With a two-week trip to Australia on the agenda, members of the Metropolis Youth Symphony are heading into summer on a high note.
Robert Ian Winstin, , director of the Arlington Heights-based orchestra for students in 6th through 12th grades, said the group was invited to perform at the Olympic Games torch ceremonies in Busselton and Fremantle in western Australia.
In addition, the symphony will perform a live, on-the-air concert for the Australian Broadcast Corporation in Sydney, as well as appearing at venues in Perth during the trip, Tuesday through July 8.
“This was a surprise for everyone, so I didn’t tell them about the plan when they auditioned last year,” said Winstin, a composer whose works will be performed on the Australia tour with those of other American composers, including George Gershwin and Aaron Copland.
Prices down under are soaring in light of the Olympic games in September and October. Winstin was dismayed to discover a $39 hotel room goes for $300 this Olympic year.
“We have gotten a lot of community and corporate support, which helps, but the prices were astronomical,” he said.
The youth symphony’s members come from Arlington Heights, of course, and communities as far away as Grayslake, Wilmette and Chicago.
Individual musicians have varying skill levels, but all share a commitment to rehearse together twice a week and polish their musical skills at home.
“When we picked our players, I wanted members who reflect all different walks of life,” Winstin said. “If they were not up to the standards of some others, we told them we’d work with them.”
Of course, the wide range of skill levels demands patience and understanding on the part of the young artists.
“It took about six months for us to really start working together,” Winstin said. “We didn’t want a cut-throat group of musicians; the person in the last seat is just as important as the person in the first seat.”
This week, the symphony offered a sneak preview of its Australia concert program, performing at the Metropolis Tuesday and Wednesday nights.
And with a trip to the farthest corner of the world just around the corner, Winstin said the group’s enthusiasm has hit a fever pitch–which should make the journey interesting for the adult volunteer chaperones.
“We are leaving with 72 kids, and we want to come back with 72 kids,” quipped Winstin. “It will be a trip of a lifetime.”
