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Youth Orchestras of San Antonio (YOSA)
Fast Facts
YOSA musicians number than 1,500 and come from more than 115
schools in 17 school
districts.
Students are ethnically diverse 50% Hispanic, 37% Caucasian, 6%
African American, 3% Asian.
More than 1/3 of YOSA performers receive tuition assistance;
more than 60% receive free
programs through community partnerships.
The Orchestras
368 students are arranged into 5 orchestras with weekly
rehearsals and ten concerts annually.
Musicians with one- to two-years of playing experience begin in
YOSA Prelude Strings. As
students grow and improve, they may graduate into Capriccio
Strings, Sinfonietta Strings and
YOSA Symphony, all of which require a progressive level of skill
and ensemble experience.
The most experienced student musicians in the region perform
with the YOSA Philharmonic,
performing professional-level repertoire in premier venues here
and abroad, collaborating
regularly with internationally renowned soloists and
composers.
YOSA Philharmonic has represented San Antonio on 9 international
tours, most recently China
in 2010 and London in 2012.
Summer Symphony Camp
In July each summer, more than 200 students convene for a
two-week day camp hosted at
Saint Marys Hall with some of San Antonios finest music teachers
and professional musicians
as faculty. YOSA has been offering summer camp since 1985; the
program has recently
expanded to include winds, brass and percussion.
School and Community Partnerships
The YOSA Roosevelt Compact, supported by the Rackspace
Foundation, supports transforming
the musical experience of the Roosevelt High School students and
the six middle and
elementary schools which feed into it. YOSA provides private
lessons, sectional coaches,
clinicians, concert tickets and YOSA tuition assistance.
Contact:
Fran Stephenson 210-557-8207or
[email protected]
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]
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The organization sponsors YOSA MS, a free after-school program
at Good SamaritanCommunity Services on the citys west side.
Students receive daily music instruction and loaned
instruments.
Our History
The current YOSA is a successor to the citys first
community-wide youth orchestra, which was
created by SAISD in 1949.
Expanded reach from 483 students in 2008 to more than 1,500 in
2011.
The mission of Youth Orchestras of San Antonio, the premier
orchestral experience for youth citywide, is
to enhance education, enrich the community and transform lives
by pursuing excellence in classical music
in a stimulating, nurturing and fun environment that is equally
accessible to all youth.
