2/24/09: Lynchburg Symphony Orchestra To Benefit the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank

The Lynchburg Symphony Orchestra is participating in Orchestras Feeding America, the first national food drive by America's symphony orchestras. The LSO's musicians, staff members, and volunteers will collect non-perishable food on Saturday, March 21, at Heritage United Methodist Church at 582 Leesville Road in Lynchburg, the site of day-long rehearsals and an evening concert by the LSO. Area residents are invited to drop off their food donations on that day.

"We all are feeling the effects of this economic crisis, but we cannot let that stop us from helping our neighbors in greater need," noted LSO executive director Rick Piester. "Our orchestra's music uplifts people, but with this project we can do more to support the community that has supported us for so long."

One in eight Americans is at risk of hunger, Piester noted. According to the USDA, there are 36 million people at risk of hunger in the U.S.; 12 million of them are children. A December 2008 survey of 160 food banks nationwide reported the troubling results of food banks reporting a 30 percent increase in demand for emergency food assistance, compared to a year ago.

Collected food will be donated to the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank's Lynchburg office. Food items most needed include canned meats (tuna, salmon, Spam), canned vegetables, canned fruits, pasta and pasta sauces, peanut butter, boxed fruit juice, and cereals.The Blue Ridge Area Food Bank is unable to accept items in glass jars or bottles, unlabeled or dented cans, any open or resealed packaging, perishable foods, homemade foods, expired products, monetary donations, and clothing, diapers or other non food items.

The March 21 concert at 8 PM features Lynchburg native Elizabeth Coulter Vonderheide, who returns home to perform a Bach violin concerto, the highlight of a program that features accessible, tuneful music of the Baroque period. Selections by the LSO strings also feature LSO principals Ellen Habitzruther and Andrea Albers, violin, and cellist Peter Worford.

The Lynchburg Symphony is one of about 200 orchestras that have come together to combat hunger in their communities through Orchestras Feeding America. The project is organized by the League of American Orchestras, which represents the nation's professional, volunteer, and youth orchestras, and Feeding America's network of over 200 food banks and 63,000 agencies. The drive was inspired by the true story of the upcoming film The Soloist.

The Soloist, starring Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey, Jr., will be released by Paramount Pictures to theaters nationwide on April 24th. The film is based on the true story of Nathaniel Ayers, a gifted Juilliard-trained string player whose mental illness landed him among the homeless on the streets of Los Angeles. The Soloist, which also features the Los Angeles Philharmonic, is a testament to the redemptive power of music.