Elgin Symphony Orchestra 2012-2013 Season
Produced by Nonneman Communications, this video highlights the Elgin Symphony Orchestra 2012-2013 Concert Season
O Holy Night Elgin Symphony Orchestra, Elgin Master Chorus and soloist Soprano Catalina Cuervo
The Elgin Symphony Orchestra presents “Sounds of the Season 2018” with Soloist Soprano Catalina Cuervo and the Elgin Master Choral.
Stephen Squires, Conductor
O Holy Night arrangement by Mindeman
Hemmens Cultural Center, Elgin, IL
December 8, 2018
Elgin Tower Building
Skender recently completed the 60,000-square-foot, 15-story rehabilitation of the Elgin Tower Building, a historic centerpiece in downtown Elgin, Illinois. Condemned in 2014 due to a fire, the former bank-turned-office building underwent a complete gut rehab transformation into 44 market-rate apartment units with modern finishes. Skender, serving as general contractor, collaborated with St. Louis-based architect Webster Design, owner Capstone Development Group and the City of Elgin to complete the monumental project.
Elgin Symphony Kidz Konzerts and Music in the Middle
For one week in April, the Hemmens in Elgin fills with area students who com to enjoy the ESO's Kidz Konzerts and Music in the Middle lead by education conductor Randal Swiggum. Reaching students from as far south as Yorkville and as far north as the Wisconsin border, students and teachers enjoy an educational, exciting, entertaining and memorable experience!
Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra, Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes (Britten)
II: Sunday Morning 4:38
III: Moonlight 8:20
Wentz Hall, Naperville, IL
April 7, 2018
Elgin City Symphony
This is a little video I made for my Introduction to Multimedia class at Elgin Community College. The objective was to film footage that went well with a midi file of our choosing. I chose Coldplay's Viva La Vida to play with as a midi file and filmed all around downtown Elgin, Illinois. Hope you enjoy! Tell me what you liked!
Explore Downtown Elgin
Take a journey through Downtown Elgin! Discover local restaurants, cafes, bars, entertainment and much more. For more details please visit
Below are active time stamp links to easily click and view your favorite Downtown Elgin business in this video.
0:13 – Soulful Sparrow
0:37 – Funky Rooster
1:05 – Brick’s Pizza
1:18 – Cafe Revive
1:38 – Rediscover Records
2:03 – Elgin Books & Coffee
2:23 – Martini Room
2:46 – Blue Box Cafe
3:08 – Elgin Knit Works
3:25 – Shockey Jewelers
3:50 – Al’s Cafe
4:10 – Mama Lee’s Popcorn
4:29 – Legit Dog’s & Ice
4:44 – Dog’s Paw Brewing
4:55 – Elgin Symphony Orchestra
5:15 – Arabica Cafe
5:34 – Ben Shen Health
5:45 – Toom Toom Thai
6:01 – Side Street Studio Arts
6:28 – Pro Boxing Fitness
VIDEO CREATED BY BRANDON WOODHOUSE:
Video producing is my greatest passion. My lifelong goal is to produce visual storytelling content that gives businesses, brands and everyday people a platform to tell their stories. To contact Brandon for video production services please visit and click on his email link or visit
French Opera Gala - Toreador
Bill McMurray, Juliet Petrus, Nancy Wiebe Mazurowski, and the Elgin Choral Union perform Toreador from Carmen in the gala concert L'Amour, Toujours L'Amour!, February 2010. With the New Millennium Orchestra, conducted by Francesco Milioto. Videography by Willow Tree Studios.
Wind Ensemble of Waubonsie Valley High School
Director Mark Duker leads the Waubonsie Valley High School Wind Ensemble in rehearsal at the school in Aurora. The band recently won the SuperState competition.
2011 Community Thanksgiving Luncheon in Elgin Illinois
Celebrating the 33rd annual Community Thanksgiving luncheon coordinated by the Elgin Area Chamber with more than 200 community representatives. Thanks to our co-sponsors of the event, Elgin Post No. 57 American Legion Color Guard and to the students and art teachers in School District U-46 for the beautiful handmade Thanksgiving centerpieces!
Co-sponsors include: Altrusa International Club of Elgin, Association for Individual Development, Boys & Girls Club of Elgin, Centro de Informacion, City of Elgin, Community Crisis Center, DayOne Network, Easter Seals DuPage and Fox Valley, Elgin Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, Elgin Area Leadership Academy, Elgin Children's Chorus, Elgin Community College, Elgin Fox Valley Kiwanis, Elgin Garden Club, Elgin Symphony Orchestra, Gail Borden Public Library, Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois, Greater Elgin Family Care Center, Judson University
Kiwanis Club of Elgin, The Larkin Center, Little Angels, Prairie Valley Family YMCA,
Provena Saint Joseph Hospital, S.C.O.R.E., School District U-46, Sherman Hospital, United Way of Elgin, and VNA Health Care.
