by Carl Hanson July 2019
The Port Townsend Community Orchestra began when an Advertisement was placed in the local Port Townsend Leader urging area musicians to pull their instruments out of the attic, dust them off, and come together on Tuesday evenings to begin rehearsing music to be shared with the community. To support the orchestra, players were asked to pay a tuition fee of $25 per concert. The continued generous support of our area communities has eliminated the tuition though members are still encouraged to donate. The original board members behind this effort were Sandy Barker, Helen Bonny, Janel Carlson, Kathy Hill, Dott Kelly, and Bob Marriott. The orchestra began in the Spring of 1987 under the direction of Michael-Ann Burnett — a cello player who offered cello lessons at her local music studio — with the premiere performance held at the Wheeler Theater at Fort Worden State Park, May 24, 1987.
Once rehearsals began preparatory to the premier performance, I was asked to serve on the board as a representative for the playing members. Among the first to respond to my request for volunteers to assist with various tasks was Joanie Hendricks who began serving for many years as Orchestra Librarian and Historian. By the time we entered our first full season, I began serving as Vice President of the board.
With rehearsals held at Port Townsend High School, performances continued at the Wheeler Theater at Fort Worden State Park until the audience seating was surpassed in 1991. Performances then moved to Port Townsend High School and then eventually to Chimacum High School with some alternating between the two schools.
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