Melbourne Community Orchestra

Home
United States
Melbourne, FL
Melbourne Community Orchestra

Call Directions Website Contact the organization

Orchestra in Residence for the City of Melbourne Our musicians include current and past professionals, as well as, gifted amateurs and students.

The Melbourne Community Orchestra is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing free musical performances to the community. All of our musicians are volunteers, and they practice, rehearse and perform for nothing in return, except the pure joy they feel when they get to play for an audience. Under the baton of our dynamic conductor, Dr. Mark P. Nelson, the orchestra continues to grow both musically and in number, but we are always looking for new recruits! MCO’s goal is to bring joy to the community through music. Each one of our performances is a tribute to this pursuit, as we put our hearts into everything we play. We are dedicated to supporting the arts and culture here in Melbourne both with our free concerts, but also through community outreach and music education. We are honored to serve the City of Melbourne for over thirty years, and we hope to continue this service for years to come. Rehearsals are Thursday evenings starting at 6:30 pm at 1924 Melody Lane Melbourne, FL 32901

10/23/2026

🎻🎶 THREE CONCERTS. ONE REHEARSAL. A WHOLE LOT OF MUSIC! 😂

Well, that was quite the musical roller coaster!

We barely had time to put away our Halloween costumes before diving headfirst into our next THREE concerts! 🎬🎄✨

Tonight was sight-reading night, which means our musicians got to experience the joy (and occasional terror 😳) of playing music they’ve never seen before… together… in real time.

And what a lineup we had!

🐶 Music Makers of Tomorrow — We’re getting ready for Bluey, Tubby the Tuba, and Beauty and the Beast! Because who doesn’t love a little cartoon magic?

🎄 Home for the Holidays — Time to trade the spooky sounds for sleigh bells, holiday cheer, and all the festive favorites!

🎬 Lights, Camera, Symphony! — We’re diving into the incredible music of John Williams. May the Force be with us… especially during those first-read moments. 😂

Three completely different concerts. Three completely different musical worlds. And one orchestra that’s always up for an adventure!

Here’s a little peek behind the scenes at tonight’s rehearsal. 📸❤️

And our next adventure is coming up FAST!

🎺 MUSIC MAKERS OF TOMORROW
📅 Saturday, November 14
🕑 2 PM
📍 Premiere Theaters Oaks 10
🎟️ FREE admission!

We can’t wait to share all this music with you!

New music. New adventures. Same wonderfully crazy orchestra. ❤️🎶

10/16/2026

🌙🎻 THAT’S A WRAP ON AFTER DARK! 😈💀

And WOW… what a wickedly wonderful way to end our October concerts! ❤️

For two nights, we summoned witches, danced with skeletons, encountered an Erlking, ventured into the Water Goblin’s lair, and even invited the Devil himself to join the festivities. 😈

And somehow, we all made it out alive. Even Mark. 😂

A HUGE thank you to everyone who joined us for After Dark! From the incredible energy of our audiences to the costumes, laughter, and applause, you made these concerts something truly special.

And can we give one more round of applause to our AMAZING volunteer musicians?! 👏🎶 Not only did they tackle some seriously challenging music, but they embraced all the Halloween fun along the way. We couldn’t be prouder of this orchestra!

A special shoutout to our featured soloist, Paxton Barefield, for bringing Schubert’s terrifying Der Erlkönig to life! 🎤👑

Here are some of our favorite moments from tonight’s final performance! 📸

The ghosts have gone home, the witches have parked their broomsticks, and the Water Goblin has returned to his lake.

But the music? That magic sticks around. ✨❤️

Thank you for spending your evenings with the Melbourne Community Orchestra. We can’t wait to see you at our next adventure!

Until next time… sleep tight. And maybe stay away from the lake. 🌊😂

10/15/2026

🌙😈 WHAT A WICKEDLY WONDERFUL OPENING NIGHT! 🎻💀

Well, Melbourne… we officially went AFTER DARK, and what a night it was! 🧙‍♀️✨

Witches flew, skeletons danced, the Erlking came calling, the Water Goblin made a splash, and the Devil himself joined the party. Just another perfectly normal evening with the Melbourne Community Orchestra. 😂🎶

A HUGE thank you to everyone who joined us tonight! We loved seeing your smiling faces (and your spooky ones!), and we couldn’t be prouder of our incredible volunteer musicians for bringing this delightfully dark program to life. ❤️

And guess what? We’re doing it ALL AGAIN TOMORROW! 🎉

If you missed tonight’s performance, you have one more chance to experience the magic, mystery, and musical mischief!

🌙 AFTER DARK — FINAL PERFORMANCE!
📅 Thursday, October 15
🕖 Concert at 7 PM • Preshow at 6:15 PM
📍 Melbourne Auditorium
🎟️ FREE • No tickets required!

Here’s a little peek at the magic from tonight! 📸

Same music. Same mischief. One more night AFTER DARK! 😈🌙🎶

10/14/2026

🌙🎻 ONE MORE SLEEP UNTIL AFTER DARK! 😈

The music is rehearsed. The stage is set. The orchestra is ready.

