Sonoma State University Unveils the Green Music Center

The Donald and Maureen Green Music Center (GMC) of Sonoma State University (SSU) is an innovative performing arts facility blending artistry with education. Opening in 2008, the $63 million cultural complex is the Wine Country's first venue of its magnitude and will be home to the Santa Rosa Symphony, the Green Music Festival and hundreds of guest artists. The GMC aims to galvanize the community and will offer artists, audiences, educators and students of all ages a venue in which to share music, arts and ideas. SSU today unveiled plans for the new facility as major construction is set to begin.

"We are thrilled to have this remarkable addition to Sonoma State University and Sonoma County. It will enrich the lives of everyone who visits and lives in Northern California and will contribute to the educational and cultural life and economy of the region," said Dr. Ruben Armiñana, Sonoma State University president. "Our vision is to aim high, reach wide and educate all. The synergy of Sonoma State and the Green Music Center will provide arts-centered experiences for students of all ages and backgrounds, as well as an educational experience for patrons."

Designed by Architect William Rawn and Associates of Boston, Massachusetts, who designed the Seiji Ozawa Hall at Tanglewood in western Massachusetts, the heart of the GMC is a 1,400-seat concert hall that will afford extraordinary acoustics with an intimate audience experience. Similar to the Ozawa Hall, the back wall of the concert hall will open to a lawn suitable for a large outdoor audience and accommodate up to 10,000 people. The GMC will present more than 200 performances throughout the year. In addition to the concert hall, the GMC features a 300-seat recital hall with acoustics ideal for choral, vocal and chamber music.

In addition to being the new performance home of the Santa Rosa Symphony and the Green Music Festival, the GMC's programming extends beyond classical and other forms of music to include theater, dance and spoken word performances. The GMC's programming will include a range of music including symphonic, chamber, choral, jazz, blues, folk, country, world, pop and rock music. Through commissions and presentations, the GMC will stimulate the creation of compositions across many musical genres.

"We are dedicated to promoting the love and preservation of the arts," said Floyd Ross, Green Music Center Executive Director of Operations. "Our programs and festival events bring together music, art, literature, philosophy and education in a stimulating atmosphere for an afternoon, an evening, a day-long, week-long, summer-long or year-round experience. A 'continuous workshop' is how President Armiñana has so succinctly articulated the vision that we have followed from the beginning."

Welz Kauffman serves as programming consultant to the GMC. Kauffman is president and CEO of Chicago's Ravinia Festival, the Midwest's premier summer concert organization. Chicagoans have gone to Ravinia Festival to picnic and enjoy listening to music which ranges from classical and jazz, to folk and pop. His career includes leadership positions at the country's most respected arts organizations, including the New York Philharmonic and Los Angeles Philharmonic, where he managed a 12-week summer festival at the Hollywood Bowl. He has experience creating festivals encompassing a wide variety of activities, including full orchestra concerts, cabaret evenings, new music and chamber performances, seminars and symposiums.

"The Green Music Center's combined mission of entertainment and education gives me the opportunity to continue the programming I have been dedicated to throughout my career," said Kauffman. "I look forward to bringing innovative artists and exciting performances to this wonderful facility."

The GMC enables the expansion of SSU's performing arts curriculum. The new music education building has a 300-seat recital hall, two rehearsal halls, two classrooms, three ensemble rooms, four practice studios, three practice rooms, a music library, GMC staff offices and 17 faculty offices. The building also houses two SSU academic departments: the music department and the theater arts department. Through its many educational and artistic initiatives, the SSU annually hosts more than 2,500 students of all ages and backgrounds in onsite educational programs ranging from beginning to advanced curriculum through its summertime Green Music Festival.

Donald and Maureen Green of Santa Rosa are the lead donors to the GMC. A lifelong love of choral music and participation in choral groups was a key motivation for their donation. Mr. Green became the co-chair of the fundraising capital campaign for the GMC in 1999 and began his tenure as the co-chair of the GMC Advisory Board in 2005. Mrs. Green serves on the GMC Advisory Board. The Greens envision a facility that is the center for a vibrant musical and performing arts program in the Northern California Wine Country.

"Throughout this process, there has been an amazing level of support. I see a strong sense of community pride in the Green Music Center. There is an awareness that we are creating something of lasting significance that will continue beyond our generation and beyond our community," said Don Green.