The last 25 years (1987-2012) has seen tremendous growth in the breadth and scope of the concert programs offered by the Youth Symphony. The orchestra has received critical acclaim through string consortiums at the University of Illinois and joint programs with the Rockford Youth Symphony, McHenry Area Youth Symphony, and our own Illinois Valley Symphony Orchestra. Musical selections for programs have ranged from major orchestral works to Broadway scores. Included have been such selections as Jurassic Park by Williams, Medley for Orchestra by Duke Ellington, American Salute by Gould, The Barber of Seville by Rossini, The Marriage of Figaro by Mozart, Finlandia by Jean Sibelius, Romeo and Juliet by Tchaikovsky, West Side Story by Bernstein, selections from Les Miserables by Schonberg, Sabre Dance by Khachaturian, Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 in F Major by Johann Sebastian Bach, and Emperor Waltz Opus, 437 by Johann Strauss. The inaugural 1987-1988 concert programs were no less challenging with works by Aaron Copland, Jean Sibelius, Ludwig von Beethoven, Igor Stravinsky, Antonio Vivaldi, and Georges Bizet. Michael Hining served as music director and conductor for the period 1987 to 1992. In 1992, co- conductors John Armstrong and Michael Pecherek guided the orchestra through 2012 when Mr. Starting fall of 2012, Mr. David Lee will be joining John Armstrong as co-conductor of the IVYSO. Lynn Oliverius Credi was instrumental in handling the business of the Youth Symphony from 1987 to 1988. From 1988 to 2009 Carol McConaghie administered the orchestra before handing the business management to Emily Sobacki who held the position for two years. Since 2011 Delle Peterson has managed the IVYSO. Various guest soloists have performed with the symphony. Some examples are Cecelia Kafer of DeKalb, Brenda Jerrard of Malta, Melody Turner of Oak Park, Ron Modell of DeKalb, Carolyn Lukancic of Ann Arbor, Barbara Kinzer of Ottawa., Susan Gillio of Oglesby, Cindi Isenhower of Ottawa, Dr. Charlotte Williams Miur of Naperville, Maureen Christine of Crystal Lake, Deb Shofner of Sycamore, Kirk Lundbeck of Sycamore, Delle Peterson of Compton, IL and Katherine Roy of Ottawa. Since 1990, the Youth Symphony has conducted its own concerto competition. Student winners who have performed in the spring concerts included Carolyn Lukancic, Peter Kim, Susan Shane, Tom Foster, Caroline Tonozzi, Renee Thouvenin, Arthur Trebs, Angela Tonozzi, Anna Walsh, Sarah Evans, Emily Morgan, Maggie Olson, Jerry Beck, Nicholas Tonozzi, Emily Etheridge, Rachel Bailey, Emily Blackford, Jennifer Hays, Audra Loveland, Catherine Wilcoxson, Bethany Cutler, Kailee McGillis, and Jeremy Stevens.
