Hi all,

Thanks for your work on Sunday. We now go into a long holiday break and we see each other again on Sunday, January 5. Below are a few requests for you to do between now and then:

1. Please do a ton of listening. As you know, there are reference videos on the main page of this blog. And also, for your convenience, here is a YouTube playlist that contains each piece on our program, in concert order. Please listen every day if possible, even if it’s as background music as you do homework, etc. And even better: pick a piece or movement each day, and do some deep listening, following along with your part or a full score.
2. Please practice. Be responsible and be strategic. Bring your individual parts to your absolute best between now and January 5th. You have everything you need to do this. Use your metronome, practice difficult passages SLOWLY. Play along to a recording to help identify challenging moments.
3. Please add bar numbers to all pieces. This will save a lot of rehearsal time. Please do it.

All that said, also get some rest. Sleep well. Enjoy the holidays with your loved ones <3

I look forward to seeing you again in the new year.

Dr. G.

Rehearsal Plan for Sunday, January 5, 2025

• 4:00pm-4:25pm: Seas of Glass (whole piece)
• 4:25pm-5:00pm: Rachmaninoff, mov 3 (from #35 to end of piece)
• 5:00pm-5:30pm: Rachmaninoff, mov 1 and 2 (no soloist)
• 5:30pm-5:45pm: break
• 5:45pm-6:15pm: More Rachmaninoff as needed
• 6:15pm-6:40pm: Dvořák (no soloist)
• 6:40pm-7:00pm: Weber (no soloist)

Please add bar numbers to all pieces

Another reminder: please make it a habit to write your name on each of your parts, and add measure numbers at the beginning of each line.

Bonus: this post with reference measure numbers for Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2.

Optional leadership auditions

Optional leadership auditions are due Friday, January 3. This is an opportunity for you to be considered for leadership positions for our March 2025 concert, or to show me your work if you feel my rotations are not giving you the part assignments you’d like. Please record a video with at least 3 minutes of repertoire of your choice. It can be solo repertoire, or any music you’ve played with your ensembles at MYS, school, etc. E-mail me a video link directly at rgomez@playmys.org with the subject line “MYS Symphony Orchestra Leadership Audition.”

Access practice parts on the MYS website

If you misplace your parts and need to print replacements, or need access to PDFs for any reason, you may go to our Online Music Library to find digital files of everything we’re playing.

The password to access our Online Music Library is playmys.

Happy holidays!

Best,

Dr. G.

Happy Holidays! | Photography by Richard Kolbell | Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 11/12/24

Hi everyone,

Only one more rehearsal before our holiday break, then we come back pretty much to concert week, including our weeknight evening rehearsals at The Madeleine School.

Please practice. This is why I send out rehearsal plans, so that you know what to focus on each week. Learning your individual part at home in advance of rehearsal is required. It’s part of your commitment for being a member of this orchestra. As I often say, it’s also very helpful to listen to recordings of our repertoire regularly. See the videos I’ve share on this webpage (sidebar on a computer, bottom of page if on mobile).

Please see below for an updated rehearsal plan for Sunday.

Best,

Dr. G.

Updated Rehearsal Plan for Sunday, December 15

• 4:00pm-4:30pm: Seas of Glass (letter G to end of piece)
• 4:30pm-5:30pm: Rachmaninoff mov. 2 & 3
• 5:30pm-5:45pm: break
• 5:45pm-6:20pm: Rachmaninoff mov 3
• 6:20pm-6:50pm: Weber with Kaden
• 6:50pm-7:00pm: YMA guests

Please add bar numbers to all pieces

Another reminder: please make it a habit to write your name on each of your parts, and add measure numbers at the beginning of each line.

Bonus: this post with reference measure numbers for Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2.

Looking ahead: optional leadership auditions

Optional leadership auditions are due Friday, January 3. This is an opportunity for you to be considered for leadership positions for our March 2025 concert, or to show me your work if you feel my rotations are not giving you the part assignments you’d like. Please record a video with at least 3 minutes of repertoire of your choice. It can be solo repertoire, or any music you’ve played with your ensembles at MYS, school, etc. E-mail me a video link directly at rgomez@playmys.org with the subject line “MYS Symphony Orchestra Leadership Audition.”

Access practice parts on the MYS website

If you misplace your parts and need to print replacements, or need access to PDFs for any reason, you may go to our Online Music Library to find digital files of everything we’re playing.

The password to access our Online Music Library is playmys.

See you Sunday!

Best,

Dr. G.

