About ECYS•El Camino Youth Symphony

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The El Camino Youth Symphony (ECYS) is from Palo Alto, California, the home of Stanford University, about 35 miles south of San Francisco. Its name comes from the Spanish words El Camino Real, the royal highway created along the Pacific Ocean by the early Spanish explorers and missionaries.

Mission

Two core principles underlie the ECYS mission: Music Education, to nurture, train and develop young musicians from culturally diverse backgrounds and encourage a lasting appreciation of music, and Musical Excellence, to provide high-quality performance opportunities for young people and outstanding musical events for the wider community.

History

El Camino Youth Symphony (ECYS) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1963 by William Galbraith, a young maestro who envisioned an orchestra that would give young musicians the opportunity to perform challenging standard professional repertoire. Subsequent Music Directors include: Denis de Couteau, Nelson Tandoc, Arthur Barnes, Leroy Kromm, Charles Barber, and Melissa McBride. The current Music Director is Dr. Camilla Kolchinsky.

Each year soloists of international stature are invited to perform as guest soloists with the Senior Symphony. New York Philharmonic Assistant Concertmaster Michelle Kim, and cellist Sumire Kudo performed with the Symphony in 2009. In April of 2008 Martin Chalifour, Principal Concertmaster of the Los Angeles Philharmonic performed with the Symphony. The featured artist for 2006-07 was David Kim, concertmaster of the Philadelphia Orchestra. In 2005-06 Robert Chen, concertmaster of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performed the Brahms Violin Concerto with the orchestra. In 2005 pianist Rueibin Chen performed. In 2002-2003 ECYS presented violinist Alexander Barantshik and pianist Jon Nakamatsu. In recent years the Symphony has performed with pianists Barbara Nissman and Vladimir Viardo, cellist Michail Gelfandbein, and violinists Philippe Quint and Bin Huang.

Concerts tours, retreats, participation in music festivals and exchanges with other youth orchestras are a vital part of the ECYS experience. The Senior Symphony participated in the 1987 World of Music Festival in Hawaii, and were honored to be the first ensemble from California to participate in the Carnegie Hall American Youth Debut Series.

In June and July of 1996, the Symphony enjoyed a triumphant tour of Italy and Austria, participating in the 1996 International Music Meeting in Abano Terse, Italy and the International Festival of Youth and Music in Vienna, Austria. At the festival, the Symphony won second place in the orchestra competition. During the summer of 1998 the Symphony toured England and Scotland, and participated in the Bournemouth Music Festival, and the Glasgow West End Festival.

The 1999-2000 Symphony season culminated in Tour 2000, destination France. The Symphony performed several concerts in Paris and Normandy, at EuroDisney, participated in festivals such as the Savois and Saint-Germain, and performed in Grenoble and Geneva. In 2003, the Symphony Orchestra toured Italy, including stops in Venice, Florence, Naples and Rome.

In 2005 the Symphony traveled to Central Europe, where they received accolades and encores at Budapest’s Franz Liszt Academy, and performed for more than 1000 at Prague’s Dvorak Hall.

In 2007 the Symphony performed in Finland, Estonia and Russia, as Music Director Dr. Camilla Kolchinsky returned with her young musicians to her homeland with stops in Helsinki, Talinn and St. Petersburg.

In 2009 the Symphony traveled to Poland and Germany, with performances in Warsaw, Katowice, Wroclaw, Potsdam and culminating in Leipzig, at the legendary Gewandaus Concert Hall.

Program

ECYS is distinguished by its unusually large and diverse number of ensembles, a creative structure that enables ECYS teachers to offer an enriching musical education to the widest possible range of youth. The young musicians of ECYS are culturally diverse and range from those at the beginning of their musical training to those ready to establish their creative careers as performing artists. All receive high-quality learning, performance and leadership opportunities.

More than 400 K-12 students from over 100 schools from San Francisco to Santa Cruz train and perform in five orchestras and four ensembles, led by the award-winning, internationally recognized Symphony Orchestra. Concerts, tours, retreats, summer workshops, masterclasses and music festivals form a vital part of the ECYS experience, creating opportunities for youth at all levels of musical experience to develop socially and artistically while participating in the Bay Area's foremost instrumental training and education program.

A vibrant repertoire challenges the young musicians to excel as ensemble and solo players. Annual performance series and tours meet critical acclaim and inspire local, national and international audiences. An ongoing program of performance and ticket outreach makes these programs accessible to a diverse community of underserved youth, families and seniors.

