Former Georgia Governor Roy Barnes and former First Lady Marie Barnes hosted a ‘Carnival of the Animals’ benefit on behalf of the Georgia Symphony Orchestra at their home on April 25, 2024.
The event was sponsored by S.A. White Oil Company and The Manely Firm, P.C. Guests enjoyed cocktails, a buffet dinner, a silent auction and musical performances by GSO harpist Julie Koenig, GSO Jazz! Music Director and saxophonist Sam Skelton, GSO Jazz! pianist Randy Hoexter and the Georgia Youth Symphony Orchestras’ Flute Choir.
In remarks to the invitees, GSO Music Director and Conductor Timothy Verville spoke of the organization’s mission and the scope of its four pillars: the orchestra, GSO Chorus, GSO Jazz! and the Georgia Youth Symphony Orchestras (GYSO) program.
Suzanne Tucker, GSO executive director, gave a brief history of the organization, which began in 1951 as a community-supported arts organization. She thanked attendees for their financial support and expressed the need for it to continue. “We’ve all seen local arts organizations that disappeared overnight without it,” she said.
Proceeds from the event benefited the GYSO program and the GSO’s April 27, 2024, family and sensory-friendly concerts at the Marietta Performing Arts Center, which features Camille Saint-Saëns’ “Carnival of the Animals.”
For more information about the GSO, or to donate, visit georgiasymphony.org/donate.
