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ALLEN TINKHAM
is Music Director of the Chicago Youth
Symphony Orchestras, overseeing all artistic programming and
faculty for the institution whose ensembles include five orchestras
and an extensive chamber music program. Mr. Tinkham leads
the CYSO Symphony Orchestra and Encore Chamber Orchestra
in performances throughout Chicago as well as on domestic
tours and to Europe and South America. Mr. Tinkham began
his conducting career as Apprentice Conductor of the Oregon
Symphony Orchestra. Before the end of his apprenticeship, he
was appointed Music Director of CYSO, where his initial accomplishments included
the first live broadcast performance for CYSO from the studios of WFMT as well as
the orchestra’s first recording, including Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4. Tinkham has
won both Youth Orchestra of the Year and Illinois Council of Orchestras’ Programming
Awards, as well as nine ASCAP National Awards for Adventurous Programming of
Contemporary Music with CYSO. He recently initiated the new CYSO Composer-in-
Residence post with Joel Puckett. Mr. Tinkham also collaborates regularly with Chicago
area youth and professional organizations, including the Chicago Children’s Choir,
Chicago Sinfonietta and Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He has additionally guest
conducted the Amarillo Symphony, Dubuque Symphony, Racine Symphony, Elmhurst
Symphony and Kansas City Symphony. He is in demand as a guest teacher, advisor and
speaker for music education organizations. Allen Tinkham has been a faculty member
of the League of American Orchestras’ Orchestra Leadership Academy and is a regular
guest conductor and educator at the New York Summer Music Festival. He received
his bachelor’s degree from Eastman and master’s from the University of Michigan, and
continued his studies at Aspen, Conductors Retreat at Medomak, and International
Institute for Conductors in Kiev.
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
CHICAGO YOUTH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRAS
(CYSO) has provided music
education through orchestral programs and performance opportunities of the
highest caliber since 1946. CYSO not only offers exceptional ensemble training to
student musicians, it provides inspiring performances for audiences worldwide and
engages the Chicago community through music. Each year, the organization serves
nearly 500 talented Chicago-area musicians ages 6-18 through three full orchestras,
three string orchestras, multiple steel orchestras and supplemental programs that
include chamber music ensembles, music theory and composition. CYSO musicians
experience superb instruction from Chicago’s most respected professional musicians,
perform in the world’s great concert halls and gain the skills necessary for a successful
future. CYSO also reaches the diverse population of Chicago Public School students,
educators and community members through its Music Pathways program. Music
Pathways includes an In-School Residency Program with several partner Chicago
Public elementary schools, Clinics for partner Chicago Public high schools, free
Community Concerts, a Private Lesson Program for current CYSO students and
Neighborhood Ensembles. Through these Music Pathways components, CYSO
provides access to high-quality instrumental music training and encourages a life-long
love of music among thousands of Chicago youth. 100% of CYSO musicians pursue
college studies at the most prestigious universities and conservatories in the nation.
Many then go on to become professional musicians in the world’s finest orchestras
and music ensembles. They can also be found as teachers, community leaders,
doctors, lawyers, business professionals and entrepreneurs. Whether or not CYSO
students continue their music studies, they leave with a strong sense of discipline,
accomplishment, confidence, self-esteem, and an appreciation for music and the arts.
