New orchestra brings music back to Fort Myers with 9/11 concert, more

Charles Runnell, The News-Press, Naples Daily News

Fort Myers has a brand-new professional orchestra, and they’re using their first public concert to mark a solemn occasion: The 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The Fort Myers Philharmonic — formed after the long-running Southwest Florida Symphony shut down last summer — debuts Friday, Sept. 11, at Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall. Their 9/11-anniversary concert, “Honoring Our Heroes,” includes Samuel Barber’s “Adagio for Strings,” Mozart’s “Requiem” and more. They’ll be joined onstage by soloists, a quartet and the Fort Myers Symphonic Mastersingers.

“Music has a unique ability to bring people together, to help us remember and to express emotions that words alone cannot,” said music director Paul Nadler in a news release announcing the concert. “As we mark the 25th anniversary of September 11, this performance honors the extraordinary courage of those who responded that day, while recognizing the dedication and sacrifice of the first responders who continue to protect our community every day.”