Garfield Leads Orchestra Oct. 30

Garfield High School Symphony Orchestra will join Associate Conductor Carolyn Kuan and Seattle Symphony for two side-by-side performances featuring a Halloween-inspired program, including selections from Berlioz's playfully haunting Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14.
Side-by-side concerts provide an opportunity for young musicians to work and learn alongside professional musicians in rehearsal and performances.
The first concert will take place on Oct. 30 at 7:30 p.m. at Garfield High School in the new Quincy Jones Performance Center and is free and open to the public.
For the second performance, the orchestras will join together onstage at Benaroya Hall for a MySymphony presentation, geared toward secondary school students, on Oct. 31, at 10:30 a.m. Costumes are welcome.
The Garfield High School Orchestra program, under the direction of Marcus Tsutakawa, is one of the preeminent training grounds for young musicians in the Northwest.
The orchestra is made up of young people attending Garfield High School with diverse ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds, excellent musical ability and good academic records.
Graduates of the program have been admitted to study music at top schools throughout the country, including Oberlin College, Curtis Institute, Harvard University, Eastman School of Music, Yale University, University of Chicago, Northwestern University, Cleveland Institute and the University of Washington.
The program, which started with only ten students in 1985, when Tsutakawa joined the Garfield faculty, has grown to 197 students and three ensembles: the Symphony Orchestra (advanced students), the Concert Orchestra (students in training) and a chamber orchestra. Smaller chamber groups also form and play for special events. The Symphony Orchestra has made numerous recordings and toured extensively in the United States, Europe and Asia. Visit www.garfieldorchestra.org for more information.
Subscriptions are still available for the 2008–2009 season. For group sales information, call (206) 215-4784.