Conducting zone

Raúl Munguía is ready to make some beautiful music.

The Honduras native is the new director and conductor for the Iola Area Symphony Orchestra, which began practicing Monday night for its fall concert on Oct. 30.

Munguía is also associate professor and director of orchestras at Pittsburg State University, where he shares his musical passion with students.

He said that one of his goals is to “elevate the status of the symphony to a more recognizable artistic outlet for the community,” and he likewise aims to increase the depth and range of the symphony’s repertoire.

“I think there’s a lot of potential with retired teachers, current teachers and many advanced students that take private lessons in the Iola area,” he said.

“I just need to explore the possibilities with them.”

ANOTHER ONE of Munguía’s goals, he said, involves getting more folks to attend concerts at the Bowlus, a venue about which he’s excited.

“The orchestra belongs to the Bowlus, so I think having that umbrella … it’s great. I feel that’s the right organization for the orchestra,” he noted.

“With the Bowlus’ programming, what they bring to that stage is unbelievable. Not every city does that. It’s really cool to see.”

As far as expanding the audience goes, “I would like regular people in Iola to come watch a concert,” Munguía said, “not because they know somebody on the stage, but because they want to elevate that way of listening to a different type of music.”

“One of the misconceptions about classical music is that it’s boring,” he continued. “But classical music is not boring if you’re watching it live, right in front of your eyes.”

“I want the regular citizens in the area to come watch a concert and be really entertained by it.”

One piece Munguía has plans to perform is Suite No. 1 from the opera “Carmen,” which he described as “really entertaining” given its “Spanish flavor.”

“Having a piece like that is really important when getting my feet wet with the orchestra, as well as them getting a taste of what I’d like them to do,” he said.

AS FAR as getting connected to the Iola community, Munguía said he’d gotten started by first collaborating with folks at Allen Community College.

“I really like Iola,” he said, and “last year, … they invited me to be their concert master.”

Now that he’s stepping into his role as orchestra director, he said some additional goals include improving community pride in the symphony as well as carrying on a local tradition that began around four decades ago.

“Continuing to have that tradition is very important for me, and I wanted to have a different vision for that,” he said.

Munguía also spoke about raising the symphony’s visibility, because “not many people in Iola know that there’s a Symphony Orchestra.”

“We’ve got to have a little more presence, not only on a stage but in the community,” he said, including perhaps performing at venues in addition to the Bowlus.

ONE THING Munguía has going for him is previous experience with elevating the status of community ensembles, something he’s already doing at Pittsburg State.

According to him, “the beauty of the orchestra at Pitt State is that you won’t find it listed as Pitt State symphony orchestra. It’s actually the Southeast Kansas Symphony Orchestra.”

“It’s almost like a community orchestra, actually,” Munguía observed, in part since “it elevates the level of the orchestra because the kids are playing next to experienced musicians.”

In short, then, ensembles of this kind not only bring together musicians at all skill levels, they encourage engagement between community members.

As Munguía put it, “we don’t bring the audience to the orchestra. We bring the orchestra to the audience.”

FOR THOSE interested in getting involved, the Iola Area Symphony Orchestra practices at 7 p.m. on Monday nights at the Bowlus.

“Nobody has to audition if they want to be part of the orchestra,” Munguía said. “It’s a community ensemble so everybody can show up and play.”

 He also said that community members are free to come and watch if they’d like a sneak peak.

The Symphony’s first concert is 7 p.m. on October 30.