Nashville Symphony CEO is optimistic about season starting in the fall

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — As the community makes its rebound back to normal, the Nashville Symphony is working on their return to the stage.

President and CEO Alan Valentine said they are feeling very optimistic about starting their season in the fall. They've announced planning that season, but as for the actual announcement, that will be happening sometime in May.

He said they are working as hard as they can to get the orchestra back on stage as soon as possible and as soon as it’s safe to do so. In terms of safety, HCA TriStar is working as their health and safety partner and they're getting good advice from them.

Valentine said the health and safety plan they're creating will give the public and employees confidence about coming back.

He said not only are they listening to official data but also the opinions and feelings of their supporters and audiences. In terms of what is to come, their May announcement will include a lot of the details about what kind of concerts they have planned.

“One of the things that we are keeping squarely in mind is the idea that as we plan the reopening. We really need to be scalable, you know, we need to plan a season unlike any of the other recent seasons, in which we can actually and there’s some very positive aspects of this but a season in which we can actually scale up or scale down depending on the conditions of the pandemic,” he said.

The Symphony also snagged a Grammy over the weekend. The recording won for the Best Contemporary Classical Composition.

Valentine said the honor goes to composer Christopher Rouse, but they got to celebrate that win, as well. He said it marks their 14th win for recordings, but it’s fair to say this was a bittersweet moment as Rouse passed away back in 2019, according to his obituary in the New York Times.

"My great regret is that Christopher Rouse was not able to be here in person to see this when to collect his trophy, and to celebrate with us. He's an incredible human being, an incredible composer and we’re deeply honored to have been able to render this work in a way that caught the attention of the Grammys," Valentine said.