What is the story of LCCO?
Lee County Community Orchestra Association was incorporated in 1988 to provide this central area of North Carolina with a “hometown” performing orchestra to present public concerts of classical, semi-classical, and popular music. Originally sponsored by the Lee County Parks & Recreation Department, the Lee County Community Orchestra has grown to include a fairly full complement of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion sections.

Association members are people who provide financial assistance at four levels:  donor, patron, sponsor or benefactor.   The Lee County Arts Council has also provided support for LCCO through annual grass roots grants.

For the first six years the Association’s Board of Directors was composed chiefly of community people. Two conductors from Fayetteville directed LCCO for three seasons each.   Since then orchestra musicians have provided the primary leadership for the Association. After two transition years, one with guest conductors and one with a single-season director, the Association and LCCO have enjoyed the stability of leadership brought by Dr. David Oertel, who has a performance degree in orchestral conducting from University of North Carolina at Greensboro. The current 2007-2008 season is his twelfth.

During these years, both the number of concerts and their quality have increased.   The Lee County Arts & Community Center has become the main performance site. For nine years an outdoor concert took place each May at the Ole Mill Crank-Up. LCCO has also performed outdoors at Kiwanis Park and will continue to use the facilities at Depot Park in downtown Sanford.  A set of Christmas concerts has become a tradition.  Guest soloists have often added an extra dimension to the programs.

What is LCCO doing now?
We are in our twentieth full season.  The process involves assembling volunteer amateur musicians, led by a professional concertmaster and the conductor, for eight weekly rehearsals, a dress rehearsal, and a two-performance concert. This cycle is repeated four times:  October, December, March and May.  The objective is to prepare well privately and to perform well publicly so that both musicians and audience are stimulated and satisfied.

Who benefits from LCCO?
Audience members benefit because the free concerts satisfy their thirst for live performance.  The musicians profit because the fervor of Dr. Oertel’s purpose and the quality of his musicianship provide inspiration and instruction.  Rehearsing regularly, they are practiced and ready to perform not just for LCCO concerts, but also anywhere, anytime.  Individuals and small ensembles participate in church services, weddings, high school and local theater productions, as well as in other civic and community events. Visiting elementary schools to demonstrate their instruments, orchestra members increase student awareness of the art of making music and encourage children to pursue musical interests and inclinations.

Actually, everyone in Sanford, Lee County and the surrounding area benefits from the LCCO.  The Chamber of Commerce can claim that in this community exists a dynamic association of music makers and music lovers. The willingness of local musicians to play and local citizens to listen is a precious commodity that is well worth preserving and fully supporting.

-RS