FLORIDA SYMPHONY YOUTH ORCHESTRAS ANNOUNCES 2019 CHINA TOUR WITH PERFORMANCES IN BEIJING, XI'AN, HANGZHOU, AND SHANGHAI
ORLANDO, FL - On Thursday, June 27, the Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras' (FSYO) students, parents, and staff will embark on an East Asia tour to explore famous landmarks and perform breathtaking concerts across China. Immersed in new cultures, students will gain a well-rounded experience of a lifetime during their two-week journey. Not only will students have the opportunity to meet youth from other countries, but they will also have the benefit of playing, and learning, alongside each other.
When asked how this tour will impact both FSYO students and Chinese audiences Mr. Hanrich Claassen, FSYO Music Director, remarked, "My hope for our FSYO musicians is to be inspired as life-long learners by this opportunity to travel to foreign lands and get to know a different culture. In turn, I am proud to offer to our audiences in China an engaging selection of music played by a group of diverse and accomplished musicians from Central Florida".
A highlighted piece from the tour program, building of a city, is a commissioned work by ASCAP's 2019 Young Composer Award recipient and former student of Claassen, Sam Wu. Born in Shanghai, the young composer recently completed his studies at one of the world's top music conservatories, The Juilliard School, after receiving his A.B. from Harvard University. Additional pieces that are being performed are by Balakirev, Copland, Chabrier, Mendelssohn, Dvorak, and Yuankai.
Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras' Touring Symphony is honored to perform for audiences in Beijing, Xi'an, Hangzhou, and Shanghai. Information on tickets for concerts at The Forbidden City Concert Hall, the Concert Hall of Xi'an Conservatory, the Zhejiang Concert Hall, and the Shanghai City Theatre in can be found online at www.fsyo.org.
ABOUT FSYO: Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras exists to encourage children and young adults, through the practice and performance of orchestral music, to become passionate leaders, thinkers, and contributors in their local community and beyond. In its 62nd Concert Season, FSYO serves almost 300 students and is comprised of seven ensembles - three symphony orchestras, one string-training orchestra, a chamber orchestra, two jazz orchestras - and two supplementary programs - Stringmania Summer Camp and Sing-Song, String-Along.
FSYO programs are carefully structured to encourage student growth with FSYO throughout their primary and secondary years. Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras full range of ensembles gives each student a place to excel with peers at a similar level, and an opportunity to collaborate with seasoned music professionals on local, national, and international levels. During summers, Symphonic Orchestra students participate in life-changing experiences of organized tours, alternating between international & national travel every other year.
Programs are sponsored in part by the Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs; the Florida Council on Arts and Culture; Orlando Utilities Commission; The City of Orlando, Mayor's Matching Grant; and United Arts of Central Florida. We thank these groups for their generous support.
Learn more: web: www.fsyo.org | FB: @TheFSYO | Twitter: @FSYO | IG: @F_S_Y_O | Youtube: @fsyo
For today's #FeatureFriday we are showing our appreciation to Mr. Osvaldo Quezada for being a teacher, conductor, and mentor to young students in the Central Florida community. Mr. Quezada's main instruments are classical and jazz saxophone and double bass. Mr. Quezada is the Orchestra Director and Piano Instructor for Edgewater High School where he teaches orchestra, piano, and guitar to students in ninth through twelfth grade.
We asked Mr. Quezada why he enjoys teaching and he said, "With the understanding that I have taught most of my fourteen-year career, in title one schools with many underprivileged and disadvantaged students. I do not take it lightly when I say; I teach to make a difference. Students at these schools deserve a quality education from a qualified and certified teacher that cares about the overall quality of education including the fine arts."
Mr. Quezada realized he wanted to become a teacher when he was in the seventh grade at Nautilus Junior High in Miami, FL. This was after he migrated to the United States from Panama City, Panama to be a part of the band program. His music teacher Raymond Modia was instrumental in shaping his passion for music. While attending Miami Beach Senior High School under the direction of Reginald Nicholson his class was tutored by members of the New World Symphony and were given various opportunities to perform with the North Miami Community Band.
After he graduated high school Mr. Quezada went on to Bethune Cookman University to get an undergraduate degree in music and is now currently a Master's of Music Education Candidate at Florida State University where he will be studying abroad this summer in London, England. He will be studying conducting with Dr. Jimenez and will be conducting a chamber orchestra from the Royal School of Music.
Mr. Quezada is now finishing up his second year at Edgewater High School where they have already seen tremendous growth in their Orchestra program. His students are fascinated with the masterworks of composers such as Mozart, Bach, Holst, and Warlock. When asked why Mr. Quezada thinks music education is important he said, "Music education is important to the overall academic development of all human beings. Music is essential to all cultures, religions, and communities. I always tell my students that their life goals as true music fanatics, are to travel around the world and explore the culture of the music they performed in their perspective music ensembles". Mr. Quezada personally is looking forward to visiting the St. Paul School of Girls in London England this summer.
