We are delighted at the Santa Fe Youth Symphony Association to welcome these three excellent musicians and conductors to our team. We look forward to the freshness and enthusiasm each of them will bring to working with their students and ensembles! Ryan Finn - Youth Philharmonic Conductor Elizabeth Young - Intermezzo String Orchestra Conductor Carla Kountoupes - Prelude String Orchestra Conductor (formerly Elementary String Orchestra) ABOUT RYAN FINN Ryan Finn is a New Mexico native and alumni of the Santa Fe Youth Symphony. He is currently the Band Director at Los Alamos Middle School where he has directed concert bands and jazz bands for the past five years. Ryan performs locally with a number of jazz and blues bands on trombone and leads a jazz group that performs many of his original compositions, most of which are in Caribbean and Latin American styles. Ryan received a Bachelors of Music Education in 2004 from Loyola University - New Orleans and a Masters of Educational Leadership in 2017 from New Mexico Highlands University. He regularly clinics middle school and high school bands from around the state and his own groups regularly receive Superior ratings at district festivals and the NM State Contest. Before returning to New Mexico in 2012, Ryan taught band, orchestra, and music theory for seven years at the St. Lucia of Music on the Caribbean island of St. Lucia. He also performed with many well known Caribbean musicians such as Luther Francois, Barbara Cadet, Alison Marquis, Ronald 'Boo' Hinkson, and Rob 'Zi' Taylor. While in St. Lucia, Ryan arranged and composed in a variety of local folk styles and has a portfolio of over 30 compositions. Some of these pieces include full symphonic works, musicals, jazz band charts, concert band arrangements, and more. In his free time, Ryan can be found hiking and skiing around Northern New Mexico with his wife, 3 children, and their dog. Fun facts about Ryan:
ABOUT ELIZABETH YOUNG Violinist and conductor Elizabeth Young has performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Merkin Hall, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Radio City Music Hall, St. John the Divine Cathedral, Trinity Church at Wall Street, and The United Nations, among other notable venues in NYC, as well as the National Gallery of Art and the Embassy of Italy in Washington, DC. She has appeared on the BBC, CBS, and CNN, and as an orchestral and chamber musician, she has performed numerous concerts with orchestras throughout the North America and Europe. In New Mexico, she is a regular performer with the New Mexico Philharmonic, the Santa Fe Symphony, the Santa Fe Opera, and with pianist Doug Montgomery at Vanessie’s, where she performs and improvises all styles and genres of music. As a conductor, she has led performances in North Carolina, New York, California, and Washington, DC. In a world-premiere opera performance with The New York Opera Society, her talents were highlighted in The Washington Post: “The singing and playing, under the baton of Elizabeth Young, were notably strong.” Additionally, Elizabeth is a dedicated and experienced teacher. Currently on the faculty of the New Mexico School for the Arts, her past students have attended music schools and conservatories around the world. Elizabeth looks forward to working with the students of the Intermezzo String Orchestra and bringing her passion, joy, and enthusiasm for music-making to the SFYSA! Fun facts about Elizabeth:
ABOUT CARLA KOUNTOUPES Carla Kountoupes is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and Oberlin College (Violin Performance/English Literature). She is a member of the Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra, Arizona Opera Orchestra, Santa Fe Pro Musica Chamber Orchestra, and the Piazzolla da Camera Piano Trio. An active freelance musician, she has toured and performed in orchestras and chamber ensembles in Central America, Taiwan, Germany, and all over the United States. She has previously been a member of the New Century Chamber Orchestra and the Costa Rican National Symphony Orchestra. As a chamber musician she frequently performs with the UP Quartet as part of the Chatter Chamber Music Series in Albuquerque, NM. She just recorded a CD for Centaur Records with the Piazzolla da Camera Piano Trio in July 2016 (due for release in 2017) and will be touring this year. Carla also enjoys performing and recording Latin, alt-rock, and jazz. A dedicated music educator, Carla holds a Master of Music degree in Music Teaching. She has taught private violin lessons to children and adults for more than 20 years and directs a thriving orchestra program in the Santa Fe Public Schools. In the summers she teaches and performs at the renowned Sitka Fine Arts Camp in Sitka, Alaska. She is honored to be joining the staff of the Santa Fe Youth Symphony Association as the conductor of the Elementary String Orchestra in the fall of 2017. Fun Facts about Carla:
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For the first time in its more than 20 year history, Santa Fe Youth Symphony Association (SFYSA) students came together and performed in a collaborative spring musical showcase on Tuesday, April 25th at The Lensic Performing Arts Center! This 90-minute concert featured students from the Jazz, Mariachi, and Orchestra programs, highlighted the excellence of students and staff, and was a wonderful opportunity to introduce ourselves to the Santa Fe Community. The “Music for Everyone” showcase served to inaugurate the inclusive phrase as SFYSA’s new tagline. For almost 23 years, SFYSA has made a place for all young musicians ages 7 to 18 by expanding performance and instruction opportunities beyond orchestra to include jazz and mariachi. The jazz ensemble kicked off the momentous night which featured various cross-ensemble and professional collaborations. Part of the magic of the night was witnessing SFYSA students share their personal stories about their inspiration to start playing an instrument and how SFYSA has created a community for them as young musicians. Youth Philharmonia and Youth Symphony Orchestras performed "Pavane" by Gabriel Faure with jazz quartet Andy Kingston, piano; Dave Anderson, soprano saxophone; Jon Gagan, bass and John Trentacosta, drums. The Santa Fe Youth Symphony said goodbye to two wonderful conductors, Richard Snider and Karles McQuade, who dedicated many years to the success of the SFYSA. The Mariachi Estrella ensemble collaborated with the Youth Symphony Orchestra in an homage to the late Juan Gabriel, world class pop and Spanish music master who donated to the SFYSA Mariachi program just before his untimely death in August 2016. Intermezzo String Orchestra students celebrated their final performance with conductor Karles McQuade with a world premier of "Zozobra" a commissioned piece by local composer Monica Demarco. For El Sueno de la Munequita, the Intermezzo String Orchestra collaborated with young dancers Grace Alexander, Flynn-Bella Ericson, Gigi Kalangis and the Ortiz Middle School Guitar Orchestra, directed by SFYSA Mariachi Director, Jesus Gachupin.
