PIEDMONT — Doctors, lawyers, teachers, Silicon Valley techies and musicians from every walk of life will come together June 15 to make beautiful music at a free concert by the newly formed Piedmont Chamber Orchestra. It was the dream of Nancy Lehrkind, who founded the Piedmont Center for the Arts, to have such a group perform at the center.
“This was the one community use Tom and I wished for,” Lehrkind said. “It has taken us this long to organize and get it doing. The key really was having Stuart Gronninger step up to lead the organizing and signing on Martha Stoddard to conduct. Between the two of them, they know all of the local musicians.”
Gronninger, of Piedmont, is a professional musician, who played for 52 years in the Oakland symphony as the principal horn.
“It was a longer tenure as a brass than most,” Gronninger said. “But it becomes physically too demanding. I played freelance all over the Bay Area — for the San Francisco Opera, ballet, Oakland and Berkeley orchestras.
“I didn’t expect to play again. I dug my (French) horn out of mothballs, and it takes weeks to get back into it.”
And what a group will perform Saturday — 28 of them — many from Piedmont, Montclair and the surrounding area. Accomplished flutist Suzanne Rublein is from Montclair and plays on Free Flute Fridays at the center. Children’s Hospital doctor and violinist Bert Tuan is part of the group. Strings, double winds, a pair of horns, a pair of trumpets, oboes, flutes, a clarinet, tympani and a bassoon will be assembled to play “because they love to do it,” Gronninger said.
He explained that the mix of instruments lends itself to chamber music. There will be an overture by Mozart, a spring-like serenade by Edward Elgar and a Czech Suite by Dvorak, with portions of the orchestra breaking off to perform the parts of the program. Piedmonter Nancy Deroche is a nonprofessional cellist who plays in the Holy Names College orchestra and other community orchestras.
“I love playing chamber music,” DeRoche said. “I started playing in fourth grade in Alameda public school, had some private lessons and played in the orchestra at Stanford. It’s always been a hobby. I’m a mom in Piedmont who plays the cello.”
There are about seven Piedmonters in the group, “and most of them have day jobs” Gronninger said.
Joe Gold is the concertmaster, and his wife, Debbie Dare, is principal viola. Lehrkind’s daughter, Molly, an attorney and a cellist, just returned to the Bay Area from Portland, Oregon, and will be part of the group. Noted conductor, composer, educator and flutist Martha Stoddard will conduct. Stoddard has performed locally in symphonic and pit orchestras and is now with the Handel Opera Project and Opus Oakland. She has been the artistic director for the Oakland Civic Orchestra since 1997. Assisting Stoddard will be guest conductor Christine Brandes.
“It will be a lot of fun,” Gronninger said.
Lehrkind is hosting a free catered reception following the hour-long concert.
If you go
What: Piedmont Chamber Orchestra
When: 4 p.m. June 15
Where: Piedmont Center for the Arts, 801 Magnolia Ave. in Piedmont
Cost: Free