Sinfonia

Fall Concert call times are available! Scroll to see details below.
Fall Quarter music will be posted on our website in PDF format by mid-September. All enrolled students will receive instructions via email on how to access and print these PDFs in September. In the meantime, email admin@byso.org with any questions.
Click here for Conductor’s messages

Rehearsals will be held on Monday evenings from 6:30 – 8:30 pm. Musicians are expected to arrive and be prepared to rehearse 15 minutes prior to start time.

FALL QUARTER 2026 DETAILS

Rehearsals	Fall Quarter Dates
Mondays from 6:30 – 8:30 pm	9/28, 10/5, 10/12, 10/19, 10/26, 11/2, 11/9, 11/16


Rehearsal Location	Drop Off/ Pick Up
Overlake Christian Church	Plan on prompt drop off and pick up to avoid
9900 Willows Rd NE	congestion.
Redmond, WA 98052

Retreat Location	Time & Date
Odle Middle School	Saturday, October 10
502 143rd Ave NE	9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Bellevue, WA 98007

Concert	Time & Date
Meydenbauer Theatre	Saturday, November 21 @ 2:30 pm
11100 NE 6th St	Call times and more are below.
Bellevue, WA 98004

Student Checklist

Bring a music stand
Bring a pencil
Print your sheet music prior to first rehearsal (using link at top of this page) and bring with you to rehearsal
Arrive 15 minutes prior to the start of rehearsal to ensure you are in your chair and ready to play at the start of rehearsal
Have fun!

ATTENDANCE POLICY FOR LAST REHEARSAL BEFORE THE CONCERT

Sinfonia students absent from the last Monday rehearsal before the concert will need to submit a link to a YouTube video (or other sharing service such as OneDrive or Google Docs) of a video recording of ALL seating audition spots for their instrument that are posted on the Sinfonia page by midnight Wednesday to be eligible to participate in the concert. The student must be plainly visible in the video while they are performing. Notification of performance eligibility will be emailed to families by Friday at 12:00 pm noon.

This also may apply to students who miss more than 30 minutes of the final Monday night rehearsal (by arriving late or leaving early).

For more details about the absence policy, please see the BYSO Student Handbook.

CONCERT DETAILS | Saturday, November 21 @ 2:30 pm

CALL TIME | 12:45 pm
All musicians should arrive promptly 12:45 pm.

DRESS REHEARSAL | 1:00 pm – 1:30 pm
This is when students rehearse on stage for a soundcheck. If students arrive at this time, they are late.

DROP OFF
Musicians can be dropped off via the Meydenbauer Parking Garage. The first 30 minutes are free.

PARKING
Parking is available in the Meydenbauer Parking Garage. Parking cannot be reserved ahead of time.

CONCERT ATTIRE
Be sure to check your ensemble’s concert attire requirements. Students must arrive wearing their concert clothing. They will not have a place to change later.

VOLUNTEERS – WE NEED YOU!
Volunteers will be a vital part of a successful day at Meydenbauer for all of our students. We need volunteers to help the check in process and supporting ensembles during their dress rehearsals. Volunteers have early access to reserve their seats in the hall. Click here to sign up!

CONCERT TICKETS
Families of enrolled BYSO students get priority access to concert tickets from October 15 – November 4. On November 5, tickets will be open to the general public on our website, here.

STAY THE WHOLE CONCERT
Performing students are expected to stay from their call time to the end of the concert. Listening to other musicians perform is an important part of each student’s music education, and it’s also important to support fellow BYSO musicians in this way. Students who must leave early due to unavoidable schedule conflicts must get permission from their conductor and the BYSO office prior to the concert.

About

Sinfonia is an advanced intermediate orchestra in the Bellevue Youth Symphony Orchestra organization. Sinfonia employs full symphonic instrumentation (strings, woodwinds, brass, and percussion). The typical Sinfonia student has had some private instruction and school ensemble experience and is developing solid technical skills and musical understanding.

Sinfonia provides advancing students the opportunity to perform challenging literature for full orchestra. Past works performed include Haydn’s Symphony No. 104, Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro Overture, and Barroso’s Aquarela do Brazil.