This past Saturday, Intermezzo String Orchestra took its annual trip down to Albuquerque to join some 400 Albuquerque violinists, violists, cellists, and bassists in the Albuquerque Middle-School Orchestra Festival. The Festival is conducted by teachers of the Albuquerque middle-schools, and this year was held at the gym at El Dorado High School, since it's very difficult to fit 400 kids in any ordinary auditorium. Each spring, Intermezzo takes no more than one rehearsal to learn the Festival music, both as a sight-reading exercise and to get a taste of the experience known to professionals as "being technically prepared, but maybe not situationally prepared." This way, students get to know that sometimes you must perform even if you aren't quite feeling ready. This is Intermezzo's fifth year with the Albuquerque Middle-School Orchestra Festival. - Karles McQuade, ISO Conductor Photo: Abby Furlanetto, Hanbi Park, Itai Rosen, and Siena Tan rehearse with about 100 other violas in the ABQ Mid-School Orchestra Festival.
On March 14, YSO students took a field trip to Los Alamos to visit and perform with and for the Los Alamos Middle School and High School.
SFYSA Jazz and Mariachi ensembles performed for delighted El Castillo residents on Sunday afternoon (March 12).
El Castillo is a continuing care retirement community in downtown Santa Fe, New Mexico, It was great collaborating with the greater New Mexico music community! I would definitely recommend it for future students!" Kudos to the Jazz Performance Ensemble for bringing home an 'Excellent' rating from the Albuquerque and University of New Mexico's Jazz Festival on Feb. 18, 2017. This was the first trip to the festival for the ensemble. Outstanding Improvisation awards were presented to Davis Harris (guitar), Beckett Maestas (guitar and piano), Max McCumber (sax), Johnathan Ware (sax), and Ben Ciener (bass). Beckett Maestas was also named Outstanding Guitarist of the entire festival. General comments from the adjudicators mentioned our musician's creativity, groove, and the multi-instrumental capacities of Jonathan and Beckett. Other highlights of the festival included a musical, informative, and humorous clinic by saxophonist Jeff Coffin and the closing concert featuring Jeff and drummer Matt Wilson with the UNM Jazz Band and the Albuquerque Jazz Orchestra. - Chris Ishee, Jazz Director WHAT OUR JAZZ STUDENTS ARE SAYING ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE
On Wednesday, December 28, Julie spent 90 minutes with 15 young musicians from New Mexico teaching exercises from the Caruso technique. All-State winners from this year and last year played solos for her and she worked with them individually. Adult French Horn players, and community members observed the class and inspiring exchange at the Santa Fe Youth Symphony's rehearsal space. Kids and adults alike were inspired and delighted. ABOUT JULIE LANDSMAN
Principal horn with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra for 25 years, Julie Landsman is a distinguished performing artist and educator. She received a bachelor of music degree from The Juilliard School in 1975 under the tutelage of James Chambers and Ranier De Intinis, and has served as a member of the Juilliard faculty since 1989. World renowned as a master teacher, Julie Landsman holds faculty positions at The Juilliard School and Bard College Conservatory, and teaches frequently as a guest at the Curtis Institute. She has presented master classes at such distinguished institutions as The Colburn School, Curtis Institute, Eastman School of Music, Mannes College of Music, Manhattan School of Music, USC Thornton School of Music, Cal State Long Beach, Rowan University, University of Oklahoma, and University of Southern Mississippi, to name a few. She is also a visiting master teacher at the New World Symphony in Miami. Her international presence includes master classes in Norway, Sweden, and Israel. In 2016 Landsman was an honored jury member at the ARD horn competition in Munich, Germany. Her recent series of Carmine Caruso lessons on YouTube have led to further fame and renown among today’s generation of horn players. Landsman currently resides in Nyack, New York. Full bio available at: Julielandsman.com December 11, 2016: Lensic Performing Arts Center To finalize the concert season, the Youth Symphony Orchestra performed two pieces with the Santa Fe Symphony during the 'Christmas Treasures' concert at the Lensic. This was the second time the YSO collaborated with the professionals of the SFS. Undoubtedly a fantastic opportunity for the kids, it was well received across the board. “Santa Fe Symphony musicians were very supportive and the audience was exceptionally excited to see the collaboration come to fruition once again.” William Waag, YSO Conductor. Photos: Artotems Co. Click to view large.
