COTTAGE GROVE – Eugene Symphony conductor Alex Prior sure knows how to put on a semiquincententennial celebration.
It’s all in the way you wear your hair.
“This is my fourth year doing this,” said Cottage Grove Mayor Candace Solesbee, who took the stage as guest conductor for the song “Bugler’s Holiday” by Leroy Anderson near the end of Monday night’s annual outdoor show at Bohemia Park.
“Last year Alex had his hair down flowing like a rock star, and he surprised me this year by having his hair braided. So I took my hair down tonight. He said he was trying to go for the more presidential look for the celebration.
“This is just so much fun. We love coming to Cottage Grove and having this small-town USA in-the-park free event. And for people who might not normally have access to an event like this, it’s beautiful.”
Everything about Monday night was beautiful – from the Instrument Petting Zoo to kick off the evening to a soothing rendition of “America the Beautiful” to close the program.
“(Tonight) was all about celebrating America in as diverse a way as possible in a 1½-hour concert,” Prior said. “There’s a lot of beauty in America, and I wanted to celebrate it.”
The Eugene area has been celebrating Prior’s arrival as conductor since he took the job last July 1. He says he couldn’t be happier about being here.
“Marvelous, it’s been fabulous,” Prior said. “It’s a great group of people; I don’t feel new anymore, I feel like I know what’s going on here. It’s a beautiful, very welcoming community. I understand our goals, and we’re here to serve, and it’s important that I listen and learn.”
Prior said he could see himself staying here for several more years.
“I’m very focused on Eugene,” he said. “There’s such a thing as too much, but ideally, in the abstract, I think I would like to be here for 10 years. It’s the best job in Oregon, I think – but it’s not up to me, it’s up to the board.”
Monday night’s show was the second outdoor show in two nights for the orchestra – they played their annual show at Cuthbert Amphitheater on Sunday evening.
“Outdoor shows are much harder to do,” Prior said. “There’s much more work, but it’s worth it. We can’t hear each other as well. The strings react as the temperature changes, the wind blows, there’s usually not a lot of rehearsal … but I wish we did more of these – obviously, that would require more sponsorship.”
Ten tables were set up in the front of the venue Monday night for sponsors.
“Everyone knows cities across America are struggling with budgets,” Solesbee said, giving a shoutout to Chamber CEO Georgia Haskell and the Woodard family. “We want to be able to keep having things like this.”
The Armed Forces Salute – a staple of the Eugene program – always hits close to home with Solesbee, as it does with so many other fans.
“My favorite moment of the night every single time I come to one of these is the salute to our veterans and watching them stand up and seeing people applaud them because that’s what they deserve,” the mayor said. “They deserve to have that recognition, and I love that they do that. That’s what it’s about right now, right? Coming together as a community. I wanted them to stand the whole entire time and not sit down – just keep standing.”
On a night of beautiful moments, that might have been the topper.
