The Metro Prepares its March

On December 27th, city officials will cut the ribbon for Phoenix's new Metro Light Rail and proceed on the system's first public ride to downtown Phoenix. Also that day, the newly-commissioned and recently-premiered March of the Metro by composer Michael Daugherty as performed by The Phoenix Symphony will be broadcast to all of the metro stations throughout the city over station loudspeakers. We had a chance to sit and talk with Michael Daugherty about how he went about writing a theme for the Metro and also took a sneak-peak at the piece's premiere in November. The video is below:



The arrival of the Valley Metro light rail system is a historic moment for the community. In commemoration of this event, two long time valley residents and avid Symphony supporters, Clem and Mary Jo Hellmann, wanted to musically celebrate by having a special fanfare composed in honor of the construction of the Metro Light Rail, and to emphasize Symphony Hall's proximity to the route.

"It will now be even easier to attend symphony concerts and eliminate the hassle of parking, save on parking, save on gas and be steps from the Light Rail stop into the symphony." said Clem Hellman. "More importantly," he continued, "Mary Jo and I wanted to have the Symphony create a piece of music for our community's special occasion and so the Symphony called composer Michael Daugherty who was uniquely qualified to compose this fun and whimsical march. We have a fabulous symphony here in Phoenix and it just got easier to come and see them. Just take the Metro to the Convention Center stop which is adjacent to Symphony Hall."