Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra of Boston is an innovative, musician-run orchestra that brings a creative mix of classical and new music to the concert stage while truly reaching out to the community. Pro Arte is New England's only professional cooperative chamber orchestra representing the area's finest free-lance musicians. Our players regularly perform with the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra, the Boston Symphony, the Boston Ballet, Handel and Haydn Society, and the Boston Lyric Opera.
Why is Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra of Boston Unique?
Founded in 1978 by Harvard chaplain and visionary Larry Hill, Pro Arte is one of only four cooperative orchestras in the country. Unlike traditional orchestras Pro Arte's players, as well as the conductor, decide what music the Orchestra will perform and who the guest artists will be.
A special spirit comes across because we really care about what we're doing. We're not hired by someone else but have chosen to play because we love to perform with Pro Arte," says Orchestra president and founding member Barbara Englesberg. "Many of us have been together a long time," adds violinist Mary Alyce Groman; "there's a lot of respect and camaraderie."
Artistic Mission and Philosophy
Being a cooperative has set the tone for Pro Arte's artistic goals. In addition to presenting traditional classical favorites, the Orchestra performs rarely heard works by well-known composers. Pro Arte also provides encouragement to Boston-area composers by commissioning and performing their new works. In June of 1994 the Orchestra received an American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) award for adventurous programming of contemporary music.
Moreover, Pro Arte — more than any other orchestra in the country — seeks to make classical music accessible to the entire community. Through our "Access to the Best Music" program low income, at-risk, disabled, and elderly individuals receive free or discounted admission to Orchestra events and many of the best seats in the house. Since 1983 the Orchestra has supplied these tickets even when they could have been sold at full price. After concerts, music lovers gather at our Pro Amore wine and cheese receptions — to mix and mingle and critique the performance just heard.
Funding
These are some of the reasons that Pro Arte is the proud recipient of a number of awards and honors, including grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, as well as other Boston-based corporations and foundations.