Nashville's biggest party in decades will take place Saturday night at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center.  The Nashville Symphony Orchestra will make its official debut in the Laura Turner Concert Hall Saturday night and those attending are promised an auditory experience unlike any they have heard before.  They will hear music selected by the man who guided the Nashville Symphony Orchestra for 22 years, the late Maestro Kenneth Schermerhorn.  

Schermerhorn came to Nashville in 1981 ironically, to help the Nashville Symphony find a new conductor.  Schermerhorn wasn't interested in the job at first, but the invitation to build an orchestra was irresistible.

CEO Alan Valentine: "He wanted to build a world class orchestra in Nashville and that's what he was good at, that's what he was known for all over the world."

Kenneth Schermerhorn had impressive credentials.  Born in Schenectady, New York, he studied and played under Leonard Bernstine in Massachusetts.  He built two world class institutions, the American Ballet Theatre and the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra.  Despite his tremendous success, some on the search committee still doubted whether the name Schermerhorn would play in Nashville, butMartha Ingram convinced the committee and Schermerhorn to give it a shot.  He signed on as music director and conductor in May of 1983, with one goal in mind, “to make it the hottest ticket in town."  "We want to make hose people who did not attend the Thursday night concert on Friday to have felt defrauded,” he said

Schermerhorn's first task was to re-organize the orchestra and rebuild its audience.  He asked the public for input on the music it wanted to hear.  He took the orchestra to the people.

In the fall of 1995, the Nashville Symphony Orchestra turned 50.   Kenneth Schermerhorn, now nearinghis mid 60's still talked of leaving Nashville for an international conducting job.  Ingram had said he loved the Berlin Symphony.  She said, “That was his idea of the very best orchestra in the world.”  Ingram said one day she said to him, “If you think Berlin is so good, why don't you use your talent to build Berlin right here."

Schermerhorn's first step toward that goal was to take Nashville to Carnegie Hall.  Friends said it was a turning point in Schermerhorn's career.  He could finally see the fruit of his long struggle.

On a cold, windy December day in 2003, Nashville broke ground for a new $120million symphony center to be built and named for Kenneth Schermerhorn.  Fifteen months after the groundbreaking, Schermerhorn was diagnosed with non Hodgkin’s lymphoma, an aggressive cancer of the immune system.  He died April 18, 2005.

With the new center, Schermerhorn’s legacy will live on.  "It was just sad that he's not here to open the hall, but you know its here to house his legacy and build on his legacy and we will.  His name is etched in stone, it will be here for 300 years or so, not many people are recognized that long,” said Ingram.
 
The Maestro's legacy also lives on in print. "Kenneth Schermerhorn:  He Will Always be the Music" written by the late maestro's close friend and Soul mate Martha Ingram will be officially be released September16th, however will be available in symphony center gift shop September 9t.

Ingram is donating the money from the sale of this book to the Nashville Symphony.
     
News 2’s Anne Holt will host an hour long special preview of the Schermerhorn Symphony Center.  It will air Friday at 7 p.m. on News 2.  For more information on the center, visit www.nashvillesymphony.org .