For a better future, study the past.
For a better future, study the past.
Daytona Beach Symphony Society Says No to Name Change. In 1987.
Article courtesy Daytona Beach News Journal April 21, 1987
A name change is one of the business items to be considered when the Daytona Beach Symphony Society has its annual meeting Thursday at the Halifax Club.
The evening will begin at 6p.m., according to Kurt Massfeller, DBSS president, with dinner at 7 and a brief business meeting at 8. Massfeller said a resolution to change the name of the Daytona Beach Symphony Society to the Symphony Society of Volusia County has already been approved by the DBSS board of directors and will be submitted to the membership for final approval.
Massfeller said the proposed name change is based on the thinking that the Symphony Society’s programs are reaching an increasingly wider audience whose members come from all parts of the area.
For more than 35 years the Daytona Beach Symphony Society has presented an annual series of programs at Daytona Beach’s Peabody Auditorium. Most of the programs, symphonic in nature, have featured the Florida Symphony Orchestra from Orlando.
Another agenda item is the election of the board of directors to serve a two year term. The directors then will vote on a slate of officers.
A possible topic for discussion Thursday night, according to Massfeller, is the feasibility of raising $360,000 through a major drive. The $360,000 would be augmented by a $240,000 grant from the state of Florida to form a permanent endowment producing interest that would be used for the Symphony Society’s operating expenses.
Article courtesy Daytona Beach News Journal April 24, 1987
The name of the Daytona Beach Symphony Society remains intact, at least for the time being.
A motion to change the name to Symphony Society of Volusia County was tabled at Thursday night’s annual meeting of the society after numerous people in attendance questioned the need for a change. Symphony Society president Kurt Massfeller said it may be possible to place inserts in future symphony programs asking patrons to express themselves on the issue.
For more than 35 years, the DBSS has sponsored a yearly series of concerts featuring mostly symphonic music in Daytona Beach’s Peabody Auditorium. Most of the concerts have been given by the Orlando based Florida Symphony Orchestra.
Proponents of the name change said it was proposed in an effort to enlist wider support for the Symphony Society’s activities.
The Society offers a very brief organizational history on their website. Learn more by CLICKING HERE.
Kurt Massfeller, mentioned prominently in the above articles, served two terms on the Volusia County Council as the District 4 representative. He served as DBSS president for four years and was given credit for keeping the organization solvent during a difficult period in the 1980s. Massfeller was born in Berlin, Germany on April 15, 1914. His family moved to the Daytona Beach area in 1925 where he later graduated from Mainland High School. He earned a B.A. and M.A. in mechanical engineering from Columbia University before going to work for DuPont, where he was employed for 40 years. Massfeller passed away at his home on October 16, 1997 at age 83.
