The Santa Barbara Youth
Symphony
History
Daniel Kepl started the original Youth Symphony
in 1963 while he was a student in High School. The orchestra
was jointly sponsored by the Santa Barbara Recreation Department
and the Santa Barbara Youth Theater. He was assisted
by Stefan Krayk, concertmaster of the Santa Barbara Symphony
who acted as musical advisor. In 1968, the Youth
Symphony was conducted by Terri Boyes and met weekly at
Santa Barbara High School. It is unknown how
many public performances were given. By
1972 it was merely a reading orchestra, which met every
two weeks under the direction of Richard Amshutz of the
Santa Barbara Symphony. Certain members were
included in the S.B. Symphony to fill in at the monthly
Children?s Concerts, but the Youth Symphony itself gave
no concerts.
In the spring of 1974, a string orchestra,
put together by a local teacher, performed at the local
Bach Festival. At that time it was felt that enough
interest and talent was available to form a performing group.
With the encouragement of Ronald Ondrejka and Genevieve
Fisher, Conductor and General Manager of the Santa Barbara
Symphony, this was done.
The first public performance of the present
Santa Barbara Youth Symphony occurred in January of 1975
under the direction of Dr. Jack Ullom of the Santa Barbara
Symphony. For the first few years, only two concerts
per season were given. A Pops Concert was added in
the early 1980's, which eventually included a performance
of “Young Dancers with the SB Youth Symphony” which gave
both sets of performers an opportunity to collaborate with
other performing artists. These continued until the
early 1990's. At about the same time the Dance
concerts ended the Pops Concerts took a similar performing
format to the Boston Pops in that the audience sat at tables
and ate pastries while the orchestra played. The concerts
were then known as “Pops and Pastries”. In 1996 a
Saturday evening performance was added to the traditional
Sunday afternoon performance. A Chamber Orchestra
was also started in 1996 and continued for 3 years.
One performance was given each season. A free Children's
concert prior to the Pops concerts was added in 2002.
SBYS Today
This volunteer organization now serves the
region by providing musical enrichment to young people through
the venues of orchestral performance and instruction in
the schools of our community. This is accomplished
through three venues.
The SB Youth Symphony provides two orchestral
venues for young people in Santa Barbara , San Luis Obispo
and Ventura Counties . The main Orchestra is 80 strong,
conducted by Andrew Radford, our musical director.
Mr. Radford, bassoonist with the Santa Barbara Symphony,
has a truly wonderful relationship with the students. These
students, ages 12-20 all from our regional schools, are
challenged with serious pieces, such as Beethoven's 8 th
Symphony. Each SBYS member is chosen by audition and
no student is refused entry because of finances. Students
rehearse weekly on Sunday evenings during the school year
at the Music Academy of the West.
Three major concerts are given yearly at the
Lobero Theater and a free Children's Concert is given at
one of our local performance venues. The three Lobero
concerts include a Winter Concert, Spring Concert, and Pops
Concert. The Spring Concert features SB Youth Symphony
members, who by audition, perform as soloists with the Youth
Symphony.
Most importantly, the SB Youth Symphony gives
these young people a sense of accomplishment through steady
musical and team effort. They learn that others depend
upon them to know their music and to play well. They
learn that it is important to be on time and to be prepared.
They learn to function as a team and that life is not always
a solo performance but often a beautiful combination of
group effort. The SB Youth Symphony is a microcosm
of real life, and as such, it prepares these young people
well for their future roles in society.
About the Music Director
Music Director Andrew Radford is the principal
bassoonist with the Santa Barbara Symphony and has performed
with many California ensembles, including the LA Chamber
Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Pasadena Symphony and
the Santa Barbara Chamber Orchestra. He is professor
of bassoon at UCSB and with his wife, Amy Hagen, is founder
and music director of the Ojai SB Youth Symphony.
