TOLEDO – The Toledo Symphony Youth Orchestra has 205 student musicians this season, and each one of those youths has a story to tell about their musical journey.
St. Ursula Academy junior Anika Brody, who took up the violin at age 5, is modest when asked about her talent as a musician. Make no mistake, however; she is very, very good.
Brody, who is also involved with Toledo Ballet and has a 4.3 high school GPA, has been involved with TSYO for four years.
“I really like violin,” Brody said. “I was in kindergarten and my parents [Christine Angevine and Edward Brody] told me to pick up an instrument. The first one I could think of was the violin. My parents had me stick with it, and it’s been a part of my identity and who I am over the years.”
Sarah Schaefer, Director of Education for Live Arts Toledo, of which TSYO is a member, said all potential TSYO musicians must audition once per school year, in the spring, and are graded by a panel of judges from the Toledo Symphony.
“It’s kind of an honor to audition and be accepted, and we want students to have that experience year after year,” Schaefer said. “I manage these programs and take care of a lot of the logistics under Live Arts Toledo. I’m in communication with the students and the families of TSYO.”
Brody auditioned for TSYO four times and has been accepted all four times.
“The first year I auditioned was pre-Covid, in 2019,” she said. “I was in fifth grade. We had to prepare a piece we were comfortable playing. We had to go into a room and play our piece into a tape recorder, and we got our results weeks later.”
Schaefer has been involved with TSYO since 2023 and said she recognizes what the program means to the young musicians.
“Many different schools are represented, and all of these students get to come together once a week to make music together. A lot of students might not have an orchestra program of this size at their school, so this gives them an opportunity to participate in a full orchestra that includes wind instruments, strings and percussion.”
Some of the more than 30 school districts from northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan that are represented in TSYO this season include: Anthony Wayne, Bowling Green, Bryan, Clay, Eastwood, Emmanuel Christian, Findlay, Lake, Maumee, Maumee Valley Country Day, Monclova Christian, Northwood, Notre Dame Academy, Oak Harbor, Ohio Virtual Academy, Otsego, Ottawa Hills, Perrysburg, St. Joseph Parish School, St. Ursula Academy, Sylvania, Toledo Christian, Toledo Public, and Washington Local.
Schaefer said, “A lot of times the students hear about TSYO from their [school] band or orchestra teachers, or if they are attending a Toledo Symphony concert out in the community. Many students take lessons from Toledo Symphony musicians.”
TSYO performs three times a year. Its first performance this season was in November at the Peristyle Theater at the Toledo Museum of Art. The next performances are March 15 in a side-by-side performance with the Toledo Symphony Orchestra at the Peristyle Theater, and May 11 in a Pops Concert at Bowling Green State University’s Moore Musical Arts Center.
All concerts are free to attend, but tickets must be reserved in advance here.
“We usually sell out,” Schaefer said.
The ages of TSYO musicians this year range from 9-18.
“We’ve had younger students,” Schaefer said. “It’s rare, but it could happen.”
TSYO consists of three different orchestras: the Philharmonic, Symphonic, and Concert Strings. Each orchestra is designed for a different level of student.
Philharmonic consists of brass, woodwinds, percussion, and strings and is the most advanced orchestra. Symphonic is the same as the Philharmonic but at a more intermediate level.
Concert Strings consists of strings only and tends to feature the youngest musicians.
“It’s a special opportunity for young string musicians to play outside of school with players from other schools,” Schaefer said. “This will prepare them to play in the Symphonic and Philharmonic.”
TSYO, founded by Toledo high school student Joseph Henry in 1947, has been in existence for 75 years. It became an official orchestra in 1950, led by Toledo Public Schools teacher and Toledo Symphony violinist Cecile Vashaw, who conducted TSYO until 1965, when she became the director of music for the entire TPS system.
Brody said participating with TSYO “has been a great learning experience for me, especially through being a part of an orchestra.”
“Honestly, I think it’s special because it’s an opportunity for me or any student to get outside orchestra experience in an environment that is supportive and caring,” she said. “It has helped me to grow my skill. I have to do my part to learn my own music in order to come together with a group to make a sound together at a concert. It’s something you can do the rest of your life. There are musicians who will pursue this professionally for the rest of their lives.”