Today’s #FeatureFriday goes out to Mrs. Jennifer Erickson for being a teacher, conductor, and mentor to young students in the Central Florida community. Mrs. Erickson grew up singing and playing piano and percussion through her secondary school years. She has since learned to play viola, violin, cello, bass, and French Horn. She is now the Orchestra Director at Southwest Middle School where she teaches six classes of orchestra daily for four different levels, from beginning to advanced.
We asked Mrs. Erickson when she realized she wanted to be a teacher, she said, “I have always wanted to be a teacher. My mother was a teacher and I liked school. In early elementary school I wondered why other children were not singing the right notes. In middle school, I helped teach class when my music teacher was absent. By the time I was in high school I was student conducting, coaching my own ensembles for evaluation, and usually getting out of my other classes to teach music all day when my teacher was absent. My band and chorus teachers were major influences on my career choice, because they allowed me to take such an involved leadership role".
Once Mrs. Erickson graduated high school she attended Stetson University where she received her undergraduate degree in music education. She then went to the University of Miami for her Masters degree in Orchestral Conducting. Ms. Erickson has been teaching in the public school system for twenty-three years and is now on her sixth year at Southwest Middle School.
When asked why Mrs. Erickson thinks music education is important, she answered, “I believe everyone should have the opportunity to do music because it teaches so many wonderful things: cooperation, communication, dedication, persistence, responsibility, trust, self-expression, and so much more. Music can transcend barriers: language, ethnicity, and socio-economics. We can all make beautiful things happen together. Music creates bonds of acceptance, friendship, and family that many students don’t have anywhere else in life.”
Mrs. Erickson enjoys teaching music because it is her passion and she can’t imagine doing anything else for a career. One of her favorite parts of teaching is seeing the students learn how to play an instrument and watching them discover their incredible expressive potential that music can create.
FLORIDA SYMPHONY YOUTH ORCHESTRAS WINS LATEST ROUND OF AMPLIFY CENTRAL FLORIDA ARTS FUNDING
90.7 WMFE PROVIDES $2,500 IN ON-AIR & ONLINE MESSAGING TO LOCAL ARTS ORGANIZATION
ORLANDO — Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras has won the latest round of Amplify Central Florida arts funding. The contest brought together fans of arts organizations across Central Florida to choose their favorites.
Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras will get $2,500 in free on-air and online messaging on 90.7 WMFE and sister station 89.5 WMFV.
FSYO is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that has served Central Florida for 62 years. It is made up of nearly 300 students and seven ensembles: three symphonic orchestras, one string-training orchestra, a chamber orchestra, and two jazz orchestras.
Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras. Photo by Lindsay Parks Neel
"FSYO is fondly called Central Florida's best-kept secret," FSYO Executive Director Heide Evans Waldron said. "The Amplify funding will provide us with the opportunity to reach new audiences and share classical music through performance. This award will also help us spread the word that young musicians are fostered and educated in Central Florida — something to be very proud of."
About Community Communications Inc.: Community Communications Inc. is a non-profit, member-supported, community-based public broadcasting company that operates 90.7 WMFE-FM, metro Orlando's primary provider of NPR programming; 90.7-2 Classical; and since March 2018, 89.5 WMFV, public radio for The Villages, Leesburg and The Golden Triangle. Part of the community since 1980, Community Communications focuses on providing quality national and local news and programming. Visit wmfe.org and wmfv.org for more information.
ORLANDO, FL – On Saturday, March 9, 2019, treat yourself to the ultimate gala experience with Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras for its third annual Gala, Impressions of China, held at the Rosen Plaza Hotel, 9700 International Dr, Orlando, FL 32819.
This spectacular one-night-only event will include a reception and silent auction, a fabulous dinner prepared by the Rosen Plaza Hotel, and live music featuring one of the most famous orchestral works of Chinese music, Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto. Special Guest Jieming Tang, violinist, will perform the concerto accompanied by FSYO's Symphonic Orchestra led by Hanrich Claassen, Music Director and Symphonic Orchestra Director.
"We have a very special program planned for our Impressions of China Gala concert - some truly unique music. It is sure to transport you to the ancient lands of towering mountains, rolling hills and rivers of the Chinese countryside. We are excited to introduce to you violinist Jieming Tang, who will be our soloist in the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto. This work tells the story of the legend of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, often referred to as the Romeo and Juliet of China. The work beautifully depicts their tragic love story and ends with their spirits emerging in the form of a pair of butterflies and fly away together, never to be separated again." - Hanrich Claassen, Music Director and Symphonic Orchestra Conductor
Jieming Tang has been hailed by music critics Zachary Lewis and Mark Satola as "masterful and exciting". Tang began studying the violin at the age of three with his first teacher Tian Fang in Hefei, China. In 2010, he attended the Metro Catholic School and Saint Ignatius High School in Cleveland, Ohio. He is now a third-year student at the Juilliard School of Music in New York, where he studies violin with Joel Smirnoff and Donald Weilerstein. In addition, Tang has held the position of concertmaster of the National Youth Orchestra of China, Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra, and Handel Festival Orchestra, and assistant concertmaster of the Montclair Orchestra, Pacific Music Festival Orchestra, and Juilliard Orchestra.
