On Monday, November 6, at 7PM, the Dorothy Gerber Youth Orchestra (DGYO), part of the Great Lakes Center for the Arts’ Dorothy Gerber Strings Program (DGSP), will present its first-ever full concert featuring Beethoven’s First Symphony, including overture, concerto, and symphony, led by Dr. David Reimer, director of the DGSP and conductor of the DGYO.

“This concert is a monumental achievement for the Dorothy Gerber Youth Orchestra,” shares Dr. David Reimer. “The sheer length and scope of the program is a challenge for the student’s mental and physical endurance while the sophistication of the Beethoven Symphony tests the student’s mastery of every musical detail.”

The 2023/24 Dorothy Gerber Strings Program classes resumed earlier this fall, and this November performance is the DGYO’s first concert of the year.

Joining the DGSP and DGYO is featured guest artist, Charlevoix High School alum, and former young artist winner with the Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra, flute soloist Helen Hanchin, who is currently studying music at Michigan State University.

The music on the program includes the Prelude to the 49th Parallel by Ralph Vaughan-Williams and Chaminade’s Concertino for Flute and Orchestra. The latter offers different challenges for the Youth Orchestra, requiring flexibility and attentiveness to follow and support the expressive playing of the soloist.

“Each year, the students of the DGYO reach for standards beyond what they have achieved in the past, and this concert is no exception,” continues Reimer. “Three years ago they started moving beyond arrangements for student orchestras, two years ago they performed their first complete multi-movement composition and last year they welcomed woodwinds, brass and percussion to become a full symphony. Some students have been in the orchestra for six years, while others have more recently auditioned into the group, including five string players who are new this year. These students attend schools from Harbor Springs to Gaylord to Ellsworth and they are all committed to their own development through private lessons.”

Join Great Lakes Center for the Arts for this exciting evening performance featuring some of Northern Michigan’s brightest young talents as they present Beethoven’s First Symphony in its entirety. This concert is free to attend.

Upcoming DGYO events include holiday performances at area retirement communities on Monday, December 18, and a “return from tour” concert on Monday, April 1, after the orchestra concludes its tour to Ann Arbor and Cleveland.

This concert is FREE and open to the public.

For more information about the Dorothy Gerber Strings Program and Youth Orchestra, visit greatlakescfa.org. And for any questions related to the program, contact Dr. Reimer at dreimer@greatlakescfa.org.

The DGSP is generously supported by the Cummings Family. The program is also supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Michigan Arts and Culture Council, and the Charlevoix County Community Foundation.