Recently, Baton Rouge’s 225 Magazine released their Best of 225 awards. The public voted on people and businesses across the city to decide who was the best of Baton Rouge. The winner of the best performing arts group was the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra.
BRSO stands as the oldest arts organization in the region, bringing classical music to thousands of residents across the city not just through concerts, but education and community outreach.
The group has a symphony chorus, a symphony league and a youth orchestra to “supplement and enhance music education in schools and promote the highest standards of orchestral performance.”
The BRSO mission is to “enhance the quality of life in our community through music.”
Rebecca Smith is the director of marketing and patron engagement at BRSO. Smith said the award came as a confirmation that all of the work BRSO has done is paying off, and the new direction Executive Director Marshall Carby is taking the organization was the right idea. Carby became executive director in September 2024 and has helped the organization grow in many ways.
One of the biggest themes for Smith and the rest of the team is making the music accessible to all. Smith said she sees a lot of people be hesitant to engage with symphonies because they’re thought of as a high-class, boring thing.
BRSO not only does traditional symphony performances but expands out to different musical genres, lifting barriers and allowing people of all ages to engage with live music. In April, it had a “Country Hits” performance, and in January it had a concert called “Life on Mars,” celebrating the work of David Bowie.
In May, BRSO put on the “Night at the Tony Awards” performance, part of its new partnership with the Louisiana Art and Science Museum, Concerts in the Cosmos. Together, the museum and BRSO are working to create a series of concerts in the Irene W. Pennington Planetarium that mix music and science to make an experience unlike anything else.
“Night at the Tony Awards” featured songs from classic musicals like “Anything Goes” and “Into the Woods,” but also songs from incredibly popular modern shows like “Hamilton” and “Wicked.”
Smith sang along with several others and performed some of Broadway’s greatest hits and iconic ballads under thousands of stars. Smith said it was fun and different to be performing with the symphony and not behind the scenes.
BRSO has a multitude of concerts coming up for its 2025 -2026 season, ranging from classic orchestral performances to performances celebrating divas like Whitney Houston and Beyoncé. BRSO’s full season lineup is on its website, and its season subscriptions are now available. Single Tickets will be available August 1.
Their next performance is called “Pictures at an Exhibition” with maestro Adam Johnson at the River Center on Sept. 18.
