NHS Students Among Young Musicians Playing In Debut RSYO Performance

RIDGEFIELD — Andrea and Jeffrey Reinhardt will perform solos in Ridgefield Symphony Youth Orchestra’s debut concert on Sunday, May 4. Under the direction of Jonathan Schiffman, the RSO’s assistant conductor, the performance will be at The Ridgefield Playhouse for Music and Performing Arts, at 80 East Ridge, at 4 pm.

Andrea, a junior at Newtown High School, has studied flute and piccolo for nine years and is currently a pupil of Dr Kerry Walker, the principal flutist in Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra. Andrea also plays in the Honors Wind Ensemble at NHS as well as principal clarinet in the Honors Orchestra.

She participated in the CMEA Western Regional Festival in 2002, the RSO Concerto Competition in 2002 and the All State Festival on Piccolo this year. In addition, using three instruments – flute, clarinet and saxophone – Miss Reinhardt has played with the Community Wind Ensemble of Western CT for the past six years. She plays in the Newtown High School Jazz Ensemble, and started the Newtown High School Flute Choir.

Her brother Jeffrey is a ninth grader at Newtown High School. He plays oboe and English horn and studies privately with Donna Locke and Dr Stuart Dunkel. Jeffrey placed first in the RSO Concerto Competition this year. He plays both the oboe and the English horn in the Symphonic Band and the Honors Orchestra at his school and was the principal oboe in the Danbury Community Orchestra for the 2002 season. Jeffrey also plays with the Community Wind Ensemble of Western CT and was in All State on Oboe 2003.

The RSYO was created under the auspices of Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra. Members were selected from a group of over 60 young musicians who auditioned in December 2002. The orchestra boasts members from Ridgefield, Newtown, Wilton, Danbury and Redding, and is directed by Jonathan Schiffman. Mr Schiffman, in addition to being assistant conductor of RSO, will complete studies for his master’s degree at Juilliard this spring.

“We have a fantastic group of kids who are truly excited about music,” says Mr Schiffman. “For this reason, I have challenged them with works by Bach, Haydn and Bartok. Despite the difficulties, both stylistically and technically, the kids are rising to the challenge, inspired and eager to play such fine music.”

The debut concert of Ridgefield Symphony Youth Orchestra will feature Bartok’s Rumanian Folk Dances, Haydn’s Concerto in G Major for Flute and Oboe (with Andrea and Jeffrey Reinhardt as soloists), Bach’s Orchestral Suite No 2 in B minor, as well as Vivaldi’s “Spring” from The Four Seasons, arranged especially for the RSYO by Jonathan Schiffman.

Tickets for the concert are $15 for adults and $10 for children 12 years old and younger; they may be purchased at Ridgefield Music, Ridgefield Stationery (Squash’s) on Main Street in Ridgefield, or by calling the Ridgefield Symphony Orchestra at 203-438-3889.