The Greater Boulder Youth Orchestra (GBYO), under the direction of Brian Jack, joined KGNU for a special studio session featuring performances by the winners of the GBYO Concerto Competition on flute, cello, and bassoon. Singers from the Boulder Children’s Chorale also previewed their collaboration with GBYO, which will be highlighted in upcoming concerts at Mackey Auditorium and Lyons Middle and Senior High School. (Studio Session: 4/18/25)
Meredith Carson: Right now, it is time. We’ve been waiting for this moment all morning. They’re all rehearsed, they’re all warmed up, and they look fabulous. Members of the Greater Boulder Youth Orchestra, under the direction of our friend Brian Jack, are here. He brings them to us every year, and it’s always such a fun thing to do. Brian, it’s so great to see you and your talented students.
Brian Jack: Good morning.
Meredith Carson: What’s going on here? Tell us everything.
Brian Jack: The Greater Boulder Youth Orchestras have a lot going on in the next couple of weeks. Every year, one of the highlights of our season is our concerto competition. It’s always a spectacular performance that takes place in January. The winners of the concerto competition get to perform their pieces with their orchestras at our big season finale concert, which will be on Sunday, April 27th, at Mackey Auditorium.
Meredith Carson: So that’s a week from Sunday?
Brian Jack: That’s right. The concert starts at 12 noon. Today, our concerto performers are here to perform their works for you. We also have a special collaboration with the Boulder Children’s Chorale. Some of the singers from the chorale are here in the studio, and we’ll talk about that collaboration and the brand-new piece of music we’ll be performing after these performances. To start off, we have a flute player from our Philharmonic Orchestra. I’m going to ask each musician to introduce themselves and tell us who they are, what school they go to, what grade they’re in, who their teacher is, what piece they’re playing, and who is accompanying them on piano. All of these pieces are written for a solo instrument plus orchestra, but today, the orchestras are represented on piano. At the concert at Mackey Auditorium, you’ll get to hear the full orchestra plus these soloists.
Taaka Stewart: My name is Taaka Stewart. I go to Southern Hills and I’m in seventh grade. My teacher is Hannah Aro, who is also my accompanist today. My flute teacher is Rochelle Crowel, and I’ll be playing Flute Concerto in G Major by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi.
(plays music)
Brian Jack: That was Taaka Stewart on the flute. Usually, for our concerto competition, we have one winner from each orchestra. But this year, the judges were so impressed that we ended up with two winners for the Philharmonic Orchestra, which is our middle-level orchestra. Taaka was one of them. Our other winner is also here to perform a piece on the cello. Holden, would you please introduce yourself?
Holden Meese: Hello, I’m Holden Meese. I go to Centara High School. I’m a freshman, and my private teacher is Ann Bernand. My accompanist is Laura Meese, and I’ll be playing George Goldman’s Fifth Cello Concerto.
(plays music)
Brian Jack: For those of you just tuning in, you might think you just heard James Galway and Yo-Yo Ma, but in fact, it was two students from the Greater Boulder Youth Orchestras, Taaka and Holden. You can hear them with their orchestras performing these solos on Sunday, April 27th, at Mackey Auditorium. The concert begins at 12 noon. We have one more instrumentalist to perform. This is the winner from our Symphony Concerto Competition. Salvador, please introduce yourself.
Salvador Mantas: My name is Salvador Mantas. I go to Nawa High School, and I’m in ninth grade. My teacher is Roger So, and my accompanist is Dr. Karen Er. I’ll be playing the Weber Bassoon Concerto in F Major.
(music plays)
Meredith Carson: Oh, that’s fantastic. Thank you so much, Salvador. Again, you can hear these young musicians on Sunday, April 27th, at Mackey Auditorium. The day before that, we’ll have a special event with the Boulder Children’s Chorale at Lyons Middle and Senior High School. The chorale will also be joining us for our performance at Mackey Auditorium on Sunday.
Brian Jack: Right now, we have two singers from the Boulder Children’s Chorale in the studio. Would you two please introduce yourselves?
Cress Strickland: I’m Cress Strickland. I go to Southern Hills Middle School, and I’m in eighth grade. I sing with the Boulder Children’s Chorale.
Margaret Luhan: My name is Margaret Luhan. I go to Casey Middle School, and I’m also in eighth grade. We’ll be singing “Bring Me Little Water, Sylvie” by Lead Belly, arranged by Moira Smiley.
(singing)
Meredith Carson: Is there a website where folks can find more details about everything you’ve told us this morning?
Brian Jack: Yes, of course. You can find us at greaterboulderyo.org. Today, we’re also joined by the Artistic Director of the Boulder Children’s Chorale. Can you tell us about the website where we can find more information about your concert?
