In an evening awash with music from start to finish, the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra had its own standout moment at the 2026 Governor’s Arts Awards ceremony, Thursday night, February 12.
MSO was recognized for Excellence in Performing Arts at the 38th annual ceremony bestowing the state’s highest arts honors. On the heels of handshakes from Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves and thanks to the hundreds gathered (from both MSO President/Executive Director Janet Reihle and Music Director/Conductor Crafton Beck), MSO musicians delivered that very excellence.
MSO players blazed through the first movement of Voodoo Violin Concerto by DBR (Daniel Bernard Roumain) with fiery verve, electrifying folks who probably bopped their heads to a classical music beat for the first time. The crowd’s standing ovation and fervent whoops and whistles made it clear: They loved what they heard.
Gov. Reeves, attending with First Lady Elee Reeves, called the arts one of Mississippi’s greatest treasures. “As we all know, Mississippi is blessed with incredible artists who call our state home. And it is an indisputable fact that Mississippi has helped define American culture,” he said.
Joining MSO in the 2026 class of honored recipients were: master chairmaker Greg Harkins (Excellence in Traditional Craft); art teacher Dorothy “Dottie” Armstrong (Excellence in Arts Education); composer, playwright and performer Heather Christian (Excellence in Music Composition); and beloved blues musician Jesse Robinson (Lifetime Achievement).
The awards ceremony is presented by the Mississippi Arts Commission in partnership with the Governor’s Office. Mississippi Public Broadcasting recorded the ceremony for later broadcast in April. Tune in to watch the event on MPB at 8 p.m. Friday, April 24, or 2 p.m. Sunday, April 26.
In a short video at the event highlighting MSO’s 80-plus year legacy, statewide reach, vibrant importance and key role in education, MSO Chair Beverly Wade Hogan said, “When we have a strong symphony orchestra in our community, it says something about our character, about our beliefs and our values.”
At the ceremony, MSO musicians present and past, sharply dressed in concert black, swelled the crowd with a strong showing, in addition to the 11 who performed. Beck gave them a shoutout from the stage when he and Reihle accepted MSO’s award.
“Janet and I are speaking for so many people who are in front of us that are the recipients of this award,” he said. “They also stand behind us in spirit.”
In the past 80 years, over 1,000 musicians, hundreds of board members and dozens of staff members have been a part of building this symphony. Beck continued. “That’s who this award is going to – people just like all of us who have embraced the idea of performance in the schools and the community, through music.
Beck declared, “On behalf of well over 1,000, maybe approaching 2,000 people, Janet and I are here to say, ‘Thank you. Thank you.’”
When Reihle asked MSO members past and present in the audience to stand, the audience erupted in applause and whoops of appreciation.
“This award goes to those who have built its rich history,” Reihle said, “and I’m so fortunate to be here and say ‘Thank you’ to the governor for always supporting the arts in Mississippi, to the first lady who has been a vital volunteer in our musical legacy, and to our donors, our board of directors, especially our legislators and our mayor, who always believed in the powerful, life-changing meaning of music and in supporting us, so that that endures for future generations.
“This award belongs to an orchestra that does not perform for applause, but for perfection. And we are so glad that we always play for the enduring musical legacy of Mississippi.”
Then, Voodoo Violin Concerto worked its spell, putting a 21st century exclamation point to eight stellar decades of performance.