By Laurie D. Willis
Livingstone College News Service

SALISBURY — “Colors of The Wind,” a hit song from the Pocahontas movie, will be among the tunes performed at the annual Salisbury Symphony Family Concert this Sunday at 4 p.m. inside Trent Gym at Livingstone College.

The concert will feature the Symphony, led by Music Director David Hagy, The Livingstone College Concert Choir, led by Director Dr. DaVaughn L. Miller, The Livingstone College Marching Band, led by Director Anthony Jones, and the Rowan All-County Fifth Grade Honors Chorus.

This year’s concert title is “Animals: Lions, Tigers and (Blue) Bears…Oh, My!” The Salisbury Symphony alternates its Family Concert between Livingstone and Catawba College, but this is the first year it’s being held in Livingstone’s gym rather than in Varick Auditorium. It’s also the inaugural time the institution’s band will participate in the concert, which Hagy anticipates will be something special.

“This is a very upbeat event,” Hagy said. “It’s really one of the biggest things we’ve ever done at Livingstone, and we’re very excited about having the choir sing with us and the band play with us. The concert can’t be in Varick this year because we can’t fit everybody in Varick. A fun part of that is we’ll be spread out enough so that if audience members want to come sit on the floor they’ll be welcomed to. They can bring a child and sit by an instrument.”

Hagy said he enjoys collaborating with Livingstone for special events. Besides the Family Concert, symphony members-guest perform at Livingstone’s annual Christmas Extravaganza.

“It’s always a pleasure to work with Dr. Miller,” Hagy said. “He’s fun, and his choir always sounds excellent. Working with Anthony Jones has also been a pleasure. We’re really excited about what we can do at Livingstone College this year and hope we can get a large contingent of the college’s students, faculty and staff — as well as people from Salisbury and the surrounding area — to attend.”

Admission to “Lions, Tigers and (Blue) Bears…Oh, My!” is free for Livingstone students with ID, Hagy said. General admission is $19.25 for adults, $4.25 for children 9 to 18 and $2 for kids 8 and younger.

The concert’s music will feature animals that are in danger of becoming extinct, Hagy said. For example, he said there’s a clever, four-song piece titled “Childhood Fables for Adults” that includes a song about a polar bear, a tiger, a leopard and one about frogs and snakes. There’s also a song from “The Lion King” that will feature all four groups performing at once.

Miller, whose children Drake, 8, and Brooke, 5, plan to attend the concert, said he joins Hagy in hoping it will be well supported.

“When people attend concerts they usually get so swept away by the performance they don’t even stop to think about all of the hard work that went into it,” Miller said. “But the students in the choir, the band and the Fifth Grade Honors chorus, as well as the professional musicians in the symphony, I and the other directors have worked really hard to ensure Sunday’s concert is successful. In fact, we’re rehearsing today and again the day of the concert to ensure everything is just right.

“Livingstone and the Salisbury Symphony have enjoyed a good working relationship for many years now in large part because of the leadership of our President, Dr. Jimmy R. Jenkins, Sr.,” Miller continued. “I hope we have an exceptional crowd inside Trent Gym on Sunday for the concert, and I particularly hope parents bring their children. It’s really going to be a blast.”