An internationally recognized artistic faculty supports the young musicians, who also have opportunities to perform in collaboration with soloists of international stature. ECYS musicians receive mentoring and coaching from a distinguished roster of professional musicians and conductors dedicated to opening the world of orchestral music to the next generation.

Each season more than twenty outstanding student concerto competition participants are awarded performances with ECYS orchestras.

ECYS offers scholarships to students who demonstrate financial need. In addition, the different ensembles participate in various outreach and educational programs designed to bring music to the community.

2009 - 2010 ECYS Board of Directors and Advisory Committee

The El Camino Youth Symphony Association is dedicated to musical education by providing a nurturing environment for the training and development of young musicians and to musical excellence by presenting outstanding musical events for the community. The Association provides the financial and administrative support necessary to maintain the ECYS music education and performance programs. The Association's Board of Directors is composed of parents and interested community members who volunteer their time and effort.

The ECYS Board of Directors meets the second Monday evening of each month, 7:30 pm, at the ECYS office. Contact the President for additional information (below).

Peter Farmer, President
Li-Wha Chen, Vice-President
Darel Chapman, Secretary
Helen Zhang, Treasurer
Jun Huh, Immediate Past President
Jim Kaubisch, Past President
Seong Jun Jang
Tsia Kuznetsov
Woan-yu Yu

Advisory Committee

The Advisory Committee members consist primarily of past Board members, especially officers. These members act, on an as-needed basis, as advisors and consultants and are available to answer questions and to discuss historical perspectives about ECYS.

Jean Mach
Bruce Fogel
Elena Kagan
Joseph Maurer
Karen Kronick

Mission

History

Program

Board of Directors and Advisory Committee

“It is my belief that at ECYS we teach skills that are important for all students to acquire, and that these skills will be vital to them now and throughout their lives.” – Dr. Camilla Kolchinsky

The El Camino Youth Symphony Association shall provide equal opportunities in all areas and assure that there will be no discrimination against any person on the grounds of race, religion, age, sex, national origin, color, disability, political belief, sexual orientation, marital status, or veteran’s status.