Conductor: Barney Blough

Barney Blough holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music Performance and a Master of Music Education degree from Central Washington University, a Teaching Certificate from Seattle Pacific University, and a Professional Certificate from Pacific Lutheran University. He has served as Music Director of the Seattle Chamber Orchestra, Assistant Conductor of the Rainier Symphony, and Assistant Conductor of the Lake Union Civic Orchestra. Learn more.

Contact Barney Blough at sinfonia@byso.org

Messages from the Conductor

Welcome to Sinfonia for the 2026-27 Season!
I look forward to seeing everyone at our first rehearsal on Monday, September 28! This page is where you will find important information about things like seating auditions, retreat, and rehearsal details.

Sinfonia Fall Repertoire
Note: Berceuse and Finale has been dropped from the fall concert and will be saved until later in the season. Please download and print your part for Egyptian Legacy by Soon Hee Newbold instead.

Swan Lake No. 1 Scene by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
En Bateau from Petite Suite by Claude Debussy (1st movement only)
Egyptian Legacy by Soon Hee Newbold

Sinfonia Part Assignments
Sinfonia part assignments for Fall quarter are available at the link above. Everyone will prepare the part that is assigned to them, and students only need to print the part they are assigned.

Sinfonia Seating Chart Fall 2026
If you are wondering where you will be sitting, you can find the seating chart by clicking the link above. This seating chart will be updated after seating auditions.

Seating Auditions
Seating auditions will take place at our Fall Retreat on Saturday, October 10, from 9:00 am – 12:00 pm. Seating auditions only happen during our retreat, and there will be no make-up auditions. Those who do not audition at the retreat will be seated at the back of the section. Seating audition spots are available at the link above.

Repertoire Recordings and Program Notes
You should listen to the professional recordings linked below for a guide to tempo and style. Read the program notes, and be sure to practice your individual part with careful attention to detail (including articulations) and to the musical aspects of the piece (dynamics, phrasing, etc.).

Swan Lake No. 1 Scene by Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Despite its initial failure, Swan Lake by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840 – 1893) is now one of the most popular of all ballets. The scenario was fashioned from Russian folk tales by Vladimir Begichev, director of the Moscow Imperial Theatres, who commissioned the score from Tchaikovsky in 1875 for a rather modest fee of 800 rubles. The balletmaster of the Bolshoi Ballet, Julius Reisinger, provided Tchaikovsky with a list of dances for Swan Lake that included only the most basic outline of the requirements for each dance. When Reisinger demanded changes from Tchaikovsky after the score was completed it became clear that he intended to be a very large part in the creation of the ballet. Although the two artists were required to collaborate, each seemed to prefer working as independently of the other as possible.
En Bateau from Petite Suite by Claude Debussy (1st movement only)
Claude Debussy (1862 – 1918) was a French composer who was one of the most prominent figures associated with Impressionist music. Debussy’s music is noted for its sensory content and lack of tonality, and his use of non-traditional scales and chromaticism influenced many composers who followed. En Bateau is the first movement from the “Petite Suite”, which was written in 1889 and is one of his earlier works. It was originally written for two pianos, and it was later arranged for orchestra by Debussy’s colleague Henri Busser. “En bateau” means “in a boat” in French, and the music reflects floating sleepily in a small row boat in a quiet lagoon. The compositional style of En Bateau embodies the epitome of refinement, delicacy, and sensuous beauty.
Egyptian Legacy by Soon Hee Newbold
Soon Hee Newbold (b. 1974) draws inspiration from the mystery, grandeur, and enduring influence of ancient Egypt in Egyptian Legacy. Through vivid orchestral colors, driving rhythms, and dramatic melodies, the work evokes images of towering pyramids, bustling marketplaces, sacred temples, and the vast desert landscapes surrounding the Nile River. Rather than telling a specific story, the piece creates a musical journey into a civilization whose achievements in architecture, science, art, and culture continue to fascinate people thousands of years later. Powerful percussion and energetic rhythmic figures suggest the excitement and vitality of ancient Egyptian life, while sweeping lyrical passages capture a sense of wonder and timeless majesty. The music alternates between moments of mystery and celebration, reflecting both the spiritual traditions and the remarkable accomplishments of one of history’s greatest civilizations.