The Sequoia Youth Orchestras held their spring concert on April 18th at the Visalia Fox Theatre. The Sequoia Youth Orchestras consisted of three separate groups: The Sequoia Strings, Youth Symphony, and the COS Symphony. Each group had their own directors and setlists.

The Sequoia Strings consisted of young violin, viola, cello, and bass players and was directed by Lisa Fritz. The first piece played was “Rhythm and Blues” which was initially composed by Soon Hee Newbold. They ended with “Finale from Serenade for strings.” The Sequoia Strings was composed of children learning music. The Sequoia Youth Orchestras allows for players to get a sense of the atmosphere of an orchestra.

The Youth Symphony followed after the Sequoia Strings. Jeff Fritz was the director of this group and had an interesting setlist. From “Beauty and the Beast” to “Metallica.” The Youth Symphony hit a variety of genres when playing. An orchestral rendition of “No Leaf Clover” by Metallica stood out. The Youth Symphony consisted of intermediate level strings, brass, woodwinds, and percussion players.

The COS Symphony ended the night. Michael Tackett, a professor of music and Director of Bands at COS, directed this group. The COS Symphony consisted of the most advanced players in the county.The COS Symphony had the longest setlist consisting of seven pieces. The setlist is mainly orchestral music. Two pieces from the setlist however were played solely by the Chamber Strings. All the string instruments played while the others didn’t. These pieces are “In the Company of Angels” and “Scherzo from “F-A-E” Sonata for Violin and Piano.”

The Sequoia Youth Orchestra started in 2011 and helped budding talent to get experience playing to many people. Since then they have become a three group concert from the youngest talent to college level talent. If you are curious about any other information visit jfritzmusic.com.