For more than a century, residents of Plainfield and the surrounding area have been able to skip the trip to New York City whenever they’re seeking a world-class symphony performance.
The Plainfield Symphony Orchestra, now in its 105th season, is the oldest community orchestra in New Jersey and one of the longest continuously running in the United States. The ensemble formed in 1919 and held its first concert with about twenty amateur musicians; it now plays everything from Mozart to Duke Ellington.
Conductor Charles Prince, music director since 2009, studied with Leonard Bernstein and has worked with orchestras across the country. His goal with the Plainfield Symphony Orchestra? Attain the highest level of musicianship possible.
“I started programming consecutively more difficult music until we were just performing music that other great orchestras in the world don’t even want to go near because it’s so difficult,” Prince says. “We’re a community symphony, but we do not play like any community symphony.”…