The brass section of the Carson Valley Pops orchestra performs in Heritage Park as part of Gardnerville's 2023 July Fourth celebration.
Photo by Kurt Hildebrand.
While Stateline and Carson City host fireworks shows, Carson Valley will be celebrating Independence Day with music.
Both Gardnerville and Genoa feature live patriotic music courtesy of Carson Valley Pops and the Carson City Symphony, both of which share lots of performers.
The Carson Valley Pops Orchestra returns 11:30 a.m. Thursday to Heritage Park in Gardnerville.
The orchestra celebrated its 25th year since it was founded in 1999.
“The Pops is an all-volunteer organization of musicians and community members,” spokeswoman Margaret Biggs said. “It’s a 501 C 3 and relies on donations from businesses and individuals. The four concerts a year are always free, donations cheerfully accepted.”
There is a significant nexus between the Carson Valley and Carson City ensembles.
“About half perform with the Carson City Symphony and will be playing later in Genoa,” Biggs said.
The performance in Gardnerville will be a bit sunnier than Mormon Station.
“This year we’re having the cadets from the Douglas County Composite Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol present the Colors at the beginning of the concert,” Biggs said. “The program includes several John Phillip Sousa Marches, American the Beautiful, Armed Forces Salute and a few fun songs like a Beach Boys Medley and the theme from Rawhide. The concert starts at 11:30 a.m., so bring a lunch and enjoy the music.”
In Nevada’s oldest settlement, the Americana Festival also opens at 11:30 a.m. with the Front Porch Band, followed by Moxy Ruckus at 1:15 p.m.
Genoa Volunteer Fire Department members will be barbecuing $14 chicken dinners and selling beer starting 11 a.m. .
Pops members will head into Genoa after performing in Gardnerville, where they will join the symphony.
Conducted by David Bugli, the symphony will begin performing at 3:45 p.m., joined by the Symphony Youth Chorus conducted by Nancy Jones and Guest Soloist Cherie Shipley.
Attendees are encouraged to bring festival chairs or picnic blankets for sitting on the grass at the park. Organizers are asking participants to wait until 8 a.m. to set up.
It has been 140 years since the 11-piece Genoa Brass Band performed its last Fourth of July concert. While the band performed after 1884, according to The Genoa Courier, it was for a handful of election and Christmas events.
It would be another century before the tradition of having a full-on symphony perform in Nevada’s oldest settlement when townspeople recruited the Reno Philharmonic to perform for nearly 30 years.
Touted as the first event of its kind in Carson Valley, the philharmonic’s performances continued until their last one in 2013, when retired conductor Ron Daniels once more picked up his baton to play it out.
The following year the Carson City Symphony took on the mantle in Mormon Station State Historic Park. That year saw the inclusion of a pet and children’s parade and an entire day of musical entertainment.
Situated between the two G’s, Minden will be hosting its annual barbecue and bike parade 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday in Minden Park.
