Theodore Thomas is famous and revered as the founder and first music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. However, before his Chicago residence, he was instrumental in the formation of the Cincinnati May Festival — which started in 1873 as a biennial music festival and is now an annual event. This festival led to the construction of Cincinnati’s music hall and its own CSO, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. This prelude to Thomas’ arrival in Chicago influenced my membership at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
I had the great fortune of growing up in Cincinnati, Ohio. My mother was born and raised in an area near Cincinnati Music Hall, and she started singing in Cincinnati’s May Festival Chorus when she was still in high school. She remained a stalwart member there for many years.
My mother’s love of music had a great influence on our family. I joined a children’s choir at my church, began playing the violin at the age of eight and was part of the May Festival Concert Chorus in sixth grade. I moved to playing the viola upon entering junior high and was part of an award-winning orchestra through high school.
Although performing is now a long-ago memory, my love of classical music has remained steadfast — and that has translated into my love of Theodore Thomas’ second CSO and a desire to support it and all activities well into the future. To this end, I now support the orchestra as a Governing Member and have named it as a beneficiary in my estate.
