Lafayette Youth Orchestra
History (1997 - 2008)
The Lafayette Youth Orchestra (LYO) is made up of young musicians from Troup County and the surrounding areas and was originally sponsored by the Lafayette Society for the Performing Arts (LSPA).
Its members have performed two concerts every year since the orchestra's inception. Sam Lee originated the Youth Orchestra in 1997 and. during his ten year tenure as Conductor was assisted by Lynda Brock, who continues to serve as Assistant Conductor. In 2006, Callie Hammond was appointed to replace the departing Sam Lee as the new Conductor of the LYO. That same year, by mutual consent, the LaGrange Symphony Orchestra Board assumed the sponsorship of the LYO from the LSPA, which continues to be involved as the LYO rehearsal home. In 2008, Lee Johnson, Fuller E. Callaway Associate Professor of Music LaGrange College, was appointed LYO Conductor following Callie Hammond's resigning that post to become the Conductor of her newly formed LYO String Ensemble.
Lafayette Youth Orchestra - Lee Johnson, Music Director and Conductor
Lee Johnson Lee Johnson has composed a large body of works that include nine innovative symphonies, two nontraditional operas, concertos, musicals, cantatas, chamber music, vocal and choral works, electroacoustic music, and is a recognized leader in the exciting genre of Symphonic Film. His highly successful Dead Symphony no. 6 was premiered by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra to rave reviews and enjoyed substantial media coverage that included; Good Morning America, NPR’s Weekend Edition, The Washington Post and the Washington Times, the Associated Press, Reuter’s News Agency, along with dozens of radio, magazine, podcast, and newspaper interviews. Johnson has conducted and produced numerous recording sessions with world renowned orchestras at the famed Abbey Road Studios in London, Mosfilm Studios in Moscow, and other leading recording studios. His conducting credits include recordings with The London Symphony Orchestra, The Russian National Orchestra, The London Session Orchestra, The Taliesin Orchestra, and many others. His recorded works appear on Universal Classics, Warner Bros., CCn’C Records, Deutsche Austrophon, Vision Video, Platinum Entertainment, Pamplin Music, Jammates Records, and can be found worldwide on legal down load sites. Lee Johnson began teaching at LaGrange College in 1989 is the developer of the Creative Music Technologies degree program. |
Lafayette Youth Orchestra |
| LYO Musicians |
1st Violin Leah Farrar - CM Lydia Lee Wendy Lee 2nd Violin Rhyse Bendell Lauren Feria Kathryn Sellman Viola Calem Bendell Cello David Sellman Flute Leah Bolden Maya Brewer Jia Lee Clarinet JJ Lee Trumpet Rohan Gupta Robbie Wilkinson Trombone Robert Evans Precussion Solomom Whitfield LYO Assistant Lynda Brock CM - Concert Mistress
Lafayette Youth Orchestra String Ensemble - Callie Hammond , Director
Callie Hammond Callie Knight Hammond received her Bachelor of Music Performance in violin from Columbus State University in 2003. She began playing violin at the age of nine with Peg Neuen, and later studied with Kerren Berz and Dr. Wei Kang Zhou. At CSU, she studied under Patricio Cobos and Manuel Diaz. Mrs. Hammond is the assistant concertmaster of the LaGrange Symphony Orchestra, and also performs with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra. Mrs. Hammond is the director of the Lafayette Youth Orchestra String Ensemble (LYOSE). She lives in LaGrange with her husband, Ladd, and her five-year-old son, Hooper. |
Lafayette Youth Orchestra String Ensemble |
| LYOSE Musicians |
Violins Eolyne Arnold Leah Farrar Katherine Hall Claire Hanna Angela Kim Julie Lee Lydia Lee | Sean McClendon Jessica Moore Anna Myers Alan Valdez Amy Webb Christine Yin | Viola Caitlin Bowles
Accompanist Miss Ashley Hawkins Director Mrs. Callie Hammond |