Guest conductor to work with young musicians
On Sunday, May 5, guest conductor Keitaro Harada will lead the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra’s 85-member Philharmonia in “Critical Mass(es)” at 4:30 p.m. It follows a weeklong residency where Harada will work with the EYSO while also visiting local schools.
The concert will be performed at Elgin Community College Arts Center’s Blizzard Theatre, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin. Concert tickets will be sold in advance and at the door. For tickets, call the ECC box office at (847) 622-0300 or online at tickets.elgin.edu. Tickets for reserved seating are $25, $20 for senior citizens, and $14 for students.
The EYSO regularly gives students the opportunity to work with internationally renowned musicians and conductors. Having the opportunity to interact in this way with a professional conductor of Harada’s caliber will be quite an experience for those he will meet during his residency. Harada is increasingly recognized as a conducting luminary of the next generation.
In March 2013, he conducted the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra in a prestigious showcase that occurs biennially in an effort to promote gifted, emerging conductors to orchestra industry leaders. He also is music director for Phoenix Youth Symphony, an organization internationally recognized as one of the premiere youth orchestras in the United States.
In addition to his work with the EYSO’s Philharmonia (one of the two high-school aged groups), Harada will visit several local high schools to share his knowledge, experience, and expertise. His passion for music and the development of student musicians is second to none and the EYSO is honored to bring him to the area for this residency.
Harada is scheduled to visit these high schools where he will work directly with the school’s student musicians: April 30: Neuqua Valley High School, Naperville; May 1: Metea Valley High School, Aurora; and May 3: Geneva High School.
To learn more about the EYSO and the opportunities offered to student musicians throughout the Chicago area, visit www.eyso.org, or call the EYSO office at (847) 841-7700. To learn more about Harada, visit www.kharada.com.