Look, mom! It’s me with the Oregon Symphony and the Oregon Chorale! | Arlene Schintzer Concert Hall, December 11, 2024 | Photo by Oregon Symphony

Hi everyone,

Thanks for a solid read-through of most of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 on Sunday 11/17, as well as a great first pass at Frazar Henry’s Seas of Glass. Below is our rehearsal plan for Sunday 11/24, plus a link to our friend Richard Kolbell’s photos from our 11/10 concert.

Rehearsal Plan for Sunday, November 24

• 4:00pm-5:00pm – Rachmaninoff, Piano Concerto No. 2 – finish reading the 3rd movement, from reh #34 to the end. PLEASE PRACTICE THE SECTION that starts at #34. Metronome goal is half note = 126.
• 5:00pm-5:30pm – Weber, Clarinet Concerto No. 2 (movement 3) – no soloist
• 5:30pm-5:45pm – break
• 5:45pm-7:00pm – Dvořák, Violin Concerto (movement 3) – no soloist

Add bar numbers to EVERYTHING (and your name too)

Please make it a habit to write your name on each of your parts, and add measure numbers at the beginning of each line. This is good for everything you play, ever, now and forever 🙂

Bonus: this post with reference measure numbers for Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2.

Come support MYS colleagues at Oregon Symphony masterclass this Saturday (11/23)

Leena Karmarkar and Elizabeth Shen will perform in a masterclass by OSO guest soloist Vadim Gluzman. Saturday, November 23 from 10:30am-noon. Location: 851 SW 6th Ave., Portland, OR 97204 – 1st floor – entrance is on the corner of SW 6th and Taylor.

Photos by Richard Kolbell from 11/10 concert

Richard Kolbell’s photos can be accessed below. If you use any of the photos for any purpose (social media, websites, etc), please be sure to credit him (e.g. “photo by Richard Kolbell).

Access practice parts on the MYS website

If you misplace your parts and need to print replacements, or need access to PDFs for any reason, you may go to our Online Music Library to find digital files of everything we’re playing.

The password to access our Online Music Library is playmys.

No rehearsal on December 1

We have Thanksgiving weekend off. But please do practice! Remember this is a shorter concert term compared to our other 3 concerts, and we have a long break for the holidays. Individual preparation is key.

Happy practicing,

Dr. G.

MYS Symphony Orchestra | Photo by Richard Kolbell, Nov 10, 2024

Hi everybody,

Excellent work with David Danzmayr on Sunday. As I mentioned, he was impressed and I was proud of you. I hope you felt proud of yourselves as well.

This is the home stretch before our concert on Sunday, November 10th: the season opener for our 50th Anniversary Season. Please do practice at home, and be strategic with how you spend your time. I know you’re all very busy with school and other extracurriculars. Make sure to get enough sleep too.

Recap of Sunday and plans for the whole week are below. Please make sure to arrive by 6:45pm for each of our upcoming evening rehearsals.

RECAP of 10/27 rehearsal

• Tchaikovsky with David Danzmayr.
• Crain-Keddie’s Innamorata: letter [R] to end.
• Mazzoli: letter [U] to end of piece.
• Beethoven: we were only able to work briefly on the introduction.

Rehearsal Plan for Thursday, 11/7

• 6:45pm arrival
• 7:00pm-8:20pm: Beethoven
• 8:20pm-8:30pm: break
• 8:30pm-9:30pm: Mazzoli

Rehearsal Plan for Friday, 11/8

• 6:45pm arrival
• 7:00pm-7:45pm: Crain-Keddie’s Innamorata
• 7:45pm-9:00pm: Tchaikovsky (with 10-min break somewhere in the middle)
• 9:00pm-9:30pm: Beethoven

Rehearsal Plan for Saturday, 11/9

6:45pm arrival, then rehearsal in concert order:

1. Beethoven
2. Crain-Keddie
3. Mazzoli
4. Tchaikovsky

Sunday, November 10 (concert day)

• Call time: 5:00pm
• Call sheet with all details is linked here.
• 5:30pm-6:15pm – very short on-stage sound-check rehearsal. Concert order.

Extra/replacement parts on the MYS website

• As always, you can find practice PDFs or print your own replacement parts on your Online Music Library. The password is playmys.

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Happy practicing,

Dr. G.

MYS Symphony Orchestra in rehearsal with David Danzmayr | Photos by Oregon Symphony, 11/3/24

Hi everybody,

Thank you to everybody who submitted auditions for this season’s Concerto Competition. All the submissions showed hard work and talent. It wasn’t easy to narrow it down for the final round on November 1st. Below are the finalists (in alphabetical order by last name) and one alternate finalist.

