Our 64tH
Season
2019-20 Season Highlights
Gheens Great Expectations Concert at Whitney Hall on February 5
This year's Gheens Concert featured the Louisville Orchestra, the Louisville Youth Orchestra's Symphony Orchestra, and the 2020 Gheens Artist Clayton Stephenson, piano. The program opened with Beethoven's First Piano Concerto with Clayton Stephenson and the remarkable musicians of the Louisville Orchestra. The LYO Symphony Orchestra then joined the LO for a side-by-side performance of Dvorak's Carnival Overture and Borodin's Polovtsian Dances from Prince Igor. The combined orchestra of more than 120 musicians gave an exhilarating performance that concluded with a thunderous, standing ovation. Doug Elmore, LYO Music Director, conducted the entire concert.
The Gheens Concert provides an important educational experience for the young LYO musicians and we are grateful for the nurturing support of the Louisville Orchestra musicians. The concert was free to the public.
The concert was presented by Kentucky Performing Arts and Kentucky Music Educators Association (KMEA), in partnership with the Louisville Orchestra and the Louisville Youth Orchestra, with generous support from The Gheens Foundation, with additional support from Kentucky Music Educators Association, Classical 90.5 WUOL and from Dr. Laman Gray and Juliet Cooper Gray.
Cinema Stocking Stuffers Pops Concert at YPAS on December 15
The Repertory, Concert, and Serenade Orchestras presented a Pops Concert for the Holidays.
Featuring three of LYO's amazing Horizons ensembles: Single Reed, Treble, and Brass
Plus the LYO Percussion Ensemble. More than 180 talented young musicians!
Photos: Yenny Ho, LUZ-OM Photography
The Power of One middle school concert at Brown Theater on November 25
More than 1,000 middle school students from throughout the region attended LYO's annual middle school concert at the historic Brown Theater. This free concert is made possible through the support of individual patrons who remember the importance of "Making Music" concerts when they were young. Teachers were given program notes in advance to explain this musical tribute to people throughout history who have taken a heroic stand and changed the world. Music on the program depicts their passion, commitment, and principles:
Compositions included Maid of Orleans overture (Tchaikovsky), Creatures of Prometheus overture (Beethhoven), Lyric for Strings (George Walker) and El Cid (James Massenet).
Sea Changes at the Brown Theater on Sunday, November 24, 2019
Sea Change was a Classical Concert featuring all four of the LYO orchestras. The excerpts below are taken from each orchstra's program. The program featured music inspired by significant transformations of social and personal norms. Composers included Mendelssohn, Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, Sibelius, Walker, and Massenet.
The Symphony Orchestra also performed portions of the program at the LYO Middle School Concert, The Power of One, at the Brown Theater on Monday, November 25.
Symphony Orchestra
Doug Elmore, Conductor, Symphony Orchestra
Suite from El Cid
--- Jules Massenet
I. Castillane
II. Andalouse
III. Aragonaise
IV. Aubade
V. Catalane
VI. Madrilene
VII. Navarraise
Repertory Orchestra
Jason Hougland, Conductor, Repertory Orchestra
Procession of the Sardar
From Caucasian Sketches
--- Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov
Concert Orchestra
Christopher Lerner, Conductor, Concert Orchestra
Impresario Overture
--- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Musical Menangerie concert at Highland Hills Middle School on November 10
The Serenade Orchestra and all three Horizons Ensembles performed for an enthusiastic audience.
Serenade Orchestra, Elise Kotheimer Gambrell, Conductor, Serenade Orchestra
Treble Ensemble
Katie McDonald, Coach
Brass Ensemble
John Little, Coach
Single Reed Ensemble
Brandon Bell, Coach
Photos: Yenny Ho, LUZ-OM Photography
The Violins of Hope is a collection of more than 50 restored instruments played by Jewish musicians during the Holocaust.
The LYO Symphony strings joined members of the NouLou Chamber Players honoring these legendary instruments and the people who cherished them.
It was a stirring program to a full house with a thunderous standing ovation.
Adagio for Strings (Samuel Barber)
Octet featuring members of the LYO Symphony Strings and NouLou Chamber Players.
Praeludium, Op.12a (Victor Kohn)
Uv'tzeil K'nofecho (Grunfeld/Zikmund Schul)
These two pieces were written by prisoners in the Terezin concentration camp. Unfortunately there is little information about the composers and neither survived their imprisonment. Doug Elmore, LYO Music Director, arranged each so that they can be appreciated today.
Theme from Schindler's List (John Williams)
John Williams' score for Schlinder's List represented a dramatic shift in his compositional style and earned the 1994 Academy Award for Best Original Score.
Learn more about Violins of Hope at https://violinsofhopelou.com/