Experience youth orchestra through chamber concerts
This weekend, music lovers can find inspiration through classical works, and experience the talents of young musicians — for free.
On Sunday, Nov. 18, the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra Chamber Music Institute with Director Jacqueline Fisher presents several chamber ensembles in its first concerts of the 2012-13 season.
Four performances are scheduled at 1, 2:15, 3:30 and 4:45 p.m. at the Spartan Auditorium in the Elgin Community College Arts Center, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin. The performances are free and open to the public.
This also is Jacqueline Fisher’s first CMI concert as the new director of the EYSO Chamber Music Institute. She has studied violin since the age of 5; has played throughout Europe and the United States; and she has been recognized twice by Who’s Who Among American Teachers by the National Foundation for the Advancement of the Arts.
The chamber music concerts are just one great experience of many given the EYSO students. The EYSO musicians perform in many different venues throughout the year; Springfield, Ravinia, Park West and Scotland are among past performance venues allowing them to explore music and the opportunities for professional musicians.
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.
The 2012-13 “Invention” Season is a yearlong study of how music relates to innovation, invention and the art of seeing things differently. The three season concerts — “Inspiration,” “Blueprint,” and “Critical Mass(es)” — explore the connection between being inspired and the ability to turn that inspiration into a working idea.
The EYSO regular season includes nine concert performances at the Blizzard Theatre on the main campus of ECC. In addition, the Chamber Music Institute performs each semester, the Brass Choir performs every spring, and the EYSO honors chamber ensembles — the Maud Powell String Quartet, the Sterling Brass Quintet, and the Hanson String Quartet perform throughout the year.
The Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra, an in-residence ensemble in the Arts Center at Elgin Community College, is home to five orchestras and a brass choir with 350 students from over 55 communities. Founded in 1976, its mission is to create a community of young musicians, enriching their lives and the lives of their families, schools, communities and beyond, through the study and performance of music. Musicians work and study under artistic director Randal Swiggum who is celebrating his 15th year with the organization this season.