• By ROBIN MILLER
• Arts writer
• Published: Nov 8, 2009

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Talk to Anna Christian after the concert, and she doesn’t seem like the conductor type.

She’s quiet, she’s a little bit shy and she’s only 8 years old.

But she didn’t let any of this stop her from taking the podium when Linda R. Moorhouse asked for volunteers. It gave her a chance to direct the LSU fight songs she hears in Tiger Stadium.

And she was able to eye the flute up close. Well, there are several flutes in the LSU Symphonic Winds — a regular flute, an alto flute and a baby flute. That one’s called the piccolo.

Moorhouse introduces each instrument, asking players to perform short pieces so audience members will have an idea of different sounds. Which is important, because these audience members are special.

“They don’t often get a chance to go to concerts,” Moorhouse said. “This is a chance for the kids and their families to attend a concert without worrying about having to be quiet.”

Which wasn’t a problem, because the Symphonic Winds didn’t offer many chances to sit still.

“Dance as much as you like,” Moorhouse said. “Clap your hands. You can even sing.”

And the audience did.

“We’d like this to become an annual event,” Moorhouse said.

A Special Concert for Special Friends, the event is called. It’s a musical concert experience designed specifically for autistic children and their families.

“But it’s more than that,” Jamie S. Tindle said. “We reach out to all families with children with special needs. So, this concert was open to everybody.”

Tindle is executive director of Families Helping Families, which serves as a networking agency for people with disabilities. Moorhouse is associate director of bands at LSU and conductor of the LSU Symphonic Winds.