Season Finale Concerts
Don’t miss our final concert series of the season as Maestro Eylar conducts one of the iconic American works of the 20th Century: Aaron Copland’s Billy the Kid. A concert favorite since its premiere in 1939, the work makes use of numerous American folk tunes as it narrates the life and times of one of the most famous outlaws of the Wild West. Our program opens with Dvorak's energetic and exuberant Carnival Overture, a tour-de-force of orchestral virtuoso writing. We are also excited to present Nathaniel Stookey’s The Composer is Dead, a brilliant work in the tradition of Peter and the Wolf and Britten’s Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra, in that it introduces all of the instruments of the orchestra with narrator. The text, written by Lemony Snicket, adds a twist by weaving a murder mystery into the scenario, to hilarious effect. Our guest narrator, Omari Tau, will both entertain and enlighten you with his skills and oratory. We will also feature our Senior Soloist competition winner, William Sallomi, performing movements from Weber's Concerto for Bassoon and Orchestra. Be sure to attend this very special and unusual final concert series!
Leo Eylar, conductor
Omari Tau, narrator
Dvořák: Carnival Overture
Weber: Bassoon Concerto, Op. 75 (William Sallomi, soloist)
Stookey: The Composer is Dead, with text by Lemony Snicket (Omari Tau, narrator)
Debussy/Mackani: "Passapied" from Suite Bergamasque (Arranged for orchestra)
Copland: Billy the Kid, Ballet Suite
Graduating Senior Concerto Competition Winner
Eighteen year old William Sallomi was the winner of the 2017 California Youth Symphony Graduating Seniors Concerto Competition. This afternoon he performs the Weber Bassoon Concerto in F Major. William began his musical studies at the age of 7 studying piano. After switching to clarinet and then later bass clarinet, William began studying the bassoon at the age of 13 under Dr. Yueh Chou.
He has been performing in the California Youth Symphony for four years, two of which are in the Senior Orchestra. He currently attends Palo Alto High School, and will begin his first year at Stanford University in the fall of 2018.
Special Guest Artist
Omari Tau received his Bachelor Degree in Music Education at Michigan State University and his Master of Music in Vocal Performance at the University of Houston, Moores School of Music where he studied with mezzo-soprano, Katherine Ciesinski. In 2012, he became Director of Opera Theatre at Sacramento State University and continues that role while also leading the Vocal Studies Program at Cosumnes River College.
Graduating Senior Concerto Competition
Each year CYS holds a competition for its current members to select outstanding graduating seniors to be provided with an opportunity to perform with the orchestra on its season finale concerts. Winning the Concerto Competition is considered one of the highest honors at the California Youth Symphony.
While CYS is pleased to motivate and reward young musicians, the annual Concerto Competition is often more than a platform for students seeking a future in music. While many past winners have gone on to pursue music professionally, a number of competition winners have pursued education and careers in fields as diverse as biology, physics, and engineering. The California Youth Symphony considers it a pleasure to work with and inspire some of the leading minds of tomorrow and cultivate a lifelong appreciation of the arts as they become audience members of the future.