Verdi's Aida 2nd Act Finale Nayer Nagui (Mike Memorial 2014)
Cairo Opera Company
Cairo Opera Choir
Cairo Opera Orchestra
Conducted by Nayer Nagui
Music Business 25th Anniversary
11/3/18 District 9 . Orchestra concert
double Bass played by Njya.
2014-2015 Orchestra Concert at Larsen Middle School
Orchestra concert.
Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra Chamber Music Institute Team Quintet 2015-04-12
The Spring Concert (April 12, 2015) of the Team Quintet from the Chamber Music Institute (CMI) of the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra. Performance at Elgin Community College.
Fox Valley Music Festival
Battle Hymn of the Republic
Combined Band, Choir, Orchestra
Of Fox Valley area High Schools
Piano Trio No. 1 in B major, Op. 8
Simin Ganatra , Violin
Brandon Vamos, cello
Ilya Friedberg, Piano
BIOGRAPHY
Pianist of the Bloomington Trio, Ilya Friedberg has been described as an “Artist who puts his listener to a musical magic” by pianist Menahem Pressler. Ilya’s music has taken him to Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, Jerusalem Theater, Small Philharmonic Hall of St. Petersburg, and various venues across United States, South America, Israel, and Europe.
Ilya is a passionate chamber musician and is a sought-after collaborator among the members of Los Angeles Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Carol Vaness, Timothy Noble, Mark Kaplan, Alissa Margulis, Alexander Buzlov, and Pacifica Quartet who described him as an “Exceptional chamber musician”
In the fall of 2017, his creative force has enabled him to successfully launch the inaugural Variation Project. It is a collaboration between Ilya, J. S. Bach’s Goldberg Variations, and 15 composers. The project excitedly combines Ilya’s two passions as a pianist/composer. His compositions include “Boheme Fantasy for Viola and Piano”, Breaking Silence series, and “6 Studies on Extended Technique for Piano Solo”
Being a passionate educator, Ilya finds working with the new generation of pianists fun and inspiring. He has given masterclasses at Buchmann-Mehta School of Music at Tel-Aviv University, Adamant Music School, and at Stellenbosch International Piano Competition where he was invited as a Jury Member. He served as Mr. Pressler’s studio and teaching assistant and is an active artist-faculty at Indiana University’s Summer String Academy, and Sonad Project
Born in Moscow, Ilya stepped into the world of music by watching his mother teach piano. Soon after he started his education at Gnesin School for Gifted Children. After immigrating to Israel, he studied piano with Luisa Yoffi and was influenced by Lazar Bendersky and Vladimir Silva. He continued his education at Oberlin with Sanford Margolis and at Indiana University with Menahem Pressler. His other musical influences are legendary jazz master David Baker, pianist Vladimir Ashkenazy, composers Claude Baker and Douglas Hofstadter.
With flutist Roy Amotz, his first cd “Dreams” featuring works of Reinecke and Rachmaninoff is available on Amazon Streaming and iTunes.
Simin Ganatra, violin, has won wide recognition for her performances throughout the United States and abroad. She has been described by critics as an excellent and unique violinist and heralded for creating a miraculous sense of flow and otherworldly beauty. She has performed in such prestigious venues as Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall, the Corcoran Gallery, and Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall. Collaborations include performances with Michael Tree, Toby Hoffman, and the St. Lawrence Quartet. She is the recipient of several awards and prizes, including the Naumburg Chamber Music Award, top prizes at the Concert Artists Guild Competition and the Coleman Chamber Music Competition, and first prizes in the Union League of Chicago Competition, the Pasadena Instrumental Competition, the Minnesota Sinfonia Competition, and the Schubert Club Competition. Originally from Los Angeles, Ganatra studied with Idell Low, Robert Lipsett, and most recently Roland and Almita Vamos. She is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory, where she was concertmaster of the Oberlin Conservatory Orchestra and recipient of the Louis Kaufman Prize for outstanding performance in chamber music. She is currently on the faculty of Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music and the University of Chicago.
Brandon Vamos, cello, has performed solo and chamber music recitals both in the U.S. and abroad to critical acclaim. Called a first-rate cellist by the Chicago Reader and praised for his gutsy bravura by the Chicago Tribune, Mr. Vamos has appeared as soloist with orchestras worldwide, including performances with the Taipei City Symphony, the Suwon Symphony in Seoul, the Samara Symphony in Russia, and the New Philharmonia Orchestra, and the Elgin Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Vamos has collaborated with many distinguished artists, including Paul Katz, Michael Tree, Yo-Yo Ma, Menahem Pressler, and the Emerson Quartet, and has recorded for Cedille, Naxos, and Cacophony Records. Awarded a Performer’s Certificate at the Eastman School of Music, where he earned a Bachelor’s of Music Degree as a student of Mr. Katz, Mr. Vamos has also studied with distinguished artists such as Tanya Carey in Macomb, Illinois, and Aldo Parisot at Yale University, where he earned a Master of Music Degree. As a member of the Pacifica Quartet, with whom he performs over 90 concerts a year, he won a 2009 Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Performance and the Cleveland Quartet Award, in addition to being named Musical America’s 2009 Ensemble of the Year.
