Enrichment & Engagement

In addition to rehearsals and concerts, the ISYO offers a wide array of enrichment opportunities, aimed at deepening musical skills, nourishing personal growth, and bringing our young musicians into contact with the professional musicians of the ISO.

Emma Shafer Scholarship & Community Engagement Program

The Emma Shafer Scholarship was created in 2023 in honor of youth orchestra alumna Emma Shafer, who was the ultimate expression of the civic integrity that we strive to cultivate with group music-making. This $500 scholarship is awarded annually to a musician who has gone above and beyond as a “musical citizen,” and the recipient is chosen with input from the conductor, staff, and the musicians themselves.

Each year, the Shafer Scholarship recipient takes the lead in organizing our Emma Shafer Community Engagement Program, which sends ISYO chamber groups to perform at senior homes, as well as other community locations. This student-directed program is a chance for our young musicians to give back to the community that supports them, sharing their talents with a wide swathe of appreciative listeners.

Chamber Music

Each year, the ISYO organizes a number of chamber music ensembles, providing rehearsal space, music, and performing opportunities, as well as guidance in the art of rehearsing and playing as a chamber group. This is a wonderful opportunity for young musicians to develop initiative, to grow their teamwork and leadership skills, and to become creative artists, acting as their own “conductors.” Ensembles perform each year on a December Chamber Music Concert, as well as the May ISYO Season Sendoff Concert, and have additional performing opportunities through the Emma Shafer Community Engagement Program.

ISYO@ISO

The ISYO is fortunate to be under the wing of a professional orchestra, and we seek to take full advantage of that connection with our ISYO@ISO series, which provides our young musicians with special VIP visits to ISO rehearsals and concerts. These unique peeks behind the curtain of a professional orchestra are a source of inspiration and motivation for our young musicians, as well as an opportunity to build fruitful relationships with their ISO mentors.

ISYO Masterclass Series

To provide a more in-depth opportunity for our young musicians to learn from ISO members, we organize a series of three masterclasses per year, in which ISYO members perform for and learn from ISO members. The classes take place in the beautiful surroundings and acoustic of the First Presbyterian Church in Springfield, and are followed by a lunch together, in which the ISYO members can get to know and pick the brain of their new ISO friend.

Starter Strings at the Symphony

As new musicians and families enter our program in Starter Strings, we want to ensure that they feel connected to the larger Illinois Symphony Orchestra community. An important moment in that welcoming process is our Starter Strings at the Symphony night, when Starter Strings musicians are invited to attend and be recognized at the ISO’s Family Pops concert, with two complimentary and additional discounted tickets.