No one can say Jackson State University doesn’t offer a top-notch atmosphere for young people to enjoy fine music – not after Tuesday, anyway, when thousands of Jackson students will come to hear the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra.
Every third-grader in the entire Jackson Public Schools system is scheduled to be on campus Tuesday to hear the symphony at Rose E. McCoy Auditorium, according to Michael Beattie, symphony president and executive director.
The purpose of the event is to “teach students about music and orchestras in a full context,” said Beattie. Each event will be a 45-minute full concert performance, nothing slighted for these kids.
The logistics is massive, with the McCoy auditorium expected to reach capacity — more than 1,000 seats — twice! The students will be bused onto the JSU campus in two shifts: the first performance to take place at 9:30 a.m., the second at 11 a.m.
But you can expect activity at the auditorium long before then. Orchestra personnel will start setting up at 7 a.m., Beattie said.
Beattie said JSU faculty and staff are welcome, but only after the JPS students have been seated. The “students come first,” he said.
The concert is part of the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra String Program, Beattie said, a partnership with JPS to develop student interest in playing string instruments at all JPS elementary, middle and high schools. Programs exist in schools throughout the district, with more than 540 string students.
The event is hosted by the Jackson State University Department of Music.