are recognized by listing their names in the appropriate category as set by the board. The orchestra operates under a Mississippi non-profit charter registered in Mississippi as the Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra Society, Inc. It has an exempt status under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code as an organization described in Section 501(c)(3). Contributions are fully tax deductible.
