|
Rockestra was born in my family room on a Sunday night in the spring of
2004. I was watching a DVD of the English band 'Yes' performing with an orchestra. I said to myself, "I
think we have the talent to do that right here in Sioux City, Iowa!" And, after much hard work, here we are.
I almost quit before we got started. Critics and friends alike said it wouldn't work. The first Rock
Orchestra ever - in Sioux City?! Never. Rock musicians playing alongside symphony players? Are you crazy?
I was crazy, but I pushed on. During that
summer, I called 41 musicians to play - 40 of them said yes. Not one of them had seen a note of music (there wasn't
any yet, it was all in my head). I asked KOOL 99.5 to be a media sponsor and Morningside College allowed us the
use of Eppley Auditorium. Our first season was under way with a concert on November 5, 2004.
During the
first season we featured many talented vocalists and guest performers, paid tribute to some of the great Rock and Roll
legends and concluded with the Siouxland Youth Chorus joining us in May, 2005, complete with their KISS make-up.
It was during this first season that we began to discover and piece together all the elements that have now become part of
an exciting Rockestra performance.
During
the second season, we upgraded our sound system and moved to the Castle Auditorium. Our audiences grew, the orchestra
became tighter and we added new vocalists. We played concerts with themes of the 'British Invasion' and 'Mostly
Motown'. We capped the season by performing for the Iowa Association of Business and Industry at the Orpheum
Theater in June. It was a wonderful experience.
During the 2006-07 Season, we set a goal to sell-out the Castle -- and we did -- twice! With concerts featuring
the themes of 'Spaghetti on the Wall,' 'Southern Fried Rock,' and 'Salute to the 60's' we soared
to new and greater heights. TV station KPTH joined us as a media sponsor, our volunteer organization grew, and we began
to attract fans from a 150 mile radius. It was very successful season indeed.
The 2007-2008 Season was a season of change. Our move to the Orpheum Theatre was perhaps the biggest change
of the season. The Orpheum provides better acoustics, more seating, convenient parking and a comfortable aptmosphere
for all to enjoy. We featured a tribute to the "Supergroups", "Back In Black" and "God Save
the Queen." Also during the 2007-2008 season we began preparing our concert recordings for a season DVD,
which has recently been released. The end of season IV brough about a lot of excitement as we officially launched our
education program, Rockestra Jr. and managed to pull off a spectacular May concert under the direction of Stepahnie Irish,
as I had quadruple bypass surgery just 22 days prior to our may concert.
Now we embark on Season V. We have
settled into the Orpheum and anticipate that Season V is going to be the most exciting season to date. We hope you
will join us as well present "Songs of the 70's," "The Best of Rockestra" and "Hits from Hollywood."
John Luebke
|
