You may have never attended a concert by the Memphis Youth Symphony Program (MYSP), but you’ve surely heard its many former students playing around town. That’s because the MYSP has been attracting some of the best and brightest local classical players between the ages of 6 and 19 since 1966. Sam Shoup, director of the commercial music program at University of Memphis and a nationally celebrated arranger, is a MYSP alum, as is Jonathan Kirkscey, the genre-spanning cellist and soundtrack composer. The program’s current executive director, Jenny Davis, is also one, having parlayed that into her many years playing for the Memphis Symphony Orchestra (MSO) and other musical projects.
Now, after directing the organization for more than two years, Davis is ready to show off what its students are capable of, as they take to the stage at the Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center this coming Sunday, May 10th. A single ticket, available here, gets you into not one but three distinct concerts: one for the Prelude Strings, Intermezzo Orchestra, and Concert Band at 1 p.m.; one for the String Orchestra and Wind Ensemble at 3:30 p.m.; and one featuring the Repertory Orchestra and the Youth Symphony at 7 p.m.
“All of those ensembles are different groups,” Davis explains. “So we’ve got some string orchestras, and that includes Prelude Strings, and the Intermezzo and String Orchestras. Then we have Concert Band and Wind Ensemble that are wind bands. And then we have the Youth Symphony and Repertory Orchestra that are both full symphony orchestras. The difference between the groups, essentially, is the level of the music, with Prelude Strings being our entry-level string ensemble, and that’ll be students who have played one or two, maybe three years, maybe four. And then our Youth Symphony is our most advanced ensemble, and they’re playing music that you would also hear at a Memphis Symphony Orchestra concert. So, very advanced and very high-level playing. It’s a really fun day to just see the full range, from hearing someone in the early stages of playing music all the way to our most advanced students.”
It’s notable that the conductor for the MYSP’s highest achievers, the Youth Symphony, is Kyle Dickson, who holds the MSO’s Madeleine Luce Moore Assistant Conductor Chair, and thus helps set world-class standards for the best and brightest talents at MYSP. “We kind of get the best of both worlds with Kyle. He’s wonderful with the students. They love working with him, and I know he loves working with them, so we’re very fortunate for him to be part of our team.”
Among the pieces Dickson will lead the Youth Symphony through will be two works featuring the best and the brightest of the best and the brightest: the winners of this year’s Concerto Competition. Davis explains the selection process: “Between 20 and 25 students from the MYSP participate, and everyone learns a concerto. And these concertos are not easy! Very difficult. So they learn a concerto and then perform it with a pianist for a panel of judges, who select one or two winners to perform their concerto with the Youth Symphony or the Repertory Orchestra. It’s a rare opportunity for a student to play a concerto — one of the things MYSP does that I think is really great for the students. And the students who aren’t selected as winners get really helpful feedback from professional musicians. I got to hear the competition this year and everyone sounded fantastic. It’s really inspiring to hear young people playing at that level.”
This year’s top Concerto Competition winners are Myles Martin (viola), who will perform Romanze, Op. 85 by Max Bruch with the Youth Symphony, and Emma Clark (French horn), who will perform Morceau de Concert by Saint-Saëns with the Repertory Orchestra. The Youth Symphony will also perform its first-ever live film score, featuring original music by Memphis composer J. Arthur Guy paired with on-screen animation.
Finally, the organization will present its inaugural Hugh and Shawn LeSure MYSP Alumni Award to MYSP alum Sean Murphy in honor of his artistic achievement, leadership, and community impact.
As Davis notes, this is a moment the students have been working toward for some time. “This concert really represents the culmination of a full season of growth, collaboration, and hard work. For any musician who’s considering a career in music and classical music, it’s very important to have this kind of resource. But what I think is really beautiful is that MYSP is not only for those students, it’s also about providing community. We have over 300 students, and many of them stay in the program for years and form really close friendships. And being a young person, it’s always great to be around other people who share your passion, and playing music is fun!”
PROGRAMS FOR EACH CONCERT:
7 p.m.
Youth Symphony, Kyle Dickson, Conductor
George Gershwin – An American in Paris
Max Bruch – Romanze, Op. 85
Myles Martin, viola
J. Arthur Guy Film Scores:
A Hero’s Welcome
The Highway Exchange
Spring
Ocean
Wing It
Repertory Orchestra, Mark Cellini, Conductor
Morton Gould – American Salute
Camille Saint-Saëns – Morceau de Concert
Emma Clark, horn
T.J. Cole – Nightscape
Leonard Bernstein / arr. Mason – West Side Story
3:30 p.m.
Wind Ensemble, Kevin Carpenter, Conductor
KatahJ Copley – Amerykahn Graffiti
String Orchestra, Yonitte Ryger, Conductor
Christopher Wilson – Suite for String Orchestra
Wind Ensemble + String Orchestra
Brian Balmages – Super (em)powers
1:30 p.m.
Concert Band, Brent Hopper, Conductor
Robert W.Smith – Time for Trumpet
Sean O’Loughlin – Legacy
David Bobrowitz – A Sailor’s Odyssey (based on “Drunken Sailor”)
Intermezzo Orchestra, Jacob Saunders, Conductor
Richard Meyer – Incantations
Ethan Anderson – Silver Skies Breaking
Prelude Strings, Kate Ryan, Conductor
Antonio Vivaldi / arr. Joseph J. Phillips – Allegro from Concerto for Two Trumpets
Henry Purcell / arr. Deborah Baker Monday – Minuet and Bourrée