The locked-out Atlanta Symphony Orchestra musicians will perform free concerts at 7 and 9 p.m. Friday at Kennesaw State University's Dr. Bobbie Bailey and Family Performance Center, the school announced Tuesday.
The concerts, at which seating will be first-come, first-served with no ticket required, replace a paid-ticket performance planned for 8 p.m. the same night that was cancelled by the ASO administration due to the stalled negotiations with the musicians. While admission is free, donations for the ATL Symphony Musicians group will be accepted.
Instead of music director Robert Spano, the Friday programs, including works by Dvorak and Beethoven, will be conducted by former ASO conductor Michael Palmer.
The musicians also will hold an open rehearsal with KSU School of Music students on Friday afternoon.
The canceled concert was to have been the first of three KSU performances by the ASO as part of an extended residency by the orchestra during the 2014-15 season.
On Monday, ASO management announced that all concerts through Nov. 8 have been canceled. Management and the musicians have not returned to the negotiating table since the lockout began on Sept. 7.
The musicians announced Tuesday that the ATL Symphony Musicians Foundation will immediately begin fund-raising to support additional free public concerts. With each $30,000 raised, the musicians will schedule an another concert. These performances will feature "guest conductors and guest artists from around the world who stand in solidarity with the musicians," according to the announcement.
Donations of any amount are being accepted online at www.atlsmfoundation.org.
Information about the KSU performances: 470-578-3214, arts.kennesaw.edu/music.
