Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra explores music through the lens of art in 2024-25 season
How do you paint a symphony? That is the question the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra explores in its 2024-25 season. The theme for the 49th season is “Soundscapes.”
Recognized by the Illinois Council of Orchestras for its innovative programming and artistic leadership, the EYSO’s season theme uses visual art as a lens for musicians and audiences alike to explore and understand orchestral music.
“Visual art readily provides rich and tangible opportunities for exploration, whether you are an expert or amateur lover. From texture, color, light and contrast to subject matter, form and medium, we can use the same concepts to explore music,” said Matthew Sheppard, artistic director. “Our 2024-25 season demystifies symphonic music by inviting both our musicians and audiences to engage in ways of noticing that are familiar.”
The EYSO’s first concert of the season in Elgin Community College’s Blizzard Theater on Nov. 10 is headlined by Dmitri Shostakovich’s Ninth Symphony. Its quicksilver changes between brilliant humor and overwhelming terror, manic joy and debilitating depression, and biting sarcasm and utter sincerity resonate powerfully with and are put to incredible effect by the Youth Symphony’s accomplished young musicians.
At the start of the program, audiences will feel the physical power and total commitment of the EYSO musicians as the Blizzard Theater resonates with Leopold Stokowski’s arrangement of J.S. Bach’s Toccata and Fugue.
In two concerts earlier in the day, listeners can explore Antonín Dvořák’s Eighth Symphony and witness the progression of talent from the EYSO’s youngest ensembles in music by Benjamin Britten, Edward Elgar, and Ralph Vaughan Williams.
For more information about the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra and tickets, visit www.EYSO.org.
The first concert at 1:30 p.m. features the EYSO Prelude Orchestra, led by conductor Michael McNaughton, in Arlen and Harburg’s “Over the Rainbow,” arranged by Andy Masters; the “Frolicsome Finale” of Benjamin Britten’s “Simple Symphony”; and Edward Elgar’s “Nimrod,” arranged by Mitchell Bender. The Sinfonia/Philharmonia Percussion Ensemble, with director Joe Beribak, will perform “Lift-Off” by Russell Peck. The Sinfonia Orchestra, led by conductor Greg Schwaegler, will play Ralph Vaughan Williams’ “Concerto Grosso,” arranged by Greg Schwaegler.
The second concert at 4:30 p.m. features the Brass Choir, with director Dan Sartori, playing Henri Tomasi’s “Fanfares Liturgiques.” The Flute Choir, with director Ruth Cavanaugh, will play Timothy Hagen’s “Big and Bright” and Catherine McMichael’s “For Love of Swans.” The Philharmonia Orchestra, led by conductor Aaron Kaplan, will perform Jessie Montgomery’s “Hymn for Everyone” and Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No. 8 in G major, Op. 88.
At 7 p.m., the Youth Symphony Percussion Ensemble, with director Joe Beribak, will play Susan K. Powell’s “Carpe Diem.” The Youth Symphony, led by Matthew Sheppard, will perform J.S. Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565, orchestrated by Leopold Stokowski; and Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 9 in E-flat major, Op. 70.
The three “Canvas” concerts will be held in the Blizzard Theater, in the Elgin Community Arts Center, 1700 Spartan Drive, Building H, Elgin.
Tickets are $27, $22 for seniors, and $14 for students with a valid student ID. Tickets can be purchased online from the ECC box office at www.eccartscenter.org or by calling (847) 622-0300.
The box office is open Monday through Thursday from noon to 6 p.m., Saturdays from noon to 5 p.m., and 90 minutes prior to each performance.
Free parking is available directly in front of Building H, ECC Arts Center, using parking lots G, H, I, J and K. Look for the red pole signs in the parking lot.
About the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestras
The mission of EYSO 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 excellent music.
The Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestras has a national reputation for providing not only an engaging musical experience for its students, but also a comprehensive learning environment which promotes curiosity, imagination, critical thinking, and collaboration.
With five large ensembles, three small ensembles, and a thriving Chamber Music Institute, EYSO auditions record numbers of students each year in addition to the hundreds of musicians who already enjoy its rigorous methods of inquiry and "expert noticing."
Under the leadership of Artistic Director Matthew Sheppard, the students of EYSO explore a comprehensive curriculum each season — one which aims not only to help these students develop artistically and technically, but also to prepare them for a future of complex ideas, creative risk-taking, and leadership as global citizens.
The dynamic and engaging rehearsals foster musical and personal growth as students develop into well-rounded and thoughtful communicators, and leaders in their sections, ensembles, schools, and communities.
This thoughtful and attentive approach that is the hallmark of EYSO has led hundreds of alumni to successful careers as professional musicians, educators, and leaders in every field.
It’s what we call “educating the whole musician”: preparing students for a lifelong journey of inquiry, creativity and growth. Regardless of alumni’s pursuits, their EYSO experience as a valued member of a thought-provoking, fair, and encouraging creative environment continues to serve them well.
The Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestras would not exist today without the generous support of families, audience members, and donors. Sponsorship of the EYSO inspires artistry, confidence, and curiosity in hundreds of young musicians in the Chicago area.
To learn more about the pedagogical approach that EYSO conductors and coaches use in delivering the EYSO mission please visit the Illinois Comprehensive Musicianship through Performance (CMP) page.
Visit EYSO.org or call (847) 841-7700 to learn more.
About Matthew Sheppard, Artistic Director and Conductor, Youth Symphony
With passionate artistry and innovation, Chicago-based conductor and educator Matthew Sheppard leads orchestras, students, and audiences to transformative experiences across the Midwest. He is the artistic director of the award-winning Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestras and the Hyde Park Youth Symphony, music director of the Danville Symphony Orchestra, and director of the University of Chicago Chamber Orchestra and the Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Company of Chicago.
Sheppard has guest conducted orchestras in North and South America, including the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Elgin Symphony Orchestra, Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional del Paraguay, Chicago Philharmonic, Champaign Urbana Symphony Orchestra, Danville Symphony Orchestra, Lake Geneva Symphony Orchestra, and the Blue Lake International Youth Symphony. In 2022-23, he was visiting faculty at Northwestern’s Bienen School of Music, serving as guest resident conductor of the Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra and teaching conducting.
As the artistic director of the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestras, Sheppard leads a team of dedicated educators in providing a comprehensive music education to nearly 400 students and families each year. The professional repertoire and thematic curriculum explored each year is designed not only to help student musicians develop artistically and technically, but also to prepare them for a future of complex ideas, creative risk-taking, and leadership as global citizens. This approach led to EYSO being named 2021 Youth Orchestra of the Year by the Illinois Council of Orchestras and to Sheppard being awarded ICO Conductor of the Year in 2022.
As a teacher, Sheppard inspires students to nurture a deep love and understanding of music and performing. His courses on conducting, musicianship, and active listening have been highly received at Northwestern, the University of Chicago, and the University of Illinois, and he is sought after as a clinician and coach to young musicians across the Midwest. Sheppard serves as past-president of the IL Comprehensive Musicianship through Performance (IL CMP) Committee as it encourages teaching with intention and performing with understanding.
Sheppard studied with Donald Schleicher as a doctoral candidate in orchestral conducting at the University of Illinois, and before that he earned his master’s degree in orchestral conducting under Gerardo Edelstein at Penn State University. Past positions include Music Director of the Sangamon Valley Civic Orchestra and Youth Symphony, Orchestra Director at Juniata College, and Assistant Conductor of the Central Pennsylvania Youth Orchestra. He holds bachelor’s degrees in Liberal Arts, Music Education, and Violin Performance from Penn State where he studied with Max Zorin.