Tonight, we put the finishing touches on After Dark, and let’s just say… things are about to get a little wicked at Melbourne Auditorium! 🧙‍♀️💀🌊

We’ve spent weeks introducing you to the music, sharing the stories, and warning you about the questionable characters lurking in our program.

Now it’s time to bring them all to life! 🎶

Here’s a little behind-the-scenes peek at tonight’s dress rehearsal. 📸

🌙 AFTER DARK — TOMORROW & THURSDAY!
📅 October 14 & 15
🕖 Concert at 7 PM • Preshow at 6:15 PM
📍 Melbourne Auditorium
🎟️ FREE • No tickets required!

Come early. Bring a friend. And whatever you do… don’t follow any mysterious voices into the woods. 😂

See you AFTER DARK! 🌙✨

10/11/2026

🌊🐊 MEET THE MUSIC: The Water Goblin

After spending the week getting to know Dvořák’s The Water Goblin, we feel it’s our responsibility to issue an official public safety announcement.

PLEASE EXERCISE CAUTION AROUND ALL BODIES OF WATER. ⚠️

Especially if:

🌊 There’s a suspicious green man lurking beneath the surface.

💍 He starts discussing marriage arrangements.

👶 His custody agreement seems a little questionable.

👩 Your mother has specifically told you NOT to go near the lake.

🐊 Or you live in Florida. Because, well… Florida. 😂

And with that, we’re wrapping up Water Goblin Week!

Next week, we’re meeting our FINAL piece before the concerts: John Williams’ Devil’s Dance from The Witches of Eastwick. 😈🎻

Because apparently witches, skeletons, Erlkings, and Water Goblins weren’t enough.

We had to invite the Devil, too. 😂

🌙 AFTER DARK
📅 October 14 & 15 — THIS WEEK!
🕖 Concert at 7 p.m. • Preshow at 6:15 p.m.
📍 Melbourne Auditorium
🎟️ FREE • No tickets required

Remember: Stay out of the lake. Come to the concert. 🌊🎶😂

10/09/2026

🌙🎶 Meanwhile, AFTER DARK at MCO…

IT’S OUR FINAL THURSDAY REHEARSAL BEFORE THE CONCERTS! 😱

Remember when Mark didn’t rehearse Witch’s Ride during Witch’s Ride Week?

And then didn’t rehearse Der Erlkönig during Erlking Week?

Well, tonight was Water Goblin Week, and we’re happy to report…

HE ACTUALLY REHEARSED THE WATER GOBLIN! 🌊🎉😂

Apparently, having an angry witch AND a sinister Erlking after you is enough to make a conductor reconsider his life choices.

Lesson learned, Mark. Lesson learned. 😇

🧙‍♀️ The witch? Still holding a grudge.
👑 The Erlking? Probably plotting revenge.
🌊 The Water Goblin? Surprisingly satisfied.
🎼 Mark? Living to conduct another day. 😂

All jokes aside, the orchestra is sounding fantastic, and we’re getting SO excited to share this spooky, dramatic, and wonderfully entertaining program with you!

Enjoy a peek behind the scenes from tonight’s rehearsal! 📸❤️

🌙 AFTER DARK
📅 October 14 & 15 — NEXT WEEK!
🕖 Concert at 7 p.m. • Preshow at 6:15 p.m.
📍 Melbourne Auditorium
🎟️ FREE • No tickets required

Just SIX DAYS until opening night! 😱

And Mark? We’d strongly recommend rehearsing Devil’s Dance next week.

We really don’t need to add the Devil to your list of enemies. 😈😂

10/07/2026

🌊🐊 MEET THE MUSIC: Florida Edition

We introduced you to Dvořák’s The Water Goblin—a terrifying creature who lives beneath the water and is an excellent reason to STAY AWAY FROM THE LAKE.

Floridians:

“Yeah. We have those.” 😂🐊

Apparently Czech folklore and Florida wildlife have more in common than we realized.

Mysterious creature lurking beneath the surface? ✅
Definitely watching you? 👀
Probably shouldn’t get closer to investigate? ✅
Your mother was right when she told you to stay away from the water? ABSOLUTELY. 😂

The biggest difference?

Dvořák wrote an entire symphonic poem about his.

Ours occasionally ends up in a swimming pool. 🐊😂

🌙 AFTER DARK
📅 October 14 & 15
🕖 Concert at 7 p.m. • Preshow at 6:15 p.m.
📍 Melbourne Auditorium
🎟️ FREE • No tickets required

Czech Republic 🤝 Florida
Having very good reasons not to investigate mysterious ripples in the water. 🌊🐊😂

Address

1214 N Harbor City Boulevard
Melbourne, FL
32935

Opening Hours

6:30pm - 9pm

Telephone

+13212856724

Website

http://www.mcorchestra.org/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Melbourne Community Orchestra posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to Melbourne Community Orchestra:

Want your organization to be the top-listed non profit organization in Melbourne?