ORLANDO, FL – Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras (FSYO), in partnership with the Central Florida Composers Forum (CF2), welcomes back the Composers in Residency program with an added component. The Composers in Residency program is a partnership between FSYO and CF2 that began in 2019, and this collaboration gave CF2 composers the opportunity to have their pieces premiered and performed. In its inaugural year, the selected composers created pieces centered around the theme “Pulse,” tasked with interpreting the word into their compositions. The idea was to reflect on the lives lost at the Orlando Pulse shooting, the musical term, or even human blood pumping through the heart.
During the first phase of this collaboration, CF2 composers directly worked with FSYO’s ensembles and conductors, but entering this season, CF2 and FSYO wanted to take the program to the next level by providing FSYO Students and Alumni interested in music composition the opportunity to work alongside and be mentored by the CF2 Composer in Residency. The idea is to have both the professional and student composer working on pieces simultaneously to be premiered side by side during the same concert, and over the course of a year, the mentor (Composer) and mentee (Student) would meet up to discuss their pieces, any challenges they were facing, etc. For this next phase, the pairings between CF2 composers and FSYO students were as followed:
- Alphonse Carlo Jazz Band: Alex Burtzos and Victor Acuna
- Prelude Orchestra: Brando Martin and Cole Spencer
- Philharmonia Orchestra: Seunghee Lee and Isabelle Tseng
- Symphonic Orchestra: Keith Lay and Alex Hynds
These eight compositions will be premiered over the course of the following 12 months beginning this Saturday at the Alphonse Carlo Jazz Band’s 66th Season Finale! The other six works will premiere during FSYO’s 67th Season (August 2023 to May 2024). Burtzos and Acuna are looking forward to sharing their pieces with the world and excited they are kicking off the premieres.
"Sin City is a raucous, fast-paced swing tune meant to evoke the glitz, glamor, and heady adrenaline of an idealized Vegas in its prime. The FSYO Alphonse Carlo Band is a fantastic ensemble full of extraordinary young musicians. It's been a tremendous pleasure to work with them throughout this process. Thanks to FSYO and the Central Florida Composers Forum for making this recurring collaboration a reality!"
-Alex Burtzos, FSYO 2022-2023 Composer in Residency
FSYO is extremely proud of its lasting collaboration with CF2 as it provides opportunities for student composers and local composers to connect and learn from each other.
Come hear Sin City and Cavalcade this Saturday, May 6, 2023, at Blue Bamboo Center for the Arts! Tickets can be purchased at the door or online by visiting: https://bluebambooartcenter.com/event/4708681/635865820/alphonse-carlo-jazz-band-5-6-23. The concert begins at 11 AM, so don’t be late!
ABOUT ALEX BURTZOS: Alex Burtzos is an American composer and conductor based in New York City and Orlando, FL. His music has been performed across four continents by some of the world's foremost contemporary musicians and ensembles, including JACK Quartet, Yarn/Wire, loadbang, Contemporaneous, ETHEL, Jenny Lin, RighteousGIRLS, Decoda, and many others. Alex is the founder and artistic director of ICEBERG New Music, a New York-based composers' collective, and conductor of the hip-hop/classical chamber orchestra ShoutHouse.
Alex holds a DMA from Manhattan School of Music, where his primary teachers were Reiko Fueting and Mark Stambaugh. He is the Endowed Chair of Composition Studies at the University of Central Florida, where he teaches composition, orchestration, film scoring, video game scoring, and music technology. His music is published by Just a Theory Press, NewMusicShelf, and others.
ABOUT VICTOR ACUNA: Victor Acuna is a current student at University of Central Florida (UCF), working towards a degree in both Computer Engineering and a Bachelor of Arts in Music. Victor mainly plays clarinet and saxophone and has been playing both since middle school. He has been involved in many bands outside of school, including All State, All County, DRF's clarinet and saxophone ensembles, and the FSYO Carlo Jazz Band. Alongside Cavalcade, Victor has made a couple of original pieces, and he is interested in pursuing a career in Audio Engineering/Music Production.
ABOUT CENTRAL FLORIDA COMPOSERS FORUM: Founded in 2011, the Central Florida Composers Forum is an organization of composers and new music practitioners dedicated to engaging the creative and larger community of Central Florida through the promotion of original and innovative music programming. Central Florida Composers Forum strives to be part of a larger cultural conversation where the musical, visual, and other performing arts connect with audiences, foster vital collaborations, and produce multidisciplinary performances. Cultivating an audience for new music through education, workshops, and outreach programs that create memorable artistic experiences for youth and community members are also central to our mission.
ABOUT FSYO: Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras empowers young musicians to achieve excellence and inspire their communities through a shared love of music. In its 66th Concert Season, FSYO serves over 275 students and comprises seven ensembles - three symphony orchestras, one string-training orchestra, two jazz bands, a percussion ensemble, and Stringmania Summer Camp.
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 and Alphonse Carlo Jazz Band students participate in life-changing experiences of organized tours, alternating between international and national travel.
Programs are sponsored in part by Orlando Utilities Commission - The Reliable One; the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture, the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, and the National Endowment for the Arts; and United Arts of Central Florida, home of OrlandoAtPlay.com and UAArtsEd.com. FSYO thanks these groups for their generous support.
Website: www.fsyo.org | Facebook: facebook.com/THEFSYO | Instagram: @f_s_y_o | YouTube: youtube.com/fsyo
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