Our Baroque Symphony Showdown selections are Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons and Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto no. 1. Read on for more about the Baroque period and these two pieces. The Baroque period was born out of an explosion of new artistic styles in Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries. This period marks the end of the Renaissance in Europe, during …
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Welcome to CYSO’s Summer Symphony Showdown! We are excited for this opportunity to learn a bit more about music history while engaging in a little friendly competition. Using your votes on weekly Instagram polls, we will decide the CYSO community’s favorite symphony of all time! We’ve compiled a selection of some of our favorite symphonies (thanks to those who weighed …
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Musician Anthony McGill—principal clarinet with New York Philharmonic and a CYSO alum—started the #TakeTwoKnees project following the deaths of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery. McGill posted a video of himself performing “America the Beautiful” in a mournful minor key and then kneeling. In the caption, he encouraged the audience to take a stand for the Black community by posting images and …
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CYSO Symphony Orchestra violinist Shreya Dudeja attended the Chicago Vigil for Elijah McClain that took place earlier this month. She wrote about how we honor Elijah and other Black people who have been lost of police violence and racism, and the experience to gathering with other string players to mourn and honor their memories through music-making.  On July 11th, hundreds …
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None of us could’ve imagined the world we’d be living in this spring, especially members of the class of 2020. We know that this was not the senior year or graduation season envisioned by any of our seniors, yet we’ve all been touched and impressed by the creativity shown through video performances, drive-by graduation ceremonies, and the many virtual events …
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CYSO students recently played for a worldwide audience on CNN’s 4th of July broadcast. “The Fourth in America” featured a virtual performance from members of Symphony Orchestra performing Aaron Copland’s Hoe-Down. Fitting for the piece’s theme, it was paired with video from the fireworks display over Houston, Texas and seen by audiences from across the country and around the world. …
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