Orchestra | Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts

Symphony Orchestra

The Illinois State University Symphony Orchestra performs some of the most challenging music in the orchestral repertoire. Any undergraduate or graduate student with orchestral experience is welcome to audition.

The ISU Symphony Orchestra performs six complete concert cycles each academic year, including the annual choral program in October; the Music for the Holidays concerts in December; a Concerto-Aria concert featuring the School of Music's finest performers chosen from the annual competition; and the annual opera or musical, produced in conjunction with the Illinois State University School of Theatre, Dance, and Film.

Performances

The ISU Symphony Orchestra performs a number of instrumental, choral, and orchestral works each semester.

View the School of Music events calendar
Associated Courses

MUS 182A02/282A02/482A02

Philharmonia String Orchestra

The School of Music is pleased to add a second string orchestra, the Philharmonia. The Philharmonia is for non-major students who want to continue playing an advanced high school level string-only repertoire.

The ensemble rehearses three times a week and performs two concerts each semester.

Rehearsal Times
Performances

Two concerts each semester.

How to Join

All students regardless of major are welcome to audition for one of our orchestras.

Learn How to Audition

Annual Concerto-Aria Competition

Three finalists from each applied area (brass/percussion, keyboard, strings, voice, and woodwind) will appear in the Concerto-Aria Finals Competition. Two winners will be selected to perform in the ISU Symphony Orchestra's annual Concerto-Aria concert.

Previously Performed Works

Richard Strauss' Death and Transfiguration
Saint-Saens' Symphony No. 3, Organ Symphony
Stravinsky’s Sacre du Printemps, Petrouchka, Firebird Suite, Apollo musagetes
Beethoven’s Symphony No. 2, Symphony No. 5, and Symphony No. 9
Copland's Appalachian Spring and Music for the Theater
Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana
Mozart’s Requiem
William Walton's Belshazzar's Feast
Verdi’s Messa de Requiem
Shostakovich Symphonies No. 5, 10

Contact Us

For more information regarding the Illinois State University Orchestras, fill out the contact form or email Samuel Chen.

News and Events

See what is happening in the School of Music.

Illinois State University Big Red Marching Machine

Everybody Gives $10! Support BRMM’s fall campaign and win an experience

Illinois State University’s Big Red Marching Machine (BRMM) is calling on alumni, the Redbird community to take part in their fall fundraising campaign, Everybody Gives $10! The campaign runs through November 1, 2025, with a goal of raising a minimum of $20,000 to support the purchase of new instruments and equipment.