Music Amid the Pines
ONNY's Adirondack Programming
The Orchestra of Northern New York established the Adirondack Outreach program to expand its mission of enriching communities by making orchestral music accessible to people in the Adirondack region of New York. ONNY’s outreach primarily aims to connect with schools, community centers, and remote communities in the North Country, providing performances, educational workshops, and interactive experiences that bring classical music to areas where access to live, high-quality orchestral music might otherwise be limited.
The outreach program also serves to foster a love for the arts among young people, offering in-school presentations and music education resources. Through this, ONNY hopes to inspire students to appreciate and participate in music, whether by attending performances or pursuing music themselves. Additionally, the program helps build community ties by partnering with local organizations and offering inclusive events for audiences of all ages.
Summer Chamber Concerts
For the last several summers, ONNY has presented "Music Amid the Pines," a series of quality small ensemble music in venues across the northern Adirondacks. Nearly 1000 people have enjoyed concerts ranging from classical music to Adirondack folk music, and from light opera and Broadway to marimba and jazz acoustical guitar.
These concerts are free and open to the public thanks to generous support from The Secret Sits Pro Music Ensembls, Inc. and from James and Diane Woods, Armonk and Gull Pond, NY.
ONNY/Crane/TSS Student Apprenticeships
Our Adirondack fund also helps to support educational opportunities for exceptional students from SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music. Each season, apprentices are selected to play alongside our professional orchestra. Through summer 2024, more than 80 students have received an unparalleled experience and compensation as young professional musicians.
This program is generously supported by a gift from The Secret Sits Pro Musica Ensembles, Inc. (TSS, Inc.), a charitable nonprofit organization incorporated in Georgia and New York.
Support the Adirondack Fund
In August 2021, TSS contributed $125,000 as seed money to begin an endowment to establish the TSS/ONNY Fund for the Adirondacks and adjacent North Country regions.
Help us perform music amid the pines and support transformative educational opportunities by making a gift to the Adirondack Outreach Fund today. Both one-time gifts and monthly giving can make an impact.
Partnering to Share the Power Music to Inspire, Educate, and Entertain
The Secret Sits Pro Musica Ensembles, Inc. (TSS, Inc.), a charitable nonprofit organization incorporated in Georgia and New York, was founded in memory of Marie A. Patten, formerly of Athens, GA and the Gull Pond community near Piercefield, NY.
Marie was educated in New York City public schools and went on to earn her BA, MSW, and Ph.D. degrees at the College of William and Mary and the University of Georgia. Her love of music grew throughout her life. She would leave chamber music performances and frequently comment to the effect that the world would be a better place if that kind of music were on street corners.
Mrs. Patten was very fond of poetry and wrote some herself, A personal encounter with Robert Frost when she was young became indelible in her life, and this is reflected in “The Secret Sits” being the title of one of Frost’s poems:
We dance round in a ring and suppose,
But the Secret sits in the middle and knows.
In August 2021, TSS contributed $125,000 as seed money to begin an endowment to establish the TSS/ONNY Fund for the Adirondacks and adjacent North Country regions.
Individuals and businesses interested in sustaining such high-quality musical offerings in the Adirondacks by contributing to these programs are encouraged to contact ONNY Executive Director Kathy Del Guidice at info@onny.org or 315-212-3440.