81st Annual Fox Valley Music Festival Band Performance
April 26th 2010 Band Performance at the 81st annual Fox Valley Honors Musica Festival hosted by Minooka Community High School in Minooka Illinois. Directed by Dr. Dale Lonis, CEO of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra
Sijo Music Concert - Korean Art Songs - Ghibong Kim, bariton, Sojung Lee, piano
Oct 21, 2017
Ghibong Kim, baritone
Sojung Lee, piano
Spring Maiden (봄처녀) ..........................Hong Nan-pa
based on sijo by Yi Un-sang
The Swing (그네) ...............................Gum Su-hyun
based on sijo by Kim Mal-bong
MUSIC INSPIRED BY KOREAN POETRY
Sijo poems in settings from classical to Hip-hop
Performed on October 21, 2017 at The Poetry Foundation, Chicago
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SPRING MAIDEN
SIJO BY YI UN-SANG • MUSIC BY HONG NAN-PA
Here comes at last our Spring Maid
dressed in shoots of grass,
veiled in a fleecy cloud,
shod with pearls of dew.
Who will she be meeting,
a bouquet pinned on her breast?
translated by Jaihiun Kim
봄 처녀 (이은상 시, 홍난파 곡)
봄 처녀 제 오시네. 새 풀옷을 입으셨네
하얀 구름 너울 쓰고 진주이슬 신으셨네
꽃다발 가슴에 안고 뉘를 찾아 오시는고
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THE SWING
SIJO BY KIM MAL-BONG • MUSIC BY GUM SU-HYON
Jade-colored fine ramie-cloth skirt and gilt pigtail ribbons
are leaping into the blue sky and fluttering in the clouds.
A startled swallow stares at them, forgetting to beat its wings.
translated by Jang Gyong-ryol
그네 (김말봉 시, 금수현 곡)
세모시 옥색치마 금박 물린 저 댕기가
창공을 차고 나가 구름 속에 나부낀다
제비도 놀란 양 나래 쉬고 보더라
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Baritone GHIBONG KIM, born in Daegu, Korea, received his Bachelor’s degree in Voice Performance at Seoul National University. He continued his voice studies at the Arrigo Boito Conservatory in Parma, Italy, which Renata Tebaldi and Claudio Abbado had attended, and graduated with the highest academic honor. He was a winner of the international competition Rocca delle Macie in Siena, where Renato Bruson served as a judge. He was also a finalist at the Tito Schipa Voice Competition in Lecce and the Flaviano Lavo’ Competition in Piacenza. His major teachers were Sherrill Milnes and Inci Bashar.
Mr. Kim’s first professional appearance in Italy was as Cola in Paer’s Camilla at Teatro Regio di Parma. Following this success, he was consequently engaged to sing as Belcore in L’elisir d’amore, Marcello in La bohème, and Rigoletto in Rigoletto. Other roles include Renato (Un ballo in maschera), and Valentine (Faust). Since moving to the United States, Mr. Kim has been an active performer not only in operas, but also as an oratorio soloist. Mendelssohn’s Oratorio “Elijah” is his signature role. Mr. Kim made his Chicago debut as Conte in Le nozze di Figaro at the Chicago Chamber Opera with the Northbrook Symphony Orchestra. Other roles include Germont in La traviata with the Elgin Opera and Morales in Carmen at the DuPage Opera Theater. In 2011, he performed Brahms’s Ein deutsches Requiem with the Elgin Choral Union and Elgin Symphony Orchestra, which was broadcast on WFMT Chicago Radio.
Mr. Kim has given solo and chamber concerts in Europe, Canada, Mexico, Guatemala, Argentina, Paraguay, and South Korea. He taught voice as faculty at Judson University in Elgin, IL, and currently serves as the music director at the Alliance Fellowship Church in Hoffman Estates.
Dr. SOJUNG LEE HONG, Associate Professor of Music at Judson University, has worked as a soloist, collaborative pianist, teacher, and church musician in the Chicago area since her appointment to the music faculty of Judson University. She has also performed and taught internationally, frequently touring with ensembles for charity and missions concerts. For the past ten years she has organized the annual scholarship benefit concerts to support talented Korean students who come to the United States to further their music studies. She holds BM and MM degrees from Seoul National University in South Korea and a doctoral degree in piano performance and literature from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Recently, she was awarded the Margaret Hillis Award for the Arts by the Elgin YWCA, for her distinctive contribution to the Arts.
Elgin Community College: International Student Recruitment
International students at Elgin Community College in Elgin, IL (just outside of Chicago, IL) talk about why they came to study in the U.S., why they chose ECC, and how their education has been enhanced by studying at one of the premier comprehensive community colleges in the U.S. Learn why ECC is one of the best colleges to begin your education abroad! Find out more at elgin.edu/international.