BCC Director: Sure. You can visit boulderchildrenschorale.org or boulderchorale.org. The Boulder Children’s Chorale is part of the Greater Boulder Chorale organization. We have students ranging from kindergarten to retired singers who sing with our organization.
Meredith Carson: And there are a number of upcoming events, including a spring concert and something called the SCORE Chamber Music Concert. You can find all the information on these two websites.
Meredith Carson: Right now, it is time. We’ve been waiting for this moment all morning. They’re all rehearsed, they’re all warmed up, and they look fabulous. Members of the Greater Boulder Youth Orchestra, under the direction of our friend Brian Jack, are here. He brings them to us every year, and it’s always such a fun thing to do. Brian, it’s so great to see you and your talented students.
Brian Jack: Good morning.
Meredith Carson: What’s going on here? Tell us everything.
Brian Jack: The Greater Boulder Youth Orchestras have a lot going on in the next couple of weeks. Every year, one of the highlights of our season is our concerto competition. It’s always a spectacular performance that takes place in January. The winners of the concerto competition get to perform their pieces with their orchestras at our big season finale concert, which will be on Sunday, April 27th, at Mackey Auditorium.
Meredith Carson: So that’s a week from Sunday?
Brian Jack: That’s right. The concert starts at 12 noon. Today, our concerto performers are here to perform their works for you. We also have a special collaboration with the Boulder Children’s Chorale. Some of the singers from the chorale are here in the studio, and we’ll talk about that collaboration and the brand-new piece of music we’ll be performing after these performances. To start off, we have a flute player from our Philharmonic Orchestra. I’m going to ask each musician to introduce themselves and tell us who they are, what school they go to, what grade they’re in, who their teacher is, what piece they’re playing, and who is accompanying them on piano. All of these pieces are written for a solo instrument plus orchestra, but today, the orchestras are represented on piano. At the concert at Mackey Auditorium, you’ll get to hear the full orchestra plus these soloists.
Taaka Stewart: My name is Taaka Stewart. I go to Southern Hills and I’m in seventh grade. My teacher is Hannah Aro, who is also my accompanist today. My flute teacher is Rochelle Crowel, and I’ll be playing Flute Concerto in G Major by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi.
(plays music)
Brian Jack: That was Taaka Stewart on the flute. Usually, for our concerto competition, we have one winner from each orchestra. But this year, the judges were so impressed that we ended up with two winners for the Philharmonic Orchestra, which is our middle-level orchestra. Taaka was one of them. Our other winner is also here to perform a piece on the cello. Holden, would you please introduce yourself?
Holden Meese: Hello, I’m Holden Meese. I go to Centara High School. I’m a freshman, and my private teacher is Ann Bernand. My accompanist is Laura Meese, and I’ll be playing George Goldman’s Fifth Cello Concerto.
(plays music)
Brian Jack: For those of you just tuning in, you might think you just heard James Galway and Yo-Yo Ma, but in fact, it was two students from the Greater Boulder Youth Orchestras, Taaka and Holden. You can hear them with their orchestras performing these solos on Sunday, April 27th, at Mackey Auditorium. The concert begins at 12 noon. We have one more instrumentalist to perform. This is the winner from our Symphony Concerto Competition. Salvador, please introduce yourself.
Salvador Mantas: My name is Salvador Mantas. I go to Nawa High School, and I’m in ninth grade. My teacher is Roger So, and my accompanist is Dr. Karen Er. I’ll be playing the Weber Bassoon Concerto in F Major.
(music plays)
Meredith Carson: Oh, that’s fantastic. Thank you so much, Salvador. Again, you can hear these young musicians on Sunday, April 27th, at Mackey Auditorium. The day before that, we’ll have a special event with the Boulder Children’s Chorale at Lyons Middle and Senior High School. The chorale will also be joining us for our performance at Mackey Auditorium on Sunday.
Brian Jack: Right now, we have two singers from the Boulder Children’s Chorale in the studio. Would you two please introduce yourselves?
Cress Strickland: I’m Cress Strickland. I go to Southern Hills Middle School, and I’m in eighth grade. I sing with the Boulder Children’s Chorale.
Margaret Luhan: My name is Margaret Luhan. I go to Casey Middle School, and I’m also in eighth grade. We’ll be singing “Bring Me Little Water, Sylvie” by Lead Belly, arranged by Moira Smiley.
(singing)
Meredith Carson: Is there a website where folks can find more details about everything you’ve told us this morning?
Brian Jack: Yes, of course. You can find us at greaterboulderyo.org. Today, we’re also joined by the Artistic Director of the Boulder Children’s Chorale. Can you tell us about the website where we can find more information about your concert?
BCC Director: Sure. You can visit boulderchildrenschorale.org or boulderchorale.org. The Boulder Children’s Chorale is part of the Greater Boulder Chorale organization. We have students ranging from kindergarten to retired singers who sing with our organization.
