When John Kolivas was a kid, his mother took him to see the Honolulu Symphony. The experience stayed with him — the conductor was dramatic, the music was exciting, and even though at the time he wasn't much into classical music, the seeds of inspiration were planted.

Years later, after serving as musical director for the Beamer brothers in Waikiki, moving to New York and playing on Broadway, the jazz bassist came home to Hawai'i, and on his mother's insistence, auditioned for the Honolulu Symphony. Some of his dearest memories are of looking out into the audience and seeing his mother and his two young children, Kainalu and Kalei, beaming with pride.

The Honolulu Symphony is made of stories like this, of people who devoted their lives to music, of children whose worlds were opened up by a single concert, of people who found inspiration or solace in performances of timeless music.

Many people in Hawai'i are hurting right now with pay cuts and layoffs, but not many keep working for no money. The orchestra musicians haven't been paid for three months, but they've kept playing.

"My wife is a bookkeeper and she tells me, 'We're not making it,' " Kolivas said. "I'm struggling, but the ones I feel sorry for are the married couples who both work for the symphony."

Like many of the orchestra's musicians, Kolivas is doing what he can to pay the bills. He teaches lessons and assists with the Punahou School orchestra. He also plays on a dinner cruise and performs with his Honolulu Jazz Quartet. Symphony members are going through their savings, taking in roommates, cutting back. Yet they keep playing.

"We recently had near-capacity crowds for the Beethoven Festival and Carmina Burana programs," Kolivas said. "Lately, the concerts have been really well attended. People kind of need music right now."

Ticket sales only account for a portion of the symphony budget. The rest is corporate and individual donations, as with most orchestras throughout the country. For the 100-year-old orchestra to continue, the community has to help.

Kolivas laughs at the comparison to the musicians on the Titanic who played on as the ship went down. In his view, they weren't playing music because there was nothing else they could do. "They were lifting the spirits of the people on the boat."

Lee Cataluna's column runs Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Reach her at 535-8172 or lcataluna@honoluluadvertiser.com.