Mr. Radford enjoys performing the full range of musical
genres, appearing at the Monterey Jazz Festival and in concert
with the Who, Moody Blues, Josh Groban and others. He has
played in more than 700 performances of Phantom of the
Opera and in productions of Carousel, Miss Saigon,
Beauty and the Beast and La Boheme. Also
an active studio musician, Mr. Radford has performed on
more than 200 film scores, including Forrest Gump, Back
to the Future, George of the Jungle, The Family Stone, and
Bambi 2.
Junior Strings and Outreach Programs
The SB Youth Symphony also has a Junior String
Orchestra and a String Ensemble for the younger students
, now about 25 strong, which prepares these musicians for
entry into the SB Youth Symphony. This group meets
every Sunday afternoon under its own conductor, Marisa McLeod,
to learn the art of orchestral playing. Several recitals
are given each season.
In addition to the two orchestras, the SB
Youth Symphony provides weekly after-school String Instruction
Workshops at local public schools to introduce young people
to the study of string instruments. The current SB
Youth Symphony Organization, in existence for 32 years is
in essence the de facto provider of classical musical education
for many of the Santa Barbara public middle and elementary
school students through this outreach program. Approximately
12 professional teachers, paid by the SB Youth symphony
give 20 to 30 workshops per week throughout the school year
to more than 120 students. Classes are kept small
and meet weekly either after school or during the school
day at the various schools. A recital is given at
the end of each year. The SB Youth Symphony owns approximately
35 string instruments which are lent to students who need
them. Currently, these workshops are provided for
all of the Goleta elementary schools, Montecito Union School
, Santa Barbara Charter School , Goleta Valley Jr. High
School, La Cumbre Jr. High School , Santa Barbara Jr. High
School , Santa Barbara H igh School , and Santa Barbara
Academy . One of our goals is to expand this program
as more resources become available. This program has
become an indispensable part of an otherwise thin musical
education program in the public school systems of Santa
Barbara and Goleta . The String Instruction Workshops are
a continuation of a one-day workshop started in the 1980s
under Elise Unruh. These were all day affairs for
4th through 8th graders. They consisted of morning
coaching sessions with professional musicians and afternoon
band and orchestra rehearsals culminating in a public performance
for families and friends. The current String Instruction
Workshops were begun first in the Santa Barbara Elementary
District through the existing school music classes starting
in the 4th grades. Funding for this program comes
from a modest fee but primarily from an endowment fund,
contributions and grants. In the Goleta schools, it is co-sponsored
by a partnership with the Goleta Education fund. No
student is excluded for financial reasons. If a School Principal
confirms a family's inability to pay, the SB Youth Symphony
will waive fees. (Click
here to see the SBYS Junior & Intermezzo Strings website)
SBYS Organization
The Santa Barbara SB Youth Symphony is under
the umbrella of the Santa Barbara Symphony Association,
a 501 (C)(3) non profit corporation. The SB Youth
Symphony controls and manages its own funds. The Santa Barbara
Symphony Association provides liability insurance and pays
any incurred ASCAP or BMI fees. Insurance is carried
by the Santa Barbara Symphony Association. All other
expenses such as the Music Director's salary, coaching fees,
hall rental for rehearsal and performance, advertising,
program printing and music rental or purchase are the responsibility
of the Parents Committee of the SB Youth Symphony.
The season runs from September through June. All orchestra
positions are by audition and are the sole responsibility
of the Music Director as is the selection of the music and
seating arrangement of the orchestra.
The SB Youth Symphony functions with its own
board of 7 directors elected from among the parents and
members of the community. Board service is voluntary,
with a two year term with one possible renewal. Board
members receive no payment. Funding for the activities
of the SB Youth Symphony comes entirely from donations from
the community and local foundations. The annual budget
for the 2006-2007 season is $130,000, which includes funding
for the two orchestras and the String Instruction Workshops
for the public schools. This year, the board hopes
to expand the opportunities for the String Instruction Workshops
to more students in the public school system and to include
more professional coaching for the musicians in our orchestras.
With these goals in mind, we have budgeted an additional
$40,000 over last year's budget. The Board has also
embarked upon an endowment program to ensure the future
of the organization.
For more information about the Santa Barbara
Youth Symphony, or to support this non-profit organization,
please email sbys25@aol.com
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