Youth Series
Designed for grades 3 through 8, the acclaimed MSO Youth Series uses orchestral masterworks to inspire students, promote active listening, and encourage critical thinking. These concerts align with state and national standards for music education, as well as connect to multiple subjects and disciplines.
Symphonic Tricks and Treats
OCTOBER 29, 30, 31, 2024 • 10:15 AM & 12:00 PM
BRADLEY SYMPHONY CENTER
Ryan Tani, conductor
Repertoire to include the following:
Sergei Rachmaninoff (arr. Wood): Prelude in C-sharp minor, Opus 3, No. 2
Camille Saint-Saëns: Danse Macabre
Modest Mussorgsky: Night on Bald Mountain
Edvard Grieg: “In the Hall of the Mountain King” from Peer Gynt, Suite No. 1
John Williams: “Hedwig’s Theme” from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
Join the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra for a dark and stormy concert as we dive into some mysterious melodies. You will hear dancing skeletons depicted by the xylophone in Dance Macabre, the flurry of strings mimicking Hedwig’s ascent contrasted with the ominous “In the Hall of the Mountain King,” and much more! This program invites students to experience firsthand the many different tools composers use to create the chilling themes we all love!
Rhythm Rhapsody
FEBRUARY 5 & 6, 2025 • 10:15 AM & 12:00 PM
BRADLEY SYMPHONY CENTER
Ryan Tani, conductor
Repertoire to include the following:
Arturo Márquez: Conga del Fuego Nuevo
Reena Esmail: Ram Tori Maya
Johannes Brahms: Hungarian Dance No. 5
Igor Stravinsky: “Infernal Dance” from The Firebird
Music and dance have always been inseparable. From the court dances of past centuries to salsa dances still performed in Latin America today, join the MSO for a musical celebration of dance! Near and far, old and new, we’ll explore all different kinds of movement-inspired music. Wherever you’re from and no matter what age, this program is sure to get your dancing feet moving!
Milwaukee Art Museum
Make the most of your Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra field trip day. Add a Milwaukee Art Museum tour on October 30 or 31. Separate fees apply. Call 414-224-3842 for information and to schedule your tour.
Link Up
Link Up: The Orchestra Moves
MARCH 12, 2025 • 10:15 AM & 12:00 PM
MARCH 13, 2025 • 10:15 AM
BRADLEY SYMPHONY CENTER
Ryan Tani, conductor
Thomas Cabaniss: “Come to Play”
Arturo Márquez: Danzón No. 2
Johann Strauss II: “The Blue Danube”
Georges Bizet: “Toreador” from Carmen
Ludwig van Beethoven: First movement of Symphony No. 5
Elena Kats-Chernin: “Knitting Nettles” from Wild Swans Suite
Tanyaradzwa A. Tawengwa: “Mhande”
Tali Rubinstein: “Shibolet Basadeh”
Dai Wei: “The Dancing Moonlight”
André Filho: “Cidade Maravilhosa”
The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra partners with Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute to bring the Link Up program to our community. Link Up pairs orchestras across the country with students in grades 3-5 at schools in their local communities to explore orchestral repertoire through a year-long hands-on music curriculum. By any definition, music moves. As organized sound, music moves through time and space from high to low, creating patterns and motifs. Composers and performers use expressive qualities to move us emotionally. Music also compels us to move physically and is embodied in many kinds of dance. We will discover all the interwoven ways in which the orchestra moves!
Music for Me
A special program that is “just right” for the MSO’s youngest listeners. Designed for students in grades K4 through 2, these 40-minute programs make connections with the following fields of study: Music, Social Studies, and ELA.
Frederick’s Fables
MAY 15, 20, 21, 2025 • 10:00 AM
BRADLEY SYMPHONY CENTER
Ryan Tani, conductor
First Stage Children’s Theater
Repertoire:
Michael Abels: Frederick’s Fables
I. Frederick
II. The Greentail Mouse
III. Theodore & the Talking Mushroom
IV. Alexander & the Wind-Up Mouse
Join us for a modern musical take on some of the classic tales by beloved children’s author and illustrator Leo Lionni. Pulitzer Prize-winning composer
Michael Abels synchronizes words and music to tell magical tales and teach life-long lessons. First Stage children’s theater joins the MSO to add their dramatic flair to the storytelling!
Teen Concert
This concert experience is curated especially for middle and high school audiences. In addition, students will receive a digital Teen Guide specifically created for this concert.
Brilliant Bernstein
FEBRUARY 26, 2025 • 10:15 AM
BRADLEY SYMPHONY CENTER
Wisconsin High School Choirs
Bernstein: Overture to Candide
Bernstein: Chichester Psalms
Bernstein: “Make Your Garden Grow” from Candide
Join us for our annual Teen Choral Partners performance, featuring the music of American musical genius Leonard Bernstein. Experience the driving rhythms and ethereal melodies of Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms, bookended by selections from his timeless operetta Candide.
The MSO will be joined by auditioned Wisconsin high school choirs on this powerful program — a fantastic field trip experience for middle and high school students!
Venue and Pricing
Bradley Symphony Center
We look forward to welcoming you to the Bradley Symphony Center for live Concerts for Schools performances in 2024.25! Learn more about what to expect during your visit at mso.org.
Pricing and Registration
Please visit mso.org/concerts_for_schools for information.
2024.25 Concerts for Schools
Digital Registration Form
Other Information
Docents
The MSO offers free docent visits leading up to Youth and Music for Me! concerts. Our docents are passionate about the orchestra and are trained by the area’s finest music educators. Docents arrange a time to visit your school, bringing fun activities and lessons corresponding to the performance. For more information, email edu@mso.org.
Chaperones
One complimentary chaperone ticket is offered for every ten paid student tickets.
Educational Materials
Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra Teacher Resource Guides provide background information on the music and composers, as well as lesson plans in a full-color digital format. Lesson plans support NAfME and Wisconsin State Standards in music, English language arts, and other subject areas. Spotify playlists are created for each concert.
Contact Information
EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra Phone: 414-226-7886
212 West Wisconsin Avenue
Milwaukee, WI 53203
Educators’ Discount
Email: edu@mso.org
Get 50% off regular subscription prices for any 2024.25 Classics Series concert, including Poulenc’s Gloria, Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet, Copland’s Appalachian Spring, and more! Call Luther Gray at 414-226-7840 or email at grayl@mso.org today.
Offer applies to Friday evening performances only.
The MSO thanks the following funders for their generous annual support that makes Concerts for Schools programming possible: United Performing Arts Fund (UPAF), Herzfeld Foundation, Hearst Foundations, Westbury Bank, Townsend Foundation, Educators Credit Union, and the Eleanor N. Wilson and Irene Edelstein Memorial Funds as administered by the Greater Milwaukee Foundation. Concerts for Schools is supported in part by grants from the Milwaukee Arts Board and the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin. Additional support provided by the National Endowment for the Arts and Milwaukee County Arts Fund (CAMPAC).
Purchase 3 or more concerts –save 10%