Donate to NOTES 2020 Today!

EYSO is collecting donations as part of our annual fundraising event: the NOTES campaign. This campaign runs from January 26 to April 5. The purpose of the campaign is to help keep tuition affordable for EYSO members by encouraging EYSO families to collect donations from friends, family, co-workers, neighbors--and you! All contributions to the EYSO are tax deductible, as allowable by law.

Would you, or someone you know, be willing to donate to EYSO?

This year, we are celebrating our 44th season with the theme MOVE! We have five orchestras, a brass choir, two percussion ensembles, and a chamber music program with nearly 350 students from fourth grade through college. We perform three concerts each year, and each concert explores a different connection between music and movement. You can learn more about us at EYSO.org.

Tuition covers only one-third of the total cost of each member’s participation in EYSO. Our NOTES campaign helps keep tuition reasonable and offsets program costs.

Please consider donating to EYSO to help Youth Symphony meet its goal. More importantly, it will help benefit everyone in EYSO.

Once the NOTES campaign is completed, you will receive a donation acknowledgement from EYSO for tax purposes. The campaign runs until April 5.

I have been a part of the EYSO for almost seven years and during the last three I have been a member of the top group, the Youth Symphony! Having played the violin since 4th grade, it has become a part of how I identify myself; I love being able to tell people that I am a violinist. It is through the EYSO that I have been able to go beyond just my own instrument and explore a larger perspective on music which includes analyzing the intentions of a composer or simply improving my listening skills and focus to connect my part with others throughout the orchestra.

This season our Youth Symphony conductor, Matthew Sheppard, said something that I found myself able to relate with. What he said is that, unfortunately, it has become easy for people to feel so insignificant in the world today because there are so many large issues that seem to be unsolvable with the small actions we are able to take. Yet, the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra is what gives Mr. Sheppard a feeling of significance and, through reflection of my own experience, it has given me significance as well! To participate in a youth orchestra and share my talent and musical knowledge with friends, family, and the community makes me feel as though I am making at least a small impact in people's lives. The little things can matter and the EYSO is a wonderful organization that provides not only its members but also its supporters with a feeling of significance as we all work towards sharing music with others.

Thanks very much for your support!

P.S. Come hear Youth Symphony perform! Click here for the season schedule or click here to view video clips from the November 2019 concert.