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Cornell Symphony Orchestra

Welcome to the homepage of the Cornell Symphony Orchestra!

This website aims to keep the Cornell and Ithaca communities up-to-date with all symphony-related information. Additionally, this website serves as the course website for MUSIC 343/344, the academic courses for Cornell students participating in the orchestra.

News Highlights

Fall 2009 auditions

August 2009

Auditions for the 2009-2010 year will be held in late August 2009. Guidelines and information can be found on the Auditions page.

Tour to New Orleans

January 2010

The orchestra is in the process of planning a tour to New Orleans, LA, to perform with area orchestras and contribute to a Habitat for Humanity project. More.

Symphony News & Announcements

Jun 15

ASCAP announces Year 2009 Orchestra Awards for "Adventurous Programming"

New York, NY, June 11, 2009: The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) will join the League of American Orchestras in presenting 26 awards to orchestras who have demonstrated exceptional commitment to contemporary composers at a special Awards Presentation being held today (June 11) during the League's 64th Annual Conference in Chicago. The annual ASCAP Adventurous Programming Awards recognize American orchestras whose past season prominently featured music written within the last twenty-five years.

The Cornell Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, with Chris Younghoon Kim as director, won first place in the Collegiate Orchestras category. Go here for the full article.

Jun 4

Concert Posters

Posters from old concerts now have their own page on the website! Be sure to check it out here.

May 23

CSO Senior featured in the Chronicle

Graduating senior Yoon Kim '09 was featured in the Cornell Chronicle recently. Click here for the featured senior profile.

Apr 27

CSO Spring Concert

Don't miss the last concert of the 2008-2009 season! This year's final concert features works by Steven Stucky, Francesco Antonioni, and Igor Stravinsky.

  • What: CSO in Concert
  • When: May 2, 2008, 8:00 pm
  • Where: Bailey Hall
  • Program:
    Francesco Antonioni: Macchine Inutili
    Steven Stucky: Son et Lumière
    Igor Stravinsky: The Firebird Suite (v. 1919)

Facebook event: click here!

Concert poster: click here!

Apr 27

Whole Note Volume 8

This year's edition of the orchestra newsletter, The Whole Note, is now in print. Go here to read up on the activities of the orchestra.

Apr 18

Fall 2009 Auditions

Information regarding auditions for the 2009-2010 year is now posted. It can be found on the auditions page.

Please contact Chris Kim (cyk8@cornell.edu) if you have any questions.

Mar 4

Adrianne Ngam featured in the Cornell Daily Sun

The Cornell Daily Sun interviewed Adranne Ngam, this year's Concerto Competition winner, in the March 4 edition of the Sun.

The interview can be found here, on the Cornell Daily Sun website. Be sure to check it out!

Mar 3

iO String Quartet Residency

The iO String Quartet will be on Cornell campus for a 6-day residency, March 3-8, 2009.

Tuesday, March 3:
4:45-6:15pm: iO Quartet coaching with Cornell Chamber Orchestra in Barnes Hall.

Thursday, March 5:
12:30pm: Midday concert in Lincoln B20
      feat. New String Quartets by Cornell DMA composers Peter Fahey, Amit Guilutz, Takumah Itoh and Jesse Jones.
4:45-6:15pm: iO Quartet coaching with Cornell Chamber Orchestra in Barnes Hall
7:30pm: Fireside chat at Hans Bethe House
     Christopher Gross (cellist) and Stephen Miahky (violinist)
7:30pm: Fireside chat at Carl Becker House
     Christina McGann (violinist) and Elizabeth Weisser (violist)

Sunday, March 8:
3:00pm: iO String Quartet in Concert, Barnes Hall
Program:
   L.V. Beethoven String Quartet Op. 95
   Maurice Ravel String Quartet
   Johannes Brahms Piano Quintet with Miri Yampolsky

Feb 21

CSO/CCO First Concert of the Semester

Don't miss the upcoming joint concert of the Cornell Symphony and Chamber Orchestras! The concert is on Sunday, March 1, 2009 at 3:00 PM in Bailey Hall. Program is as follows:

Chamber Orchestra:
W.A. Mozart (1756-1791): Serenade no 13 in G major, K 525 "Eine kleine Nachtmusik", led by Joseph Lin
Alfred Schnittke (1934-1998): Piano Concerto, feat. Xak Bjerken, piano

Intermission

Symphony Orchestra:
Alberto Ginastera (1916-1983): Pampeana No. 2 for cello and orchestra op. 21, feat. Adrianne Ngam, cello (Winner of the 5th annual Cornell Concerto Competition)
Richard Strauss (1864-1949): Tod und Verklärung, Op. 24 (Death and Transfiguration)

Concert is free and open to the public. To RSVP on Facebook, go here.

