WYSO News

Audition excerpts for the 2019-2020 WYSO season are available here. These excerpts are designed to provide the judges with a basis for adjudicating students on the same materials with the same length of preparation. Excerpts change from year to year. Our online audition registration period runs through April 19, with auditions to be held June 4 through...

Join a tradition of excellence! The audition registration period for the 2019-2020 WYSO season is officially open. Students can learn more about our audition process and book an audition appointment here.  Registration runs through April 22, with auditions to be held June 4 through June 12, 2019 at the UW-Madison Humanities building. Please call our office...

The WYSO Percussion Ensemble will present the 18th Annual Percussion EXTRAVAGANZA! on Saturday, April 6 at 1:30 pm at Mills Concert Hall, 455 N. Park Street, Madison. With a theme of “Spirits Rising,” the 2019 Percussion EXTRAVAGANZA! will feature nearly 150 performers, including instrumentalists, vocalists, and dancers. Guests will hear music from several...

The Art of Note Gala is the signature annual fundraising event for the Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras. This event supports world-class music education for dedicated young musicians from across southern Wisconsin. With attendance of over 300 community members, the 2018 gala raised nearly $100,000 in support of the core programming for the students of...

Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras (WYSO) will present the Diane Ballweg Winterfest Concerts series on Saturday, February 16 and Saturday, March 2 in Mills Concert Hall, 455 N. Park Street, Madison. WYSO orchestras will perform pieces from Weber, Dvořák, Bizet, Prokofiev, and more. “These are wonderful works and the orchestras are progressing beautifully...

Violinist James Ehnes will host a master class for three violin students in Youth Orchestra on Saturday, February 16 from 1 pm to 2 pm in room 1321 at the UW-Madison Humanities building. The master class is free and open to the public. Ehnes is a guest of many of the world’s most respected conductors including Ashkenazy, Alsop, Sir Andrew Davis, Denève,...

"An Evening with The Kissers" Friday, January 25, 2019 The Brink Lounge 701 E Washington Ave., Madison The WYSO Parent Leaders Committee invite all community members to celebrate youth music education at its annual “An Evening with The Kissers” fundraiser. The event features an evening with Madison Irish band The Kissers, delicious appetizers, a raffle,...

Celebrate the holidays with Sounds of the Season, a WYSO tradition produced by NBC15. Sounds of the Season features performances by WYSO’s Youth Orchestra, Opus One, the WYSO Percussion Ensemble, the Tibbetts Brass Quintet, and local high school music groups. The program airs on NBC15 on Monday, December 24 at 10 pm and Tuesday, December 25 at 6 am. You...

Each fall, WYSO hosts a concerto competition for Youth Orchestra students. Judges this year heard an incredible amount of talent from the 32 students who participated. Concerto competition winners are invited to perform with Youth Orchestra during the May concerts. Congratulations to each student! Winners this year include (in alphabetical order): Benjamin...

WYSO presented its first concert series of the season, the Evelyn Steenbock Fall Concerts, on November 10, 2018 and November 16, 2018. WYSO orchestras performed works from Stravinsky, Khachaturian, Newbold, and more. The Youth Orchestra concert included a performance of Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations with special guest Joseph Johnson.

In addition to performing Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations with Youth Orchestra at their fall concert, guest artist and cellist Joseph Johnson will host a master class on Tuesday, November 13 at 6:30 pm at Morphy Hall. The two-hour master class will allow 20-30 minutes for each player, split between WYSO and UW students. Joseph will also visit Oregon High...

New in 2018, the Bonnie Greene Scholarship Award is awarded annually to a WYSO Music Makers student who successfully auditions into a WYSO orchestra. The student chosen is awarded a full-tuition scholarship for the WYSO orchestra into which he or she auditions. This scholarship fund was established by an anonymous friend of Bonnie Greene, WYSO, and WYSO...