Gifford Youth Orchestra

Two Gifford teens returned Monday from an adventure in Las Vegas that may have changed their lives.  The teens, Mieca-Eeja Ferguson, 13, and Jada Powell, 15, represented the Gifford Youth Orchestra in a Black History Month spectacular at the E-String, a Vegas performance center, before a standing-room-only crowd.

            Woody Woods, with whose band the Gifford teens were featured, was extravagant in his praise.  “They came ready to play,” he said.  “They knew their parts and handled the pressure of a live performance like real pros.  My musicians loved having them on stage.”

            Mieca-Eeja, an 8th grader at St. Helen Catholic School, said her new bandmates had taught her to relax and just have fun playing.  “They were so welcoming to me,” she said.  “If you want to learn a new genre, try jazz because it’s really easy to learn the rhythms and techniques.”

            Both she and Jada have been classically trained, so the Las Vegas event was entirely new to them.  Jada, a first violinist in Vero Beach High’s Philharmonic Orchestra, called the experience “great.”

            “Playing alongside those musicians changed my thinking and feeling about jazz,” she said.  “I have a lot more respect now for the love and energy it takes to perform live with jazz professionals.  I’m going to listen to more jazz and to play more in the future.  I may even begin to write my own music.”

            Although both girls perform in their school ensembles, they view the Gifford Youth Orchestra as their musical home.  Mieca-Eeja, who has been playing violin since she was six, joined the GYO two years ago.  Jada started with the GYO at seven and has been its Concert Master since 2018.

            “This project is part of an exchange program we’ve developed between Gifford and Las Vegas to introduce our students to a new kind of music for them, jazz, at the highest level,” said Crystal Bujol, the orchestra’s founder and artistic director.  “It opens their minds to a very different approach to playing and enriches not only their skills but their ambitions.”  The program is underwritten by donations from the GYO board.

 

            Mieca-Eeja and Jada were prepared for their performance by Louise Jones, a GYO violin teacher.  “It was a little rough at the start,” she said, “but we pulled it off because those two young ladies worked so hard.”  Among their challenges, the girls had to learn new fingerings for the complicated jazz arrangements.

            Also helping out was Matthew Stott, music director of King’s Baptist Church and former director of orchestras for the county school system, who offered the GYO students a pair of fine-tuning sessions.

            The Gifford Youth Orchestra celebrates its 17th anniversary serving the children of Gifford and its neighboring communities March 7 at the Heritage Center in Vero Beach.  Tickets are $50.  More information is available at gyotigers.com.  

... Submitted by Debbie Avery.  Photos and synoposis printed by Vero Beach News

Alma Lee Loy Tunes Up With Gifford Youth Orchestra  (August 2018)

One of the most prominent community activists in Vero Beach has joined the leadership of the Gifford Youth Orchestra.  Alma Lee Loy, former business woman, chair of the County Commission and president of the Chamber of Commerce, was welcomed to her new relationship with the music organization during a recent visit to the Gifford Community Center.

The GYO is in its 15^th year of teaching Indian River County children from 3 to 18 violin, piano and voice.  “We’ve learned from experience that music changes lives,” says GYO co-founder Dr. Crystal Bujol.  “One hundred percent of our students who have graduated high school are either now in college or have graduated from that, too.” 

It was statistics like this that convinced Miss Loy to become part of the GYO.  Her decision was applauded by Gifford residents who still remember her children’s clothing store, Alma Lee’s, in the Maher Building at 1425 20^th Street in Vero Beach.

My partners and I were in business for 42 years, from 1955 to 1997,” she recalls. “We had many customers from the Gifford area.  I remember the Woolforks, the Rosses, two generations of Reuben Lane’s family and many others.”

Aundrea Perry, a longtime Gifford resident, remembers the store fondly.  “They had the best clothes,” she says.

The merchandise at Alma Lee’s was traditional and a little trendy.  The clothes were so well made they could be passed from one youngster in a family to another. 

GYO chairman John Young’s mother picked up the uniforms he was required to wear to school there. 

“I was 12-years-old and I could do nothing to wear them out,” he says.  I simply grew out of them.”

 Miss Loy smiles at the recollection.  “I always said my partner and I had a happy business,” she says.  “Customers came for special occasions like birthdays or a new baby in the family.  They would get special outfits for holidays.  Or they’d come just because grandmother was visiting so they’d bring the ‘grands’ shopping.”

Miss Loy’s decision to join the GYO is a continuation of her lifelong dedication to preserving Indian River County’s unique historical, natural and cultural assets.  She is a fervent supporter of McKee Botanical Gardens and she has had not only a county park but a bridge named in her honor. 

Dr. Bujol expressed appreciation for Miss Loy’s recognition.  “Our goal is to give our students not only tools that allow them to perform and appreciate great music.  We also teach them social and leadership skills that help them achieve success no matter what field they eventually end up in.” 

It’s a big task.  “Our job,” she says, “is to help them recognize the value of music in their lives and become well-rounded citizens.  But we also want them to enjoy life.  They’re still children, after all,” she says.

 

---

 

Luminaries - Monday, June 18, 2018

Cindy Roden

Special to Treasure Coast Newspapers USA TODAY NETWORK - FLORIDA

"Changing lives through music" is a theme held by both the Atlantic Classical Orchestra and the Gifford Youth Orchestra.

The Vero Friends of the Classical Orchestra recently presented the Youth Orchestra with $2, 400 to help with its mission.

For 15 years, the Youth Orchestra has been giving at-risk youth the tools to be on stage versus on the streets.

Through music education and opportunities to perform, these children are provided with a chance to feel good about themselves and believe that they can accomplish great things in their lives. Image: The Vero Friends of the Atlantic Classical Orchestra Brenda Allen and Jean Beckert, left, give Dr. Crystal Bujol, artistic director of the Gifford Youth Orchestra, a check for $2,400.

Dr. Crystal Bujol, artistic director of the Youth Orchestra, said, "One hundred precent of our high school graduates are either enrolled in, or have completed their education at the college of their choice." The Gifford Youth Orchestra has a focus on "More Violins, Less Violence." For some students, learning the violin can be difficult. The G YO has added piano and choir into its repertoire to make sure all students are feeling empowered by music education.

The gift from the Atlantic Classical Orchestra will help reduce the cost of piano lessons for the children.

"While piano lessons are offered to Gifford parents at a reduced rate, it can be difficult for them to make these payments every month. This donation will help to support those parents in need," said Bujol.

The Atlantic Classical Orchest! ra just completed its 28th season, bringing the beautiful sounds of the classical masters and works by some of today’s most celebrated emerging artists to life.

Through the volunteer groups of the Classical Orchestra and educational outreach programs, the orchestra is delighted to give back to community that has supported them for so many years.

To learn more about the Atlantic Classical Orchestra, visit www.Atlantic ClassicalOrchestra.com and to learn more about the Gifford Youth Orchestra, visit www.gyotigers.org.

 

November 10, 2017 - Luminaries

 

Gifford Youth Orchestra plays for community
May 15, 2017

---

Gifford Youth Orchestra 13th Anniversary Concert
TC Palm photos

---

Gifford Youth Orchestra plays at annual principals luncheon

December 23, 2016

---

Sounds of strings fills air at Gifford Community Center
November 14, 2016

---

Gifford Youth Orchestra "Making Better Tomorrows"
October 31, 2016

---

Gifford Youth Orchestra preparing for November concert
September 29, 2016