On June 24 we made our sixth annual appearance in Pigeon, Michigan on the series presented at the Pigeon Band Shell.
As always, it was a great concert with a wonderful audience and the enthusiastic support of the Pigeon Rotary Club's singers.
This year we had a special treat in the finale, where we played our unique rendition of the 1812 Overture which includes the
orchestra, of course, as well as singing (from the orchestra) guest performers on cannon (bass drum) and carillon. This year's
guests were Ed and Neal Eichler, brothers who did a fabulous job. We also had guest Rotarians shoot off our confetti "cannons"
which make the climax of the show a visible as well as musical highlight.
On July 3, the
orchestra once again performed for the incomparable Bay City Fireworks Festival. Our program was divided into two parts: the
first half was a patriotic salute to the men and women who serve in the armed forces. The second half was a celebration of
the Tall Ships festival that will be coming to Bay City on July 15. The 12 ships that are coming have travelled from ports
around the world to visit the Great Lakes, and Bay City is the only official Michigan port on their tour. We honored
that event with several popular songs associated with sailing including "Sloop John B," "Son of a Son of a
Sailor," and "Come Sail Away" by Styx which featured an awesome guitar solo by Andy Grefe from Saginaw. Our
featured soloist for that event, Randall Williams, will be joining us for a special concert called "Road Trip" in
February at the State Theatre. More on that elsewhere on this site.
