Note from Our Director
Dear Friends,
Welcome to the 25th anniversary of your Ypsilanti Symphony Orchestra! Over the past two and a half decades we’ve grown closer as artists and as a community of musicians and listeners.
Twenty-five years ago, a group of musicians, some of whom still play with us today, took a chance on a young conductor and a fledgling board of directors and put their stake in the ground to create a new kind of community orchestra; one that TRULY represented our community and was made up of daytime professionals in other fields who volunteer their time and talents, and love to play orchestral music. I couldn’t be more grateful.
In the YSO, there are CEO’s, music teachers, sales reps, small business owners, engineers, attorneys, stay at home parents, students, retirees, and countless other backgrounds. That’s what makes Tuesday nights (and these Sunday concerts of course!) so special. We come from different professions, ideologies, and ways of life every week to push the “pause” button on life and focus on exactly one thing – making music together.
Over the years we’ve had the joy of performing with incredible soloists and guest ensembles. We’ve worked with great partners like Lincoln Consolidated Schools, Washtenaw Community College, Eastern Michigan University, the Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission, The Sphinx Organization, The Henry Ford, Measure for Measure, the Boychoir of Ann Arbor, the Detroit Handbell Ensemble, Fortis Academy, the Ypsilanti District Library, the Ann Arbor Summer Festival, Opera on Tap, the Ypsi Community Choir, to name only a few. It’s been an honor.
This year we welcome back the great Paul Keller and his jazz band to reprise the “Ypsilanti Symphonic Jazz Suite” in collaboration with the Ypsilanti Bi-Centennial celebration, WEMU radio, Eastern Michigan University’s Department of Music and Dance, Lincoln Consolidated Schools, the City of Ypsilanti, Ypsilanti Township, and others. In December we’ll welcome Lincoln High School Choirs under the Direction of Toni Micik. February’s program will bring back Eliot Heaton of the Detroit Opera and Pittsburgh Symphony and John Madison from the Detroit Symphony on Mozart’s dazzling Sinfonia for violin and viola. April brings back Alexander Misnaevski on electric viola for the premiere of Alexander Rosenblatt’s “Jazzy Suite ” and Tchaikovsky’s monumental 4th Symphony. In May, we’ll return to Riverside Park for our annual Pops in the Park, a Memorial Day weekend tradition for over a decade!
Please join us online at www.ypsilantisymphony.org and follow us on Facebook to stay connected, get news, learn about our musicians or inquire about playing in the orchestra.
It takes a village to keep the arts alive and flourishing. We could never do it alone. We need every one of our artistic collaborators, donors, advertisers, volunteers, musicians and of course YOU, our loyal audience, to continue making music. Please consider a tax-deductible financial gift to the YSO so we can continue to bring you great programming. If you can squeeze out a few hours a month, we are in constant need of volunteers. But mostly, I thank you for being with us today to hear us play.
Without you, our joy of playing orchestral music would go unshared. Thank you for coming. Thank you for supporting the arts. Here’s to 25 years together and beyond!
Adam C. Riccinto, Founder and Music Director