The History of LaPorte Community Concerts
The idea of Community Concerts began in 1923 when Ward French of New York came up with a plan to take live professional talent to the small towns with assurance that the supporting organization would not lose money. The solution was to raise money first and select the programs to fit the budget. LaPorte was the second city (Battle Creek, Michigan being the first) to try the new idea. The LaPorte Amateur Music Club sponsored the new organization known as Civic Music. Leaders were Miss Florence Andrew, Mrs. Ford Bradley, Mrs. C. D. Chipman, Mrs. Adelheid Schumm, Miss Ruth Hootman, Miss Lottie Bement and Miss Flossie Coddington.
The first year they signed up 1200 members at $5.00 for adults and $2.50 for childrem. The concerts were held at LaPorte Theater, the High Schoo (now Boston Middle School) and the Civic Opera House.
The Civic Auditorium, given to the city by Maurice Fox, was dedicated in 1930. Fritz Kreisler was scheduled to be the first concert at the new auditorium to start the 1929-1930 season, but the building was not ready so the concert was given at the high school. After 1930, most concerts were held at the Civic.
In 1948, Community Concerts, Incorporated was reorganized and the name was changed to LaPorte Community Concerts Association. Walter Burger was president, and remained in that position, for many years. At that time, programs for the following season were still being selected based on the funds raised from themembership compaign. During it's seventy-seven years, Community Concerts has brought hundereds of renowned artists to LaPorte. These include, but are not limited to American artists and groups such as The Indianapolis Symphony, The Minneapolis Symphony, Oscar Levant, Al Hirt, Marian Anderson, Mario Lanza, John Raitt and Alec Templeton. Foreign artists and groups include The Swedish Symphony, The Moscow Balalaikas, The London Piano Duo, The Cassidy Brothers from Ireland, and The Shanghai Acrobats from China. We have had dance companies, choral groups, comics and big bands, plus hundreds more. The concerts continue to be of the highest quality, a vital mix of major stars and performers still on their way to prominence. Community Concerts' goal remains, as it always has been, "to offer every man, woman, and child in this country the opportunity to experience the magic of live performance by bringing artists and audiences together."
The LaPorte Community Concerts Association is a non-profit organization staffed entirely by volunteers. All the money raised through ticket sales and contributions is used for atrist fees and production expenses. We are often asked why we have our campaign so far ahead of the season and why we don't sell individual tickets for the concerts. We must raise the money first and select the programs within that budget. We can now select the programs in adcance based on our previous revenues, but must show a substantial amount before the contracts are signed. If we were to sell individual tickets, we could not be assured of covering our costs. Any funds left over are applied to the following season.
Community Concerts would not exist without the support ofour sponsors and our volunteers.We would not be able to offer these series at such a bargain price without their help. Any of the productinos commands a tecket proce of $20 to $40 in larger cities. You can help us out the most just by letting your friends and immediate and distant family about Community Concerts.
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Thank you for visiting our site. We hope that it is easy to navigate and provides you with all of the information that you were looking for and needed. And please remember that all concert dates and locations are subject to change. Contact information is located below if you have any questions. Please sign our guestbook if you have any comments about the site. Thanks again!
~Community Concerts Association~
Call (~~~) ~~~-~~~~
LaPorte Community Concert
1203 Sixth Street
LaPorte, IN 46350
Co-presidents
Beth LeRoy:
grannyl1@yahoo.com
