Mission
The mission of the Youth Symphony of Denton is to provide an exceptional musical experience for the students in the Denton and surrounding areas, offering an opportunity to develop musically while performing standard orchestral repertoire. We want to help these students achieve greater depth in their music studies as they move through the different ensembles of the Youth Symphony. We provide a place for beginning through advanced musicians in our ensembles.
History
Damia Cleaver and Hyunseok (Hank) Chang met one another while teaching private lessons at a local middle school. During a break, they began talking and discovered that they both had a dream of starting a Youth Orchestra in the city of Denton. After talking and planning, they began looking for a facility where they could have rehearsals. The First United Methodist Church of Denton had a Fine Arts program, and they were willing to let us meet there and be a part of their program. Parent information meeting were held and about 40 families showed interest, so we planned auditions and formed two ensembles. Eighteen students were placed in the Preparatory Orchestra, and 31 were placed in the Symphony Orchestra. The first concert was held on November 2, 2019!
After our third concert that season, Covid hit and we continued meeting online for the rest of that season. We decided to launch out on our own for our second season. We formed a Board of Directors, obtained our 501 c 3 non-profit status and have grown to have 92 students, with three different ensembles. Students in the top orchestra have played such works as Beethoven's Symphony #5, Dvorak's Symphony #9, and works by Ravel, Resphigi, Vivaldi, Bach, Brahms, Sibelius, Saint Seans, Vaughn Williams, Schubert, and more. We have summer camps every year, and work with highly regarded clinicians from the Dallas, Fort Worth and Richardson Symphonies, and UNT and TWU faculty. We also began a chamber music program this season and have gone on regular field trips to the Dallas Symphony concerts. We currently rehearse in the music building on the UNT campus. In the summer of 2023, we travelled to South Korea, joining with the Daegu International Youth Orchestra and perform at the large music hall there. Our next international trip is planned for the summer of 2025, where we will travel to England. We've come a long way and are very excited to see where tomorrow may lead.
After our third concert that season, Covid hit and we continued meeting online for the rest of that season. We decided to launch out on our own for our second season. We formed a Board of Directors, obtained our 501 c 3 non-profit status and have grown to have 92 students, with three different ensembles. Students in the top orchestra have played such works as Beethoven's Symphony #5, Dvorak's Symphony #9, and works by Ravel, Resphigi, Vivaldi, Bach, Brahms, Sibelius, Saint Seans, Vaughn Williams, Schubert, and more. We have summer camps every year, and work with highly regarded clinicians from the Dallas, Fort Worth and Richardson Symphonies, and UNT and TWU faculty. We also began a chamber music program this season and have gone on regular field trips to the Dallas Symphony concerts. We currently rehearse in the music building on the UNT campus. In the summer of 2023, we travelled to South Korea, joining with the Daegu International Youth Orchestra and perform at the large music hall there. Our next international trip is planned for the summer of 2025, where we will travel to England. We've come a long way and are very excited to see where tomorrow may lead.
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“Music, especially classical music, are the letters from God, which God delivered to the great geniuses. Every time I read the letters, I find different meanings. I hope I can share this with the young musicians” |