• Leah Almeida (cello) – David Popper, Hungarian Rhapsody for Cello
• Tai Friel (trombone) – Ferdinand David, Concertino for Trombone and Orchestra
• Ciela Heiles (bassoon) – Henri Tomasi, Bassoon Concerto, Mvt. 1
• Soren Holbrook (viola) – Cecil Forsyth, Viola Concerto in G minor, mvt. 1
• Leena Karmarkar (violin) – Antonín Dvořák, Violin Concerto in A minor, mvt. 3
• Kaden Prichard (clarinet) – Carl Maria von Weber, Clarinet Concerto No. 2 in E-flat major, mvt. 3

• Alternate finalist: Rowan Furrer (cello) – Joseph Haydn, Cello Concert No. 2 in D Major, mvt. 1 (performs on 11/1 if a finalist is unable to participate)

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Congrats to all! The rest of us: let’s make sure to mark our calendars for Friday, November 1st at 7:00pm at The Madeleine at 3123 NE 24th Ave, Portland, OR 97212. Come support your friends!

Dr. G.

Ian Ko, cello – one of the winners of the MYS Concerto Competition 2023-2024

Hi everybody,

Very good rehearsal on Sunday (10/20). Good work all around. This coming Sunday (10/27), we’ll be two short weeks away from the concert. It’s time to kick into high gear. Also, a reminder that David Danzmayr, Music Director of the Oregon Symphony, will visit our rehearsal and will conduct Tchaikovsky on Sunday, 11/3.

RECAP of 10/20 rehearsal

• Group photos!
• Innamorata, from the beginning to letter [D]
• Tchaikovsky, from K to the end.
• Beethoven: whole piece

Rehearsal Plan for Sunday, October 27

• 4:00pm-4:30pm – Elishiya’s piece Innamorata [D] to end
• 4:30pm-5:15pm – Mazzoli: whole piece
• 5:15pm-5:30pm – break
• 5:30pm-7:00pm – Tchaikovsky (entire piece, in preparation for 11/3 David Danzmayr visit)

Concert dress check make-up

If you didn’t wear your concert clothes last Sunday, please remember to wear them to rehearsal this Sunday. You may bring clothes to change into after you get your concert attire checked and approved by Group Managers.

Reminder: LISTEN to our repertoire constantly

It’s always a good idea to find several different versions of each of the pieces we’re playing. Add them to your regular listening rotation. You can always start with the recordings that I’ve shared on the sidebar of this blog. The more variety you find, the more informed your own performance will be.

Extra/replacement parts on the MYS website

• As always, you can find practice PDFs or print your own replacement parts on your Online Music Library. The password is playmys.

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Happy practicing,

Dr. G.

MYS Symphony Orchestra | October 20, 2024

Hi all!!

I enjoyed our rehearsal on Sunday, October 6th. By the time we get to our next rehearsal (this Sunday, 10/13), we’ll be less than a month away from our first concert. Please continue planning your practicing very strategically, so that concert week is enjoyable and not stressful.

RECAP of 10/6 rehearsal

• We read the first draft of Elishiya Crain-Keddie‘s piece Innamorata. Thank you for your great reading and very valuable input for the composer. We will hand out the final parts this Sunday. The next rehearsal of this piece will be on Oct. 20.
• We worked on Missy Mazzoli‘s Orpheus Undone. We worked backwards from the end of Part 1 back to letter [X]. Good work on this. Keep practicing!
• SECTIONALS
  • Woodwind sections worked on Mazzoli and Tchaikovsky as needed.
  • Strings, percussion and brass worked with me on Tchaikovsky, focusing on the following sections:
    • Q to U
    • 508 to end
    • J to K
    • M to 367 (playthrough only)

Rehearsal Plan for Sunday, October 13

• 4:00pm-4:45pm – tutti: Part 2 of Missy Mazzoli‘s Orpheus Undone
• 4:45pm-5:15pm – tutti: Tchaikovsky (entire piece)
• 5:15pm-5:30pm – break
• 5:30pm-7:00pm – Beethoven!! (entire piece) — we need to make a ton of progress on Beethoven. Please practice and listen to recordings!

Reminder: LISTEN to our repertoire constantly

It’s always a good idea to find several different versions of each of the pieces we’re playing. Add them to your regular listening rotation. You can always start with the recordings that I’ve shared on the sidebar of this blog. The more variety you find, the more informed your own performance will be.

Reminder: Concerto Competition

The webpage for our Concerto Competition is now live. You’ll find all the information you need, including deadlines, rules and forms. The registration deadline is Monday, October 14. Video entries are due Friday October 18.

Extra/replacement parts on the MYS website

• As always, you can find practice PDFs or print your own replacement parts on your Online Music Library. The password is playmys.

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Happy practicing,

Dr. G.

MYS Musicians photographed by Sheepscot Creative | September 2024