Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra
Link Up Program and Young Persons Concerts
“THE ORCHESTRA SWINGS”
April 29, 2025
Young people have always been at the heart of the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra’s mission.
“INSPIRING young musicians through opportunities to perform and be recognized”
“ENRICHING THE COMMUNITY through youth programs.”
Every spring, the day after the final Orchestra Series concert of the season, the HHSO plays for—and with—over 1,250 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders from the Beaufort County School District. It’s great fun for everyone! This concert is the culmination of a program for which the study materials are provided at no cost through Carnegie Hall’s Link Up program. In their own classrooms, guided by their teachers over eight months, students learn about the music and composers, how to sing selected pieces and how to play the recorder before coming to First Presbyterian Church to perform with a professional orchestra. Accompanying the HHSO on several selections were 29 violin students from Red Cedar Elementary in Bluffton, where the HHSO has been providing instruments and instruction for several years. Can you imagine the excitement of sitting on stage with the other orchestra musicians?
This year was all about Swing. What a delight to hear 10-year-olds belting out familiar Big Band-era standards like Ellington’s Duke’s Place and the Gershwin brothers’ I Got Rhythm!, written almost a century before they were born. They were into it!
Maestro John Morris Russell is in his element with children. His passion and enthusiasm set the tone. The energy in the house was electric—he even left the podium to jitterbug with vocalist Michelle Meece!
The HHSO is grateful to the dedicated music teachers from Hilton Head Island Elementary, Hilton Head Preparatory School, Red Cedar Elementary, Michael C. Riley Elementary, River Ridge Academy, HHI School for the Creative Arts, and First Presbyterian Church Day School, who participated this year. It is a year-long endeavor for them. Vocalists Michelle and Matthew Meece and Laiken Williams, plus charismatic emcee Gustavo Rattia, rounded out the cast. A huge THANK YOU to our sponsors and the public support, which makes these concerts possible.
No School Left Behind!
It was around 9:45 am on April 29 (right when the first performance was beginning) that a text message from M. C. Riley Elementary School’s music teacher came through: “No buses!” A miscommunication error resulted in 237 disappointed third and fourth-grade students who were ready to make their HHSO debuts on recorder and singing during the 11:00 am presentation at First Presbyterian Church.
During the break between concerts, word got out about the absent school. Two of our singers, Michelle and Matthew Meese, said they’d go to the school for a “make-up” performance. Martin Lesch, who was playing keyboard with the swing sextet, also offered. Within a day, Mario Incorvaia and Alan Jordan had connected with enough committed performers to start planning for a run-out to M. C. Riley in Bluffton. On May 19th, Martin, Michelle, and Matt were joined by host Gustavo Rattia, sextet bassist Kenneth Mason, and drummer Chris Russell, to perform a chamber version of “The Orchestra Swings,” with violinist Mario Incorvaia assuming the role of the entire orchestra!
The students and teachers got their highly interactive live musical experience after months of preparation. It was a good day to be the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra!
This enriching experience would not have been possible without the generous support from The First Presbyterian Church of Hilton Head, The Bargain Box, The Music Performance Trust Fund, and the Mary Briggs Youth Foundation!
