Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra Performance at Lake Eola.

Posted on by Thor

On Saturday, December 5, the Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra kicked off the holiday season with the sixth annual WKMG News 6 Holiday Concert benefiting the Salvation Army. It was a spirited performance of holiday-inspired classics at Lake Eola Park. In celebration of the holiday season, the event was broadcast live by WKMG Local 6, and featured all four orchestras of the FSYO.

 “It’s a highlight of our year to partner with WKMG and have our student musicians provide live music in the annual holiday concert at Lake Eola,” said FSYO President Stephen Schenck. “This concert gives us the opportunity to celebrate the holiday season with the community and at the same time help the Salvation Army Angel Tree Program, which provides children in our community gifts to open Christmas morning. Gifts they would not normally receive.”

Hosted by WKMG the News 6 Morning Show talent, Bridgett Ellison and David Hall, the concert featured holiday sing-alongs and a very special appearance by Santa Claus. I also spotted a cow wearing a Santa cap, but I didn’t manage to get it in the sketch. Admission was free to all, but a monetary donation or unwrapped toy donation for the Salvation Army was encouraged.

The Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra aims to educate and inspire Central Florida’s top young musicians through programs committed to strengthening musical talents and developing appreciation of the arts through classical music. The FSYO, in its 59th Concert Season, comprised of three full orchestras, one string training orchestra and various chamber groups, made up of more than 250 students from eight Central Florida counties, including Orange, Osceola, Lee, Seminole, Brevard, Lake, Highlands and Volusia. Programs are sponsored in part by the Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs; the Florida Council on Arts and Culture; and United Arts of Central Florida.

2nd Annual Holiday Benefit Concert

Posted on by Thor

The Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra performed a Holiday Concert in the Lake Eola Band Shell. The primary purpose of the FSYO is education. All programs reflect a commitment to provide young musicians with the opportunity to strengthen their musical talents and develop an appreciation of the arts through classical music.The first orchestra to perform was the Prelude Orchestra. A cow in a Santa suit got on the conductors podium as the children warmed up. The cow wasn’t a conductor at all! He was a mascot for Chick Fill-a promoting the mass murdering of chickens as apposed to cows. For the rest of the concert he remained on the sidelines, occasionally throwing cow T-shirts into the audience. Beth Marshall once told me that Chick Fill-a company policy does not recognize, and opposes same sex couples so I stopped eating there.

The first few pieces by the Symphony were embarrassingly bad yet there were enough parents in the audience to offer thunderous applause anyway. I was seated in the front row at stage right. I started sketching chairs to block in the sketch figuring I would fill them with children when they got on stage. Unfortunately the first orchestra only filled a few seats. The next orchestra was filled with slightly older children and the music started to feel more unified. A special guest was announced and Santa Conducted the orchestra. Audience members brought new gifts and donations for the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree Program. The concert will air Christmas morning at 6am on WMKG-TV Local 6.