Meredith Carson: And there are a number of upcoming events, including a spring concert and something called the SCORE Chamber Music Concert. You can find all the information on these two websites.
Meredith Carson: Right now, it is time. We’ve been waiting for this moment all morning. They’re all rehearsed, they’re all warmed up, and they look fabulous. Members of the Greater Boulder Youth Orchestra, under the direction of our friend Brian Jack, are here. He brings them to us every year, and it’s always such a fun thing to do. Brian, it’s so great to see you and your talented students.
Brian Jack: Good morning.
Meredith Carson: What’s going on here? Tell us everything.
Brian Jack: The Greater Boulder Youth Orchestras have a lot going on in the next couple of weeks. Every year, one of the highlights of our season is our concerto competition. It’s always a spectacular performance that takes place in January. The winners of the concerto competition get to perform their pieces with their orchestras at our big season finale concert, which will be on Sunday, April 27th, at Mackey Auditorium.
Meredith Carson: So that’s a week from Sunday?
Brian Jack: That’s right. The concert starts at 12 noon. Today, our concerto performers are here to perform their works for you. We also have a special collaboration with the Boulder Children’s Chorale. Some of the singers from the chorale are here in the studio, and we’ll talk about that collaboration and the brand-new piece of music we’ll be performing after these performances. To start off, we have a flute player from our Philharmonic Orchestra. I’m going to ask each musician to introduce themselves and tell us who they are, what school they go to, what grade they’re in, who their teacher is, what piece they’re playing, and who is accompanying them on piano. All of these pieces are written for a solo instrument plus orchestra, but today, the orchestras are represented on piano. At the concert at Mackey Auditorium, you’ll get to hear the full orchestra plus these soloists.
Taaka Stewart: My name is Taaka Stewart. I go to Southern Hills and I’m in seventh grade. My teacher is Hannah Aro, who is also my accompanist today. My flute teacher is Rochelle Crowel, and I’ll be playing Flute Concerto in G Major by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi.
(plays music)
Brian Jack: That was Taaka Stewart on the flute. Usually, for our concerto competition, we have one winner from each orchestra. But this year, the judges were so impressed that we ended up with two winners for the Philharmonic Orchestra, which is our middle-level orchestra. Taaka was one of them. Our other winner is also here to perform a piece on the cello. Holden, would you please introduce yourself?
Holden Meese: Hello, I’m Holden Meese. I go to Centara High School. I’m a freshman, and my private teacher is Ann Bernand. My accompanist is Laura Meese, and I’ll be playing George Goldman’s Fifth Cello Concerto.
(plays music)
Brian Jack: For those of you just tuning in, you might think you just heard James Galway and Yo-Yo Ma, but in fact, it was two students from the Greater Boulder Youth Orchestras, Taaka and Holden. You can hear them with their orchestras performing these solos on Sunday, April 27th, at Mackey Auditorium. The concert begins at 12 noon. We have one more instrumentalist to perform. This is the winner from our Symphony Concerto Competition. Salvador, please introduce yourself.
Salvador Mantas: My name is Salvador Mantas. I go to Nawa High School, and I’m in ninth grade. My teacher is Roger So, and my accompanist is Dr. Karen Er. I’ll be playing the Weber Bassoon Concerto in F Major.
(music plays)
Meredith Carson: Oh, that’s fantastic. Thank you so much, Salvador. Again, you can hear these young musicians on Sunday, April 27th, at Mackey Auditorium. The day before that, we’ll have a special event with the Boulder Children’s Chorale at Lyons Middle and Senior High School. The chorale will also be joining us for our performance at Mackey Auditorium on Sunday.
Brian Jack: Right now, we have two singers from the Boulder Children’s Chorale in the studio. Would you two please introduce yourselves?
Cress Strickland: I’m Cress Strickland. I go to Southern Hills Middle School, and I’m in eighth grade. I sing with the Boulder Children’s Chorale.
Margaret Luhan: My name is Margaret Luhan. I go to Casey Middle School, and I’m also in eighth grade. We’ll be singing “Bring Me Little Water, Sylvie” by Lead Belly, arranged by Moira Smiley.
(singing)
Meredith Carson: Is there a website where folks can find more details about everything you’ve told us this morning?
Brian Jack: Yes, of course. You can find us at greaterboulderyo.org. Today, we’re also joined by the Artistic Director of the Boulder Children’s Chorale. Can you tell us about the website where we can find more information about your concert?
BCC Director: Sure. You can visit boulderchildrenschorale.org or boulderchorale.org. The Boulder Children’s Chorale is part of the Greater Boulder Chorale organization. We have students ranging from kindergarten to retired singers who sing with our organization.