	About ECYS • Faculty • Auditions • Solo Competitions • International Tour • Summer Workshops Support ECYS • Press Room • Contact Us • Home
Senior Symphony Orchestra Sinfonietta Orchestra El Camino Wind Orchestra Galbraith Honor Strings Camerata Orchestra Chamber Players Orchestra El Camino Flute Ensembles Percussion Ensemble Performance Outreach	The El Camino Youth Symphony (ECYS) is from Palo Alto, California, the home of Stanford University, about 35 miles south of San Francisco. Its name comes from the Spanish words El Camino Real, the royal highway created along the Pacific Ocean by the early Spanish explorers and missionaries. Mission Two core principles underlie the ECYS mission: Music Education, to nurture, train and develop young musicians from culturally diverse backgrounds and encourage a lasting appreciation of music, and Musical Excellence, to provide high-quality performance opportunities for young people and outstanding musical events for the wider community. History El Camino Youth Symphony (ECYS) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1963 by William Galbraith, a young maestro who envisioned an orchestra that would give young musicians the opportunity to perform challenging standard professional repertoire. Subsequent Music Directors include: Denis de Couteau, Nelson Tandoc, Arthur Barnes, Leroy Kromm, Charles Barber, and Melissa McBride. The current Music Director is Dr. Camilla Kolchinsky. Each year soloists of international stature are invited to perform as guest soloists with the Senior Symphony. New York Philharmonic Assistant Concertmaster Michelle Kim, and cellist Sumire Kudo performed with the Symphony in 2009. In April of 2008 Martin Chalifour, Principal Concertmaster of the Los Angeles Philharmonic performed with the Symphony. The featured artist for 2006-07 was David Kim, concertmaster of the Philadelphia Orchestra. In 2005-06 Robert Chen, concertmaster of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performed the Brahms Violin Concerto with the orchestra. In 2005 pianist Rueibin Chen performed. In 2002-2003 ECYS presented violinist Alexander Barantshik and pianist Jon Nakamatsu. In recent years the Symphony has performed with pianists Barbara Nissman and Vladimir Viardo, cellist Michail Gelfandbein, and violinists Philippe Quint and Bin Huang. Concerts tours, retreats, participation in music festivals and exchanges with other youth orchestras are a vital part of the ECYS experience. The Senior Symphony participated in the 1987 World of Music Festival in Hawaii, and were honored to be the first ensemble from California to participate in the Carnegie Hall American Youth Debut Series. In June and July of 1996, the Symphony enjoyed a triumphant tour of Italy and Austria, participating in the 1996 International Music Meeting in Abano Terse, Italy and the International Festival of Youth and Music in Vienna, Austria. At the festival, the Symphony won second place in the orchestra competition. During the summer of 1998 the Symphony toured England and Scotland, and participated in the Bournemouth Music Festival, and the Glasgow West End Festival. The 1999-2000 Symphony season culminated in Tour 2000, destination France. The Symphony performed several concerts in Paris and Normandy, at EuroDisney, participated in festivals such as the Savois and Saint-Germain, and performed in Grenoble and Geneva. In 2003, the Symphony Orchestra toured Italy, including stops in Venice, Florence, Naples and Rome. In 2005 the Symphony traveled to Central Europe, where they received accolades and encores at Budapest’s Franz Liszt Academy, and performed for more than 1000 at Prague’s Dvorak Hall. In 2007 the Symphony performed in Finland, Estonia and Russia, as Music Director Dr. Camilla Kolchinsky returned with her young musicians to her homeland with stops in Helsinki, Talinn and St. Petersburg. In 2009 the Symphony traveled to Poland and Germany, with performances in Warsaw, Katowice, Wroclaw, Potsdam and culminating in Leipzig, at the legendary Gewandaus Concert Hall. back to top Program ECYS is distinguished by its unusually large and diverse number of ensembles, a creative structure that enables ECYS teachers to offer an enriching musical education to the widest possible range of youth. The young musicians of ECYS are culturally diverse and range from those at the beginning of their musical training to those ready to establish their creative careers as performing artists. All receive high-quality learning, performance and leadership opportunities. More than 400 K-12 students from over 100 schools from San Francisco to Santa Cruz train and perform in five orchestras and four ensembles, led by the award-winning, internationally recognized Symphony Orchestra. Concerts, tours, retreats, summer workshops, masterclasses and music festivals form a vital part of the ECYS experience, creating opportunities for youth at all levels of musical experience to develop socially and artistically while participating in the Bay Area's foremost instrumental training and education program. A vibrant repertoire challenges the young musicians to excel as ensemble and solo players. Annual performance series and tours meet critical acclaim and inspire local, national and international audiences. An ongoing program of performance and ticket outreach makes these programs accessible to a diverse community of underserved youth, families and seniors. An internationally recognized artistic faculty supports the young musicians, who also have opportunities to perform in collaboration with soloists of international stature. ECYS musicians receive mentoring and coaching from a distinguished roster of professional musicians and conductors dedicated to opening the world of orchestral music to the next generation. Each season more than twenty outstanding student concerto competition participants are awarded performances with ECYS orchestras. ECYS offers scholarships to students who demonstrate financial need. In addition, the different ensembles participate in various outreach and educational programs designed to bring music to the community. back to top 2009 - 2010 ECYS Board of Directors and Advisory Committee The El Camino Youth Symphony Association is dedicated to musical education by providing a nurturing environment for the training and development of young musicians and to musical excellence by presenting outstanding musical events for the community. The Association provides the financial and administrative support necessary to maintain the ECYS music education and performance programs. The Association's Board of Directors is composed of parents and interested community members who volunteer their time and effort. The ECYS Board of Directors meets the second Monday evening of each month, 7:30 pm, at the ECYS office. Contact the President for additional information (below). Peter Farmer, President Li-Wha Chen, Vice-President Darel Chapman, Secretary Helen Zhang, Treasurer Jun Huh, Immediate Past President Jim Kaubisch, Past President Seong Jun Jang Tsia Kuznetsov Woan-yu Yu Advisory Committee The Advisory Committee members consist primarily of past Board members, especially officers. These members act, on an as-needed basis, as advisors and consultants and are available to answer questions and to discuss historical perspectives about ECYS. Jean Mach Bruce Fogel Elena Kagan Joseph Maurer Karen Kronick Read more on the ECYS Board of Directors back to top	Mission History Program Board of Directors and Advisory Committee “It is my belief that at ECYS we teach skills that are important for all students to acquire, and that these skills will be vital to them now and throughout their lives.” – Dr. Camilla Kolchinsky The El Camino Youth Symphony Association shall provide equal opportunities in all areas and assure that there will be no discrimination against any person on the grounds of race, religion, age, sex, national origin, color, disability, political belief, sexual orientation, marital status, or veteran’s status.
	El Camino Youth Symphony • 4055 Fabian Way • Palo Alto, California 94303 • ecys@earthlink.net ECYS Office: 650-213-7111 • Fax: 650-493-1525 • © 2007 El Camino Youth Symphony Association