“Behind the scenes of the Oceanside Classical Concerts Society”
Pam May-Straka, President of the OCCS
Music is something most of us enjoy daily, whether we listen, sing, dance or play an instrument.
Music is a universal language that has the emotional power to elevate us to the heights of joy, or plunge us to depths of sorrow. Tastes may change from generation to generation and culture to culture, but most would agree that music is an essential part of the human experience.
There is something very special about a live performance: the brightly lit stage viewed from the darkened auditorium; the moment of anticipatory silence, seconds before the first note is struck; the music that enfolds, sweeping the audience on a musical voyage until the final ovation brings us abruptly to the end.
On June 2, Pam May-Straka, President of the Oceanside Classical Concerts Society, told the story of a group of inspired individuals who, a decade before, had the vision of bringing music to the Oceanside community. A few short years later, the OCCS was an incorporated, non-profit Society run by a volunteer Board of Directors that year-after year attracted world-renowned musicians.
A combination of loyal season subscribers, dedicated partners and sponsors, utterly committed Board members and volunteers, and a venue with exceptional acoustics have contributed to the Society’s well-deserved success.
Pam shared some personal highlights of those first few years: the opening of Season Three by the Lieutenant Governor; the first fully-subscribed season the year after; repeated standing ovations for the international O Celli Octet, an ensemble of eight cellists during Season Five.
And of course there were the challenges of dealing with the unexpected, including cancellations over two seasons because of the pandemic; and accommodating a no-notice change from a quartet to a trio when one of the performers became seriously ill the night before the concert. It worked: “The show had to go on!”
Joe Reid, Student Guitar, 2023
But Pam seemed her proudest when describing the more recent initiatives being undertaken by the Society. There is a strong focus on youth: free tickets to concerts; an annual music scholarship for post-secondary study; and in-school concerts by professional musicians. Additionally, the OCCS lends donated and repaired musical instruments to youth so they can participate in school music programs they would not otherwise have access to.
The most recent initiative will bring music to the elderly who are unable to attend the concerts. By the 2023/24 season, concerts will be live-streamed to numerous senior care residences in Parksville and Qualicum Beach.
There is no doubt that the Oceanside Classical Concerts Society continues to achieve its mission, to make classical music an essential element in the cultural life of the Oceanside area. The Board and its volunteers are truly changing lives through the extraordinary power of music.
