The Orchestra Chuck Built
Christopher Stoudt (Director)
Run Time: 00:23
Filmmaker: Christopher Stoudt (Director)
Envoys: Christopher Stoudt (Director), Charles “Chuck” Dickerson (Subject)
Synopsis: In 2016, the League of American Orchestras conducted a study that revealed a shocking statistic: only 1.8% of the professional orchestra workforce in the US is Black. From an old church rec room in the inner city of Los Angeles, former lawyer-turned-conductor Chuck Dickerson is on a mission to change that. With his majority Black and Latino youth orchestra — the largest of its kind in the country — Chuck is creating opportunities for his community that did not previously exist. The Orchestra Chuck Built is a loving portrait of a tireless mentor and the orchestra members whose lives have been transformed by music.
About the Envoys:
Originally from New Orleans, Christopher Stoudt is an award-winning filmmaker based in Los Angeles. His films have been screened at festivals, gone viral, and received hundreds of millions of views online. His documentary short, Camp ALEC, was produced by The Kennedy/Marshall Company and acquired by Disney+ for the forthcoming revival of their series “People and Places.” His film Four Seasons Total Documentary, which profiles the infamous Philadelphia press conference, is streaming on Peacock. His latest film, The Orchestra Chuck Built, was an Audience Award winner at MountainFilm and has screened at over 75 film festivals and will be released on The New Yorker in Fall 2024.
Charles “Chuck” Dickerson is the Executive Director and Conductor of the Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles. Over his 40 plus years of conducting, he has directed performances of many of the greatest orchestral and choral works throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. He has prepared choruses for concerts with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Hollywood Bowl Orchestras including the Phil’s 2012 performance of the Mahler Eighth Symphony and performances of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with Maestro Gustavo Dudamel conducting. Chuck also holds important compositional and arranging credits. His best-known work is “I Have A Dream,” a choral and orchestral setting of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s landmark speech. The work was performed for the unveiling ceremonies the King Memorial on the National Mall in Washington DC, and at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles as Los Angeles County’s official celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the speech. He has also arranged and conducted orchestral performances of the music of Duke Ellington, Stevie Wonder, Motown and others. He holds a Master of Music Degree from California State University, Los Angeles with a focus on conducting, and degrees from Howard University (B.S.) and American University (J.D.). He has studied with esteemed Conductors Gustav Meier, Daniel Lewis, and Kenneth Kiesler. He also currently serves as Director of Music at Rolling Hills United Methodist Church, and formerly served as Music Director and Conductor of the Southeast Symphony (2004-2011).
