Outreach In the Community

Reaching out to the community is central to our mission at the Cambridge Symphony Orchestra.  To that end, each year we present several free concerts, make tickets available free to children under 12, and donate tickets to several Cambridge social services organizations.

In 2009-2010, the full orchestra will perform a free Pops concert for the public, and private concerts for an Area Youth Center in Cambridge, the Perkins School for the Blind in Watertown, and the Hebrew Rehabilitation Center in Roslindale. 

The Cambridge Symphony Players will perform chamber music in free public concerts at the Somerville Public Library, and private concerts at Cadbury Commons* and Youville House* assisted living residences.

Last but not least, each year the CSO selects another Cambridge charity to feature at one of our concerts.  The selected charity benefits from our donation of a portion of our ticket proceeds, from direct donations by audience, and from heightened visibility for their organization.  We are pleased to have the Cambridge YWCA Shelter for Homeless Families as the beneficiary of our special Gala Concert in December. Physicians For Human Rights (2009), Cambridge Cares about AIDS (2008) and Musicians' Village, a Habitat for Humanity Katrina Relief project (2007) have been the previous organizations.  We also encourage audience to bring food donations to our concerts to benefit the food pantry at St. James’s Episcopal Church in Porter Square.

* These concerts are supported in part by a grant from the Cambridge Arts Council, a local agency which in turn is supported in part by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.