OREM, UTAH (ABC 4 News) - Utah Valley University students are celebrating an invitation to represent Utah and their school at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. But the curtain of opportunity for the 54 members of the Wind Symphony may close before the opening ceremonies begin if they don’t get the help they need.The Utah Valley University Wind Symphony is the only college band invited to the 2012 Olympic Games. Carson Fillmore says he has watched the Olympics since he was a child, and the thought of taking his clarinet to perform in London is an opportunity of a lifetime. "I can't imagine that we got invited to play," Fillmore says.
Fillmore and other members of the audition-based group have a passion for music. "I love the bassoon," Jessica Wiley says. “There’s a lot of opportunities out there for musicians, and this has to be one of the greatest opportunities I have every received.”
The group hopes to share a love for music, their university, and their state with the world. Dr. James Colonna is the Director of Bands at Utah Valley University. He says in the past two years the group has surpassed all expectations, transitioning from a college performance group to a top notch symphony. "We are really excited about our first opportunity to travel abroad and perform. We would be performing at all of the Olympic venues."
That is, they would if they could raise the money to get there.
"We have, of course, various donors and they didn't work out the way we thought that they would," said Dr. Colonna. "So now we are in a situation where we still would like to go, and still fulfill our obligation and our invitation."
The group needs between $225 and $250 thousand dollars. That includes all expenses, even shipping instruments.
Time is running out. The 2012 Olympics are still a year away, but these students only have until the end of next month to come up with the money. Wiley says "The economy is a little tight right now and things are a little difficult, but this is an amazing experience that would mean so much to us."
To help, you are asked to visit UVU's music department website at www.uvu.edu/music
You can also call Dr. Colonna at 801-863-6188.
