Geneva man who volunteers for Elgin youth orchestra gets statewide award

A Geneva volunteer videographer who's become "an invaluable member" of the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra was recognized by a statewide group.

Anthony Riani was named Volunteer of the Year by the Illinois Council of Orchestras, which gives out the annual awards "for excellence in the field of music performance and for support of musical organizations." The 2020 award presentations have been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

For the last five years, Riani has been video recording and editing every rehearsal and concert of the Elgin youth orchestra - "a priceless resource" in a library of thousands of hours of high-quality video, youth orchestra officials said.

"We all appreciate his dependability, flexibility and generosity of time," Artistic Director Matthew Sheppard said. "But most of all, we value his enthusiasm and ever-cheerful 'Yes, we can!' attitude."

Riani, 54, works as a freelancer in IT and web development, and is the father of two orchestra players: Anaka, 20, an alumna now in college, and Rebecca, 16, who plays the violin. He also cares for his mother, who lives in West Chicago.

Volunteering for the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra has been fun and rewarding, Riani said.

"I love the music and I love watching the process of the orchestra, from the time they get the music to how they progress through the concert. It's really interesting," said Riani, who started playing the trombone in fifth grade and later played with the Addison Community Band.

"A lot of the times, I close my eyes, and it's hard to believe it's kids playing. They just sound so good."

Youth orchestra officials praised Riani for his top-notch memory, saying he's almost always able to remember and locate video of specific moments, and for his original ideas, such as making personalized videos for students during last year's annual student-led fundraising campaign.

These days, Riani is helping set up a virtual end-of-season concert for the youth orchestra, to be released May 10.

"I spent a fair amount of time collaborating with staff, with EYSO, on making a game plan. The kids have to submit their performance videos this week," he said.

Next will come the big job: meshing all the videos together for a cohesive concert experience, which Riani said he's hopeful will come together seamlessly.

Riani said he's grateful to volunteer for an organization whose mission he believes in.

"It's definitely mutual," he said. "They have made it known they are very grateful, and it makes it that much easier for me to do what I am doing."