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Community Development And Participation

The Lancaster Festival, Lancaster

Nominated By: Barbara Hunzicker
Award Accepted By: Lou Ross and Gary Sheldon

Inaugurated in 1985, the Lancaster Festival is a multifaceted, 10-day event that transforms the historic city of Lancaster into a bustling venue for musical performances and family activities while also getting local businesses, museums and residents involved. With the help of nearly 800 volunteers and the support of corporate and individual donors, service contributors and program advertisers, the annual festival supports the local economy as well as the local arts. By bringing in guest artists and featuring popular musicians, the Lancaster Festival is an exciting community event that increases public awareness and appreciation for the arts.

Every year, one of the event's major attractions is the Festival Orchestra. This group, conducted by Gary Sheldon, recently beat out 50 other orchestras representing 26 states to be named the first-ever recipient of the American Prize for Orchestral Performance (professional orchestra division), a prestigious award that recognizes and rewards the best performances by orchestras in the United States. The orchestra's director also received the American Prize for Conducting. In recognition of the festival's great success, it received one of just 13 grants awarded by the PNC Arts Alive program. The grant allowed the festival, in collaboration with BalletMet, to present Hungarian composer David Kiraly's music during a performance of "Pinocchio" at the 2011 festival.

Through a strong alliance with local organizations, the Lancaster Festival boasts the ability to provide most of its events to the public at no cost. This approach allows the festival to reach an even larger audience by bringing the arts to people where they live and work. By doing this, the Lancaster Festival has created a positive community environment with arts and culture as the cornerstone.

Lancaster Festival video tribute (7:43 minutes)