Just like any other orchestra, this one starts its practice with a tune up.
But the Wisconsin Intergenerational Orchestra is a little different – it accepts players of all ages and skill levels.
“The reason we’re doing this is because, number one, it’s beautiful, okay?” artistic director Anne Marie Peterson tells her players.
Anne Marie helped found the orchestra in 2016.
“It’s a beautiful thing, in the human family there are all ages and we always say everyone has something to give, everyone has something to receive, everybody is somewhere in that equation,” Anne Marie says.
For some of the older members, like Gail Waring, joining the orchestra means picking up where they left off.
“My violin playing got interrupted,” she says. “When I got to my job at Marquette, there was about a 40 year hiatus.”
On the other hand, high school freshman Louisa Schmidt has been playing continuously for 6 years – but she still has plenty to learn from her older bandmates.
“They’ve played for longer, they know more about technique, they know more about conducting and just everything!” she says.
To facilitate that communal sharing and learning, Anne Marie did away with one simple thing – the audition process. And it’s not too late to join, either. WIO’s winter concert isn’t until December 13th, and Anne Marie says youcan come to practice and show your skills.
“It’s not competitive, it’s about, you know, growth, joy. It’s about meeting people who are different from you,” she says.
“Anne Marie is kind of a master of selecting repertoire that everybody can play,” adds Gail. “And if they’re having trouble at one level, she actually rewrites the parts.”
Even though they may have different skill levels, this team works together to create something beautiful.
“When you’ve been practicing it for so long and you final get all the dynamics and technique, and you can just play it really well, that’s really nice,” says Louisa.
“Not that everybody plays everything perfectly, but as a whole, it comes through,” adds Gail.
“The music is a strong bonding thing, it just brings us together,” says Anne Marie. “It gives us a common sense that we’re experiencing things together and that we’re making a difference in the world.”
