Northshore Magazine

114 nshoremag.com April 2014 photographs by michael basu Music ne lassical music imbues some of Robert Marra, Jr.'s, earliest memories. In those memories, big or- chestral sounds issue from inside the Lynn City Hall auditorium where his father, Robert Marra, Sr., played violin with the North Shore Philharmonic Orchestra. "My role started out as a little kid going to the orchestra. My mother would drag us off to Lynn City Hall to listen to these concerts," Marra says. "That's where I really developed my appreciation and love for classical music." C North Shore Notes For more than 60 years, the North Shore Philharmonic Orchestra has been performing affordable classical music for the masses. By Alexandra Pecci ne The younger Robert Marra didn't grow up to be a musician—he's a law- yer—but he's had a role in his late father's orchestra for most of his life. These days, though, Marra is more than an enthralled audience member (al- though he's certainly that, too). He's now president of the same orchestra that his father joined as one of its original mem- bers. And since its founding more than 60 years ago, the orchestra's mission has remained the same. "One of the things we're most proud of is the stability that we've had and the long-term commitment that we've had to the original goals," Marra says. "We've never strayed from that: being a commu- nity orchestra but a very, very high-quality community orchestra." The North Shore Philharmonic Or- chestra was founded in 1946 as the Lynn Philharmonic Orchestra and became the North Shore Philharmonic a year later. Today, it's a community orchestra that's staffed with volunteer players who share a passion for music. "They play just for the love of the music," says music director Robert Lehmann. "That's what the word 'ama- teur' means. They do something because they love it." That's not to say they don't sound fabulous, though. Lehmann, also an as- sociate professor of music and the director of Strings and Orchestral Activities at the University of Southern Maine, says he is a demanding (but not scary) music direc- tor who takes his job programming very seriously. He says he always wants to chal- lenge and stretch his players. He not only Music Director Robert Lehmann challenges orchestra members to play never- before-played music. KJ NS Apr14 Symphony.indd 114 2/21/14 12:16 PM

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