It’s easy to think that classical music just happens. A long time ago, some guy scribbled some stuff on paper. Hundreds of years later, people wearing black pull their instruments out of cases, play the notes that dead guy wrote, and then go back home.

There’s so much more to it, though. Every performance, every piece, every note is the result of hundreds of different stories, and we like to think that every patron leaves The Phil with a new story of their own.

We want to help you share your stories. To that end, we’re dusting off the Phil U name and re-imagining the program as a way to give young professionals unprecedented access to The Phil and a chance to tell their own tales.

Over the course of the 2012/13 season, members of Phil U will receive complimentary tickets to ten Phil concerts, as well as access to special events designed to give participants a look at what goes on behind the scenes. In return, we ask that Phil U members blog, vlog, Tweet or Facebook about the experiences they’re having with The Phil.

We’re not trying to turn you into an army of marketers. We would like to find out, in your own words, what you love about The Phil, and what we can do to make the concert-going experience better for people who aren’t the “traditional demographic” for classical music.

We’ll re-blog, re-Tweet and link to the pieces that make us think, but you’ll always own all of your work. We’re hoping this results in a ton of interesting work and conversations about orchestras, classical music, the performing arts, Fort Wayne, and (especially) your experiences as a patron.

There’s more to going to The Phil than just listening to the notes. This season, we want to hear your stories.

Here’s what we need from you: shoot an e-mail to Alex Brown at abrown@fwphil.org with your name, age, and a paragraph or two about why you’re a good fit for Phil U. Be sure to include a link to your favorite thing you’ve made on the Internet, whether that’s a blog post, a photo, or even just a really well-crafted tweet.

We’ll announce this year’s Phil U class on September 17, so we need your submission by Friday, September 14. We look forward to swapping stories with you!