2025 Fall Youth Concerts
by Rachel Cherian, Manager of Grants & Sponsorships
On Tuesday, October 28, over 2,000 students from 37 Wisconsin schools traveled to Overture Hall for an unforgettable (and bone-chilling) concert experience. The Madison Symphony Orchestra’s 2025 Fall Youth Concerts (FYC), an annual education program tailored to grades 4-8, featured frightfully delightful music, musicians in spooky and silly costumes, and a solo by an outstandingly talented seventh-grade violinist. Thanks to donor support, the “Symphony Spooktacular” performances were “an absolutely top-notch experience for the kids!”
Taking place just days before Halloween, the “Symphony Spooktacular” 2025 Fall Youth Concerts featured a program (and stage) full of frights and delights. Conducted by Kyle Knox, the MSO performed John Williams’ “Devil’s Dance” from Witches of Eastwick, Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain, Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals and Danse Macabre, and the final movement of Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique. The musicians of the MSO leaned into the concert theme and came dressed fittingly. There were cows on the clarinet, a hot dog tubist, a piece of pizza playing viola, and plenty of witches. Every year, the FYC also features a solo performance by the student winner of the annual Topitzes Family Fall Youth Concerto Competition. Our 2025 winner, seventh-grade violinist Hayley Stevens, blew her peers away with a performance of Sarasate’s Zigeunerweisen. In the words of one teacher, Stevens “was absolutely incredible and very inspiring!”
The Fall Youth Concerts are one of four Young People’s Concerts presented annually by the Madison Symphony Orchestra. These programs are vital resources for area educators and help complement their classroom efforts and school curricula. For each of the four concert programs, the MSO provides pre-performance educational materials such as Curriculum Guides, slideshows, and playlists, that help teachers and students achieve the Wisconsin Standards for Music. For many students, the concerts are their first experiences ever hearing a live symphony orchestra! Each Young People’s Concert program is tailored to a specific age group, ranging from kindergarten to high school. The Fall Youth Concerts are designed with middle school students in mind, and every year features a different exciting theme.
Tickets for the FYC are $3-5 per student and free for chaperones of groups larger than 10. The MSO is also able to provide buses for schools that cannot afford their own transportation to Overture Hall. Teachers regularly express their gratitude for the accessibility and low cost of the Young People’s Concerts. One FYC chaperone this year wrote, “Thank you so much for putting on a concert that is affordable and fun. I always enjoy the concerts and our students do too.”
None of this would be possible without support from our Fall Youth Concert sponsors and those who make general gifts to the Symphony’s annual fund. If you are interested in learning more about the Fall Youth Concerts or about how you can specifically support the MSO’s education programs, please contact the MSO’s Development Department at 608-257-3734.