Classically Speaking

It’s that time again -- when the temperatures get hotter, the music gets lighter, and concerts move outdoors – summer pops! 

The Huntington Symphony will be playing three outdoor concerts this summer, each one with a theme of traveling and transportation.  The first one “Ramblin’ on the River” takes place Saturday June 13th at 8pm at Harris Riverfront Park in Huntington.

I took this upcoming concert as an opportunity to get to talk with the Huntington Symphony’s conductor, Maestro Kimo Furumoto. 

He’s conducted the Huntington Symphony for 10 years, and he’s equally at home with high classics and symponic pops.  Furumoto’s musical career has taken him from his home state of Hawaii to conducting throughout the US and Europe, as well as teaching in Ohio and California.  He currently teaches at California State University at Fullerton.



We talked about what brought him to Huntington, the music the HSO will be playing this summer, and ways that the audience are getting more involved in influencing the concert programs.

I'm always curious what leads people to take up the baton and step onto the podium, so we talked about his musical background and what led him to conducting.

I also got Maestro Furumoto to let us know about some future projects and plans for the Huntington Symphony Orchestra.   

Here's a few related posts you might find interesting:

* Maestro Furumoto mentioned working with Cincinnati Pops conductor Erich Kunzel.  Here’s Jim Lange’s interview with the dynamic Maestro Kunzel. 

* We also talked about composer Scott Michal’s music being voted onto another concert program.  Here’s my interview with Scott Michal from when the Huntington Symphony played his Violin Concerto.