Noteworthy

TSO horn section 1951-52. L-to-R: Reg Barrow, Mary Barrow (seated), Leonard Hale, Sir Ernest MacMillan (TSO Music Director), Clifford Spearing, and Ken Godwin. (York Master Photo Archive)

Barbara Moran grew up in a musical household. Her father, Ken Godwin, played Horn with the TSO for 25 years, from 1946 to 1971. “There was always music in our house. Growing up, I heard my father practicing a lot. He had a large collection of classical and opera recordings—on vinyl in those days—as well as Broadway show tunes.” 

Like many teenagers in the 1960s, Barbara listened to pop music. During her high school years, she was involved in putting on annual musical theatre productions. In her thirties, she also started to appreciate classical music, including opera. 

In June 1982, the TSO performed a season-closing gala concert at Massey Hall, to which Barbara and her father were invited. Following the concert, there was a tour of the soon-to-be-opened Roy Thomson Hall and a dinner for current and former TSO members. “It was such a memorable evening in so many ways that it has stayed with me up to today—the Orchestra’s breathtaking performance and, later, observing the camaraderie between former and current TSO members,” says Barbara. “I felt that we were members of the TSO family.”

Soon after, Barbara started attending TSO concerts regularly with friends, and has been a subscriber ever since. Her father was also a teacher, so she has a great connection to the TSO's education programs, which give young people an opportunity to learn about and hear live orchestral music.

“As an audience member, the arts have been an important part of my life, and for this reason, I am also a donor. A few years ago, I decided to include the TSO in my estate plans by making the organization one of the beneficiaries of a life insurance policy. It is my way of honouring my father, and giving back to an organization that literally supported our family as we were growing up.”