SFYSA executive director, Andrea Cassutt and Youth Symphony Orchestra conductor, William Reece Waag, talk youth symphony programs, instrument drive, side-by-side concert with The Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra & Chorus, and more on yesterday's The Voice of Santa Fe KVSF 101.5.
Click the image below to listen in!
The Winter Concert weekend kicked off the Friday of December 2 with the Jazz Concert at the Santa Fe Prep Driscoll Auditorium. Both the Jazz Essentials and Jazz Performance groups showcased their talent at the concert. Several students in both groups, performed using different instruments throughout the concert, exhibiting the student’s firm grasp and understanding of the structure and concept of each piece played. A few students sang, some doing it for the first time in front of an audience! Behind the scenes in preparation for the concert, all students contributed their ideas on the different arrangements performed.
Concert photos by Artotems Co. Click to view larger images.
Elementary Strings and Mariachi performed on Saturday, December 3 at the St. Francis Auditorium. According to ES Director, Sarah Gachupin, “the greatest feat for the Elementary Strings students was that they had never played with the other schools in the program but were able to come together with a 45-minute rehearsal and play amazingly well together.” Students also went with the flow when they had to change a couple of the notes at rehearsal.
The Mariachi Concert featured folk classics as well as some modernized arrangements of mariachi music featuring a significant crop of new students in the Mariachi Garibaldi group. The beginner students are already making progress and shaping up to be great future additions to the advanced group. Many of the Mariachi Estrella students have been part of the group for as long as 9 years! Mariachi Director, Jesus Gachupin remarks: “The level of the group has increased and the energy in rehearsals is exciting. Estrella students have always had a great level of talent but our cohesiveness as a group has solidified even more this year. I feel we’re a little mariachi family.” The group was accompanied by director Jesus Gachupin, violin instructor Gabe Tafoya, trumpet instructor Emily Maestas, and Guitarron parent volunteer, Steven Montano.
The Orchestras Concert took place on December 4, also at the St. Francis Auditorium where Intermezzo, Youth Philharmonia, and the Youth Symphony Orchestra groups all performed.
According to conductor, Karles McQuade, “the greatest challenge Intermezzo faced this semester was preparing and performing the tenor chorus "Wachet Auf" from JS Bach's Cantata no. 140. Nearly 6 minutes long, this work is double the standard length that Intermezzo usually performs.” In addition to the length, Intermezzo students were exposed to performing with baroque bows, which would have been appropriate for the music of Bach's era, but sound and feel very different from the modern conventional bows in place since the mid 1800s. Being a baroque work, the piece also called for a continuo part, usually played on organ or harpsichord. In this instance the part was played by one of our violinists, who also has previous keyboard experience, on the harpsichord. To pile on the challenges further, Intermezzo was joined by rev. Doug Escue, who sang the tenor part. Accompanying a singer, managing a full orchestral sound without drowning out a soloist, was yet a another new experience for Intermezzo. Despite all this novelty and challenge, the Intermezzo kids most certainly rose to the occasion, and will begin in the spring ready for, as Michael Palin puts it, "Something completely different." For the Youth Philharmonia performance, three students were asked to research the selection and composers of the pieces that the group would be performing. Olivia Bell, "Legend"; Dean Gonzales", Dance of the Tumblers" and Xitlalitl-Rodas, "La Cumparcita". Conductor Richard Snider remarks that “they did a splendid job not only in their research and substance, but in their presentation to a full auditorium.”
The Youth Symphony Orchestra worked on a Schubert symphony that was quite challenging, and they did a fine job getting through it. For the first time in years, the YSO has a full horn section of four, conductor William Waag remarked that they represented themselves very well on Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake. Above all, the organization is especially proud of the ensemble's continued growth, even in this rebuilding year (many seniors graduated in 2016), it's a great sign of up coming semesters/years.
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ABOUT USOur Mission is to inspire and engage the youth of Northern New Mexico's multicultural communities through excellent music education, the guidance of music professionals, and performance opportunities from small ensemble to full orchestra in Jazz, Mariachi and Orchestra. Archives
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