Calgary Civic Symphony marks 50 years with a never-before-heard Estacio composition

Calgary Civic Symphony, the city's volunteer orchestra, is marking its 50th anniversary this month with a performance that includes a work created specifically for the occasion — and that composer John Estacio hasn't yet heard in person.

The orchestra will perform at Jack Singer Concert Hall on Sunday, October 25, opening its 2026–27 season with "Golden Overture," a piece Estacio was commissioned to write earlier this year. The Edmonton-based composer wanted the music to convey the symphony's history and to capture the celebratory spirit of a golden anniversary.

"I wanted a sense of fanfare, but also in the sense of lyricism and joy, and those were all emotions that I imbued into the composition," Estacio said. "It's sort of a buoyant, energetic, playful, and majestic quality to the piece to sort of mark a golden anniversary."

Though Estacio has previously had his work performed by the Civic, this is his first original composition for the group. The "Golden Overture" will launch five performances spanning now through next spring.

Music director Rolf Bertsch, who joined in 2008, will conduct the anniversary performance. Cellist Luka Coetzee, a prodigy who joined the orchestra in 2015 at just 11 years old, will also play. The return of such talented alumni showcases what Bertsch sees as the orchestra's defining strength: highly trained musicians who have chosen to pursue other careers during the day — some as teachers, some as lawyers — and come together each week because they want to make music.

"There's a reason my hair is grey, and I say that with great affection and respect," Bertsch said. "It's this amazing assemblage of people who are, many of them, highly trained musicians, but who have, and I like to say, wisely, perhaps, chosen to pursue other careers."

Since Bertsch arrived, the group has outgrown multiple rehearsal spaces. Its current home at the Werklund Centre reflects growing demand for music-related recreational activities. The orchestra's motto, "music by anyone, for everyone," has held steady since its founding in 1976, even as its membership has expanded to over 80 musicians.