Our History
The Chamber Orchestra of Southern Maryland In Concert (COSMIC) was founded in 1995 by local musicians Gene and Sally Carter with the goal of providing live classical music to southern Maryland communities. COSMIC prides itself in performing a wide variety of musical genres, including symphonic standards, opera excerpts, Broadway musicals, and orchestral arrangements of popular tunes. The first documented performance took place in December 1995. There were 29 players listed in the program, including Ginny Norris, who still performs with COSMIC. There were also 16 guest violin players, students from local schools, who joined in on performing favorite Christmas tunes. This demonstrates COSMIC’s long-standing commitment to promoting music education in Southern Maryland. One of the pieces performed in COSMIC’s first season in the Spring of 1996 was Johann Strauss Sr.’s Radetzky March, so it is fitting we include it again as part of our 30th Anniversary program.
COSMIC faced numerous challenges in its first few years, including not only securing start-up grants from the Maryland State Arts Council and the St. Mary’s and Calvert County Arts Councils, but also finding volunteer musicians and suitable performance locations. There were eleven different performance spaces used in COSMIC’s first five years alone, including Middleham Hall in Lusby, Leonardtown High School, St. Peter’s Church in Waldorf, Lexington Park United Methodist Church, the Charles County Governmental Center, Hollywood Elementary School, Great Mills High School, Patuxent Presbyterian Church, the Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church, Calvert High School, and Ryken High School. These varied locations demonstrate COSMIC’s longstanding commitment to bringing classical music to the widest possible audience.
Since its founding, COSMIC has had ten conductors take the stage. We are grateful to each one for their dedication and artistic contributions. This brief history of COSMIC would not be complete without a special mention of Vladimir Lande, who led the orchestra from 2003 until March 2020. As a graduate of the St. Petersburg Conservatory and a professional oboist, he has an impressive international conducting resume. He was able to bring many other professional soloists and groups to work with COSMIC, including the Donetsk Ballet of Ukraine, for their performance of The Nutcracker in collaboration with local southern Maryland ballet schools. His singular dedication to COSMIC’s growth and high musical standards cannot be overstated.
The COSMIC Flute Choir started as a dream of Laura Theofilis, a founding member, COSMIC’s second President, and principal flautist. Laura and our current principal flautist, Linda Henry, officially established the flute choir, which originally performed in the lobby of our concert venues to provide entertainment for our audience as they entered. Starting with the 2007-2008 season opener, they appeared in the concert program and became an official part of the COSMIC concert tradition. They have also performed at various public events, including Annmarie Sculpture Garden’s “Artsfest” and “Garden in Lights,” the St. Clement’s Island Museum’s Christmas Open House, the Calvert Marine Museum’s Christmas Walk, and at Cedar Lane Senior Living, among others.
The COSMIC Young Artist Competition (YAC) began in 2005 to showcase the talents of musicians aged 18 and below (Junior division) and 19-25 (Senior division), providing them with unparalleled experience of performing accompanied by a full orchestra. Several YAC winners have since become professional musicians, including Julia Henderson (2005, 2006, and 2009 winner), who is now a professional cellist in NYC. She returned to play the Dvořák cello concerto with COSMIC in 2023.
Along the way, the board decided to make the often-used “COSMIC” abbreviation official. To avoid confusion as a palm reader, the board settled on the new brand name COSMIC Symphony. While our official IRS-registered full name remains the Chamber Orchestra of Southern Maryland, In Concert, it’s quite the mouthful!
Our third President, Jackie Hahn McCullough, took the reins from Laura in 2012 when Laura stepped down to battle breast cancer. Laura fought a courageous battle until her passing in 2020. Jackie led COSMIC for eight years, expanding our musical reach to Charles County residents in collaboration with the College of Southern Maryland and Chesapeake Choral Arts.
Like countless other performing arts groups, COSMIC was shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic, just six days before its planned March 2020 concerts. For nearly two years, the orchestra lay dormant until a dedicated team of volunteers, led by our fourth Board President and principal oboist, Karen Roberts. This amazing team of volunteers undertook the difficult work to bring it back to life with the 2022-2023 thrilling season opener, “A Haunting Return,” a concert of spooky classical music in October 2022. Thanks to the overwhelming dedication of COSMIC’s musicians, board members, and music director, Will Esterling, as well as the support of our audience, COSMIC continues to grow and expand its reach today.
When not playing in COSMIC, many members also volunteer their musical talents to support local school and community events. As the need arises, they step into the orchestra pits for Broadway musical productions performed by St. Mary’s County Recreation & Parks’ Summerstock theater, The Newtowne Players, local high schools, and other public events. In addition, there are groups of players who regularly perform for the Asbury Solomons retirement community, Cedar Lane, and other senior centers. As a result, COSMIC music goes far beyond the performance halls to reach every corner of our community.
Today is about celebrating the past thirty years, but it’s also about looking to the future. We want COSMIC to keep inspiring audiences, supporting young musicians, and bringing people together through music for many years to come. Show your support for COSMIC and help it continue to grow through your ongoing monetary contributions and by attending the next 30 years of performances in southern Maryland!
Views: 25
