Mat-Su Orchestra performs at the Massay Theater Sunday

PALMER — The Matanuska Susitna Orchestra will perform its final concert of the 2014-15 season at 3 p.m., April 26 at the Glenn Massay Theater at Mat-Su College.

This is the inaugural concert of the orchestra, complete with band instrumentation, in this new performance center.

The one-hour performance is free and features classical selections such as “The William Tell Overture,” “Dance of the Hours,” and “The 1812 Overture.”

Instead of charging admission, the orchestra requests donations to MY House.

The Mat-Su Orchestra, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, began as a small group of local musicians who shared a common dream, the dream of a non-professional orchestra that would enhance their community. The group is made up of a community of musicians — a variety of ages, occupations and abilities — all joining together because they love making music.

The orchestra traces its origins to 1999 when Fred and Carolyn Harding accepted an invitation to join a trio of violinists, Kent McMartin, Liz Kohn and Mary Hanson, who had formed the group to play for their church, Good Shepherd Lutheran in Wasilla.

Soon other musicians joined the group and in 2004, the orchestra moved from Good Shepherd Lutheran Church to United Protestant Presbyterian Church in Palmer, to be more centrally located for the members. The group attained 501(c)3 tax-exempt status in May 2006.

Orchestra members range in age from 13 to 76. Rehearsals are from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Tuesdays at the United Protestant Presbyterian Church in Palmer.