Conductor “wannabe” competition starts for La Crosse Symphony Orchestra

It’s campaign season in La Crosse for a yearly honor, involving the performing arts.

The “wannabe” conductor competition for the La Crosse Symphony Orchestra has started with six candidates ready to collect donations in hopes of leading the musicians at a May concert.

Eva Marie Restel, executive director of the La Crosse Symphony, said at a Wednesday news conference the conductor contest helps orchestra audiences become familiar with charity groups around town.

Restel added that the wannabes do not need any prior conducting experience to pick up the baton.

“They don’t have to have any musical talents, ” Restel said, “but if they win, the two winners, they do have a lesson with (LSO conductor) Alexander Platt the night before.”

The conductor candidates this year are:

• Courtney Lokken, raising money for River City Youth Hockey
• Nyhus Schaffer, for Chariots 4 Hope, Wisconsin
• Michael Scott, for the Parenting Place Diaper Bank
• Shaundel Washington-Spivey, representing Black Leaders Acquiring Collective Knowledge (B.L.A.C.K.)
• DeeAnn Romanowski and Britni Walz, for the EndAlz Fest Foundation

Each vote online or by phone will cost at least $2. Last year’s candidates raised over $80,000 in donations to their charities.

The top two finishers in the fundraising process will get to conduct the Symphony at its May 4 concert. The contest ends on April 29.