2010 – 2011 Season
“BATTLE OF THE BATONS” RETURNS TO THE STAGE THIS WEEKEND
Following its most ambitious program to date at its October opener, the Panama City POPS returns to the stage this Saturday, January 15, with the crowd pleasing “Battle of the Batons” at Arnold High School Auditorium.
The second annual fundraiser of its kind, the concert will feature The POPS’ traditional program of classical and popular musical selections, but this time with a twist, whimsically referred to as “wand warfare.”
The concert is a fundraiser for the orchestra. Three local luminaries will vie for the opportunity to conduct the final work of the night’s program. They will try out on stage prior to intermission and the audience will then vote for their favorite conductor. Each vote costs $1.00.
And the competition will be fierce. This year’s contenders:
•County Commissioner George Gainer
•WFLA’s Morning Personality Doc Washburn
•Dan Rowe, President and CEO of the Panama City Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau
“These three contenders will not want to be outdone by one another,” stated Artistic Director and Maestro Eddie Rackley. “I hope people from the entire region join us for this exciting concert.”
Adding to the uniqueness of the evening will be the presentation of hand-carved batons to each conductor. The batons are the gift of Mr. Bruce Goldflies, father of orchestra member David Goldflies. Bruce Goldflies is a retired music teacher who now enjoys hobbies such as wood carving and photography. David Goldflies is CEO of CyberSytes, Inc. He plays double bass in the orchestra.
The Panama City POPS concerts are traditionally a combination of familiar, light classical works and popular arrangements. Saturday night’s program will be more than musically rewarding. The first half of the concert will be mounted with various classical styles, including the beautiful “Les Preludes,” Franz Liszt’s symphonic poem, noted to be the earliest orchestral work of its kind. One of the most popular and best-known compositions in all of classical music, Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 5”, 4th movement, popularly referred to as “Beethoven’s Fifth” will be performed. Other selections will include pieces by Johann Strauss, Josef Strauss and Franz Joseph Haydn.
COMMISSIONER GEORGE GAINER WINS “BATTLE OF THE BATONS”
Battle of the Bands 2011 Winner George GainerOn Saturday, January 15, it was ‘wand warfare’ on stage as The Panama City POPS presented “Battle of the Batons” to a great turnout at Arnold High School Auditorium. The second annual fundraiser of its kind, the concert featured The POPS’ traditional program of classical and popular musical selections, but with a twist.
The concert was a fundraiser for the orchestra, where three local luminaries vied for the opportunity to conduct the final work of the night’s program. Each tried out on stage prior to the intermission, following which the audience voted for their favorite conductor. Each vote cost $1.00.
The competition was fierce! Contenders Doc Washburn of WFLA radio, Bay County Commissioner George Gainer and Dan Rowe, President and CEO of the Panama City Beach Convention and Visitors’ Bureau each gave a fantastic performance.
The victor: George Gainer, with $2146 in votes. Congratulations, Commissioner!
