Listen • 4:59
When the Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra formed 20 years ago, they didn’t require their musicians to audition.
“We just said if you’re interested and willing to play, come and join us,” says Robert Pattengale, a retired professor of music and one of the founders of the Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra.
He says the group initially came together to perform benefit concerts for the Little Traverse Bay’s emerging youth orchestra, which is now at Crooked Tree Arts Center.
The musicians enjoyed playing in these benefit concerts so much that they decided to create a more permanent orchestra in the region.