Honolulu (KHON2) – The Hawaii Symphony Orchestra is keeping the music alive with its popular Sounds of Resilience live streaming program.

Executive Director Dave Moss started right before COVID. “I began my tenure with the Hawai‘i Symphony Orchestra back on March 10th, so I have only been with the HSO for about 10 months now,” says Moss. “I am neither a musician, nor regrettably the conductor, so my role with the Symphony is more Executive in nature.”

Moss is responsible for and oversee all operational aspects of the $5 Million nonprofit organization including strategic planning, fundraising (which we raise about $2.5 Million each year), marketing (we make about $2.5 in earned revenue each year), working with our artistic team to program nearly 50 performances each year, and I work closely with our board of community members who work tirelessly to represent the needs of our community. I am responsible for the nearly 100 employees of the HSO.”

Sounds of Resilience has been a hit, allowing artists and musicians step in to bring healing, to uplift, and offer reflection to the depressed and anxious communities. This is the inspiration for the Sounds of Resilience, a live streaming program that began back in September. “As a mission driven organization, our mission is to provide our community with music no matter the circumstances,” says Moss. “We recognize how difficult the circumstances were but sacrifice to keep the music alive. It might have easier for us to step away from this mission, to take a year off but with the support of our community has demonstrated how music can significantly enrich, heal, and inspire our lives.”

HSO has done a total of five of these live performances since September, with more to come in the New Year. All performances have utilized a smaller group of orchestra musicians, with masks and appropriately distanced for safety, but has featured all of our very own HSO musicians. These programs are streamed through the box office, so anyone can purchase a $20 ticket to view it live, or a $25 ticket to view it after the live performance on-demand.

Moss also co-hosts a “Talk show,” which he says is fairly casual and “it is truly a way to stay connected to our audience while we can’t be in the concert hall. The Symphony Orchestra experience is a bit like insider baseball and this is an opportunity to peel back the curtain on those details.”

When you think of the HSO, you probably think of Beethoven, Brahms, or perhaps Mahler, “you know all those old, dead men of the western cannon,” jokes Moss. They have defined quote “classical music” for the better part of three centuries. Moss adds, “When I think of the symphony and especially our HSO, I think of a medium for change. I think of the sonic power of 84 individuals, all coming together, without necessarily saying a word to communicate. We aspire to the day when our symphony again collaborates with local talent, like Raiatea, and work with up-and-coming artists such as Ron Artis II, Mike Love, Kimie Miner, Josh Totofi, and the list goes on.

“These past eight months have shown us just how resilient the arts can be,” says Moss. “and what the future can look like if we adapt and continue to diversify what music we play. The future holds the opportunity for the arts and culture sector to play a larger part in the diversification of an economy and to play a role in a respectful return to tourism for Hawai’i. Music and art create a sense of place that is truly unrivaled by any other industry.

He goes on to say, “We have an opportunity as we emerge for this pandemic, to shape our local arts and culture sector to be truly reflective of this community. And this is our top priority at the HSO. As we plan for our future, a future in which the Hawai’i symphony is rooted in being an organization that reflects the whole State of Hawai’i by being uniquely of, for, and by Hawai’i.”

Website: www.myhso.org

Social Media Handles: Insta: @hawaiisymphonyorchestra

Facebook: @HawaiiSymphony