Meredith Carson: And there are a number of upcoming events, including a spring concert and something called the SCORE Chamber Music Concert. You can find all the information on these two websites.
Meredith Carson: Right now, it is time. We’ve been waiting for this moment all morning. They’re all rehearsed, they’re all warmed up, and they look fabulous. Members of the Greater Boulder Youth Orchestra, under the direction of our friend Brian Jack, are here. He brings them to us every year, and it’s always such a fun thing to do. Brian, it’s so great to see you and your talented students.
Brian Jack: Good morning.
Meredith Carson: What’s going on here? Tell us everything.
Brian Jack: The Greater Boulder Youth Orchestras have a lot going on in the next couple of weeks. Every year, one of the highlights of our season is our concerto competition. It’s always a spectacular performance that takes place in January. The winners of the concerto competition get to perform their pieces with their orchestras at our big season finale concert, which will be on Sunday, April 27th, at Mackey Auditorium.
Meredith Carson: So that’s a week from Sunday?
Brian Jack: That’s right. The concert starts at 12 noon. Today, our concerto performers are here to perform their works for you. We also have a special collaboration with the Boulder Children’s Chorale. Some of the singers from the chorale are here in the studio, and we’ll talk about that collaboration and the brand-new piece of music we’ll be performing after these performances. To start off, we have a flute player from our Philharmonic Orchestra. I’m going to ask each musician to introduce themselves and tell us who they are, what school they go to, what grade they’re in, who their teacher is, what piece they’re playing, and who is accompanying them on piano. All of these pieces are written for a solo instrument plus orchestra, but today, the orchestras are represented on piano. At the concert at Mackey Auditorium, you’ll get to hear the full orchestra plus these soloists.
Taaka Stewart: My name is Taaka Stewart. I go to Southern Hills and I’m in seventh grade. My teacher is Hannah Aro, who is also my accompanist today. My flute teacher is Rochelle Crowel, and I’ll be playing Flute Concerto in G Major by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi.
(plays music)
Brian Jack: That was Taaka Stewart on the flute. Usually, for our concerto competition, we have one winner from each orchestra. But this year, the judges were so impressed that we ended up with two winners for the Philharmonic Orchestra, which is our middle-level orchestra. Taaka was one of them. Our other winner is also here to perform a piece on the cello. Holden, would you please introduce yourself?
Holden Meese: Hello, I’m Holden Meese. I go to Centara High School. I’m a freshman, and my private teacher is Ann Bernand. My accompanist is Laura Meese, and I’ll be playing George Goldman’s Fifth Cello Concerto.
(plays music)
Brian Jack: For those of you just tuning in, you might think you just heard James Galway and Yo-Yo Ma, but in fact, it was two students from the Greater Boulder Youth Orchestras, Taaka and Holden. You can hear them with their orchestras performing these solos on Sunday, April 27th, at Mackey Auditorium. The concert begins at 12 noon. We have one more instrumentalist to perform. This is the winner from our Symphony Concerto Competition. Salvador, please introduce yourself.
Salvador Mantas: My name is Salvador Mantas. I go to Nawa High School, and I’m in ninth grade. My teacher is Roger So, and my accompanist is Dr. Karen Er. I’ll be playing the Weber Bassoon Concerto in F Major.
(music plays)
Meredith Carson: Oh, that’s fantastic. Thank you so much, Salvador. Again, you can hear these young musicians on Sunday, April 27th, at Mackey Auditorium. The day before that, we’ll have a special event with the Boulder Children’s Chorale at Lyons Middle and Senior High School. The chorale will also be joining us for our performance at Mackey Auditorium on Sunday.
Brian Jack: Right now, we have two singers from the Boulder Children’s Chorale in the studio. Would you two please introduce yourselves?
Cress Strickland: I’m Cress Strickland. I go to Southern Hills Middle School, and I’m in eighth grade. I sing with the Boulder Children’s Chorale.
Margaret Luhan: My name is Margaret Luhan. I go to Casey Middle School, and I’m also in eighth grade. We’ll be singing “Bring Me Little Water, Sylvie” by Lead Belly, arranged by Moira Smiley.
(singing)
Meredith Carson: Is there a website where folks can find more details about everything you’ve told us this morning?
Brian Jack: Yes, of course. You can find us at greaterboulderyo.org. Today, we’re also joined by the Artistic Director of the Boulder Children’s Chorale. Can you tell us about the website where we can find more information about your concert?
BCC Director: Sure. You can visit boulderchildrenschorale.org or boulderchorale.org. The Boulder Children’s Chorale is part of the Greater Boulder Chorale organization. We have students ranging from kindergarten to retired singers who sing with our organization.
Meredith Carson: And there are a number of upcoming events, including a spring concert and something called the SCORE Chamber Music Concert. You can find all the information on these two websites.