Tickets for our Gala can be purchased at bit.ly/FSYOGala2019 and for more information please visit our website at, www.fsyo.org. The VIP reception will begin at 6 pm and tickets are $150. The concert will start at 8:30 pm and tickets are $30. This is one that you do not want to miss!
ABOUT FSYO: Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras exists to encourage children and young adults, through the practice and performance of orchestral music, to become passionate leaders, thinkers, and contributors in their local community and beyond. In its 62nd Concert Season. Today, FSYO serves almost 300 students and is comprised of seven ensembles - three symphony orchestras, one string-training orchestra, a chamber orchestra, two jazz orchestras - and two supplementary programs - Stringmania Summer Camp and Sing-Song, String-Along.
FSYO programs are carefully structured to encourage student growth with FSYO throughout their primary and secondary years. Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras full range of ensembles gives each student a place to excel with peers at a similar level, and an opportunity to collaborate with seasoned music professionals on local, national, and international levels. During summers, Symphonic Orchestra students participate in life-changing experiences of organized tours, alternating between international & national travel every other year.
Programs are sponsored in part by the Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs; the Florida Council on Arts and Culture; Orlando Utilities Commission; The City of Orlando, Mayor's Matching Grant; and United Arts of Central Florida. We thank these groups for their generous support.
ABOUT JIEMING TANG: Jieming Tang is a third-year student at the Juilliard School in New York, where he studies violin with Joel Smirnoff and Donald Weilerstein. Hailed by music critics Zachary Lewis and Mark Satola as "masterful and exciting", Jieming Tang is well along on his musical journey which began at the age of three. Jieming previously studied with Paul Kantor, Jaime Laredo, and Jan Sloman at the Young Artist Program of the Cleveland Institute of Music from 2010 to 2016 as a Starling Award recipient. As a violinist, Jieming has received a number of accolades both in the United States and abroad. He is a prizewinner of the Cooper International Violin Competition, 9th China National Violin Competition, and "Golden Beijing" National Young Artist Violin Competition, among many others. Jieming is also the recipient of the Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Award, the Sullivan Scholarship, and the Margaret W. Wong Scholarship for Extraordinary Foreign-Born Students.
Jieming Tang actively performs as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player. In 2016, he performed the Korngold Violin Concerto with the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra in the historic Severance Hall under the baton of Brett Mitchell, Associate Conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra. The Plain Dealer praised Jieming's performance: "The spirit of Heifetz hovered benevolently over Tang's performance as he navigated with great confidence the concerto's perilous technical heights and its challenging artistic depths." Jieming also performed as soloist with the Cleveland Pops Orchestra, BlueWater Chamber Orchestra, and Handel Festival Orchestra. In addition, Jieming has held the position of concertmaster of the National Youth Orchestra of China, Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra, and Handel Festival Orchestra, and assistant concertmaster of the Montclair Orchestra, Pacific Music Festival Orchestra, and Juilliard Orchestra. Jieming has led international tours as concertmaster, performing in venues including the Carnegie Hall and Beijing Concert Hall, among others. Jieming has appeared on National Public Radio's From the Top several times and launched his debut CD album in 2012 as part of From the Top's Arts Leadership Project. In 2015, Jieming was invited to perform with the Moscow Ballet alongside prima ballerina Nataliia Ivasenko on stage.
Jieming has attended the Perlman Music Program's Chamber Music Workshop, Pacific Music Festival, Meadowmount School of Music, Thomas and Evon Cooper Festival, among other festivals. For both solo and chamber music, Jieming has received guidance from many musicians including Itzhak Perlman, Leonidas Kavakos, Rainer Küchl, Frank Huang, Robert Lipsett, Joel Krosnick, Vivian Hornik Weilerstein, Samuel Rhodes, Julian Martin, James Buswell, David Cerone, Hu Kun, Roger Tapping, Fred Sherry, Joseph Lin, Clive Greensmith, Laurie Smukler, Peter Salaff, Annie Fullard, Merry Peckham, Kimbo Ishii, Gregory Fulkerson, Milan Vitek, David Bowlin, and Lara Lev, etc.
Jieming began studying the violin at the age of three with his first teacher Tian Feng in Hefei, China. At eight years old, he was accepted into the Central Conservatory of Music's pre-college division in Beijing, where he studied violin with Zhao Wei. After coming to the United States in 2010, he attended the Metro Catholic School and Saint Ignatius High School in Cleveland, Ohio in addition to his music studies.
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