Dear Friend of the CPO,
I am Ramon Alvarez Sr., first violinist with the Cleveland Philharmonic and the orchestra’s longest member. I joined the orchestra in 1968, when I was 26 years old.
Previously, I studied violin at the Cleveland Institute of Music and served as concertmaster of the Arequipa Symphony, in Arequipa, Peru, and first violinist with the National Symphony Orchestra of Lima, Peru.
Even when I was raising my family and working second shift for many years at General Motors, the Cleveland Philharmonic has for the last five decades been a passion and a major part of my life.
I am overjoyed that we are resuming live concerts this season. We have instituted practices to keep our members and audience safe and enable us to continue our mission to make live classical music accessible to the Greater Cleveland community.
There continues to be uncertainty, particularly as an organization that relies heavily on ticket sales. As a volunteer orchestra, our members donate over 5,000 hours annually to bring music to our community. We still incur significant costs related to music rental and licensing, hosting our prestigious Frieda Schumacher Young Artist Competition, and bringing in our world-class soloists.
As a supporter of the Cleveland Philharmonic Orchestra, you are important to our success, this year more than ever. A charitable contribution to the orchestra also brings
you benefits, including a tax deduction and the satisfaction of helping culture thrive in our community.
On behalf of the orchestra, I thank you for your past support. We hope we can count on you again this year.
Sincerely,
Ramon Alvarez Sr.
First Violin, Cleveland Philharmonic Orchestra