Jan 13

Orchestra History

There is a new page on the CSO website: the Orchestra History Page. It contains programs from and information about CSO concerts as far back as the 1930s.

The page is a work in progress, and input is always appreciated. Please check it out, and send any comments or suggestions to webmaster Kim at kmm223@cornell.edu or historian Vance at vdg2@cornell.edu.

Dec 20

Concerto Competition in the Chronicle

The Cornell Chronicle recently featured an article about this year's concerto competition. Check it out at the link below:

http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/Dec08/Concerto08.da.html.

Dec 15

Winner of the Fifth Concerto Competition

Congratulations to Adrianne Ngam, this year's concerto competition winner! She played Ginastera's Pampeana No. 2 on cello.

Adrianne will play with the Symphony Orchestra in the March 1st concert.

The other three finalists were:

  • Daniel Anastasio, piano
  • Bee-Seon Keum, violin
  • Chris Gerig, bass

Congratulations to all participants in this year's successful competition!

Dec 10

Concerto Competition

Don't miss Cornell's 5th Annual Concerto Competition this coming Sunday, December 14th!

Preliminary Round: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Final Round: 8:00 PM

All rounds are in Barnes Hall and are free and open to the public.

For a list of participants and a detailed schedule, go here.

Dec 6

Spring 2009 Orchestra Auditions

Vacancies:

Cornell Symphony Orchestra
  • 1 Flute
  • 5 Violin
  • 1 Viola
  • 2 Cello
  • 3 Bass
Cornell Chamber Orchestra
  • 2 Violin
  • 1 Cello
  • 1 Bass

Auditions will be held on Monday, December 8th from 1-5 PM.

Please email Chris Kim at cyk8@cornell.edu to schedule an audition time.

Nov 22

End-of-Semester Events

Sunday November 23rd: CCO and Chorale in Concert, 3pm, Sage Chapel, performing Mozart's Requiem. Free and open to the public.

Friday December 5th: CSO in Concert, 8pm, Bailey Hall. Free and open to the public.

Monday December 8th: Spring Semester auditions (only for new members). Contact Chris Kim for details.

Sunday December 14th: Fifth Annual Concerto Competition. Preliminary round: 10:00am-4:00pm. Final round: 8:00 pm. Barnes Hall. Free and open to the public.

Oct 31

CSO Media

The Orchestra Media Page is up and running! Check it out for pictures and video clips of concerts and orchestra activities. If you have images or video you want posted on the site, email webmaster Kim Mezger at cornellorchestras@gmail.com.

Oct 30

Orchestra Skate Night

On Friday November 7th from 10:30-11:30 pm, come out to Lynah Rink to ice skate with the orchestra! All CSO and CCO members and friends are welcome to attend. Admission is free, but bring $2 for skate rental.

Oct 20

Fifth Annual Concerto Competition

The Fifth Annual Cornell Concerto Competition will be held on Sunday, December 14th, 2008. Guidelines and application instructions can be found on the Concerto Competition page.

Oct 2

First Concert of the Fall Season

Cornell Symphony Orchestra and Ithaca College Symphony Orchestra
Saturday, October 11th, 8:00pm, Bailey Hall.

Chris Younghoon Kim and Jeffery Meyer, conductors. As part of the annual meeting of the Division for Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society, the orchestras present The Planets by Gustav Holst and the premiere of Roberto Sierra's new work featuring percussionist Tim Feeney.

Sep 27

CSO Board Meetings

The orchestra board will be having weekly dinner meetings at 5:30 pm on Mondays (before rehearsal) at Okenshields Dining Hall. All CSO and CCO members are welcome to attend.

Aug 31

CSO & CCO Audition Results

Orchestra auditions for the fall semester have concluded and the results have been posted on the members page. Any questions should be directed to Chris Kim (cyk8@cornell.edu). A list of CCO audition results is also available on the CCO homepage.

Upcoming Rehearsals

Check back starting in late August for rehearsals in the 2009-10 season!

Support CSO

To support the activities of Cornell Orchestras, please consider a donation to the John Hsu Orchestra Fund. The John Hsu Orchestral Fund serves as a permanent legacy to his fifty years of teaching and focuses on enriching funds for orchestra activities at Cornell, such as future tours, retreats and guest artists. The Cornell Music Department has provided the initial seed money for this new endowment fund; its growth will be dependent on targeted donations from the greater Cornell community.

To sustain the vitality of this lasting legacy to Professor Hsu and orchestral music at Cornell, contributions to the fund are encouraged and greatly appreciated. Checks should be made out to Cornell University, memo John Hsu Orchestral Fund. Checks can be sent to Cornell Music department 101 Lincoln Hall, Ithaca NY, 14853.