Southern Miss Symphony Orchestra

The Symphony Orchestra at The University of Southern Mississippi is the oldest orchestra in Mississippi. Established in 1920, it has been under the direction of music director Jay Dean since 1988. The orchestra is a well-established musical leader in the state and region and has performed with internationally known artists such as tenor, Placido Domingo; violinist, Itzhak Perlman; cellist, Yo-Yo Ma; flutist, Sir James Galway; bassist, Edgar Meyer; trumpeter/conductor, Doc Severinsen; legendary singer, Ray Charles; pianist, John Browning; flutist, Jean Pierre Rampal; and soprano, Denyce Graves. Guest conductors have included Leonard Slatkin and Louis Lane.

Through intense recruiting efforts and exceptional musical performances, the orchestra continues to grow each year in size and quality. The Symphony is truly an international organization with more than 13 countries represented by its students and is dedicated to creating world-class and life-changing opportunities for its members and the community. The ensemble provides experiences our students will long remember and educational opportunities that will benefit their careers as musicians and teachers of music.

In addition to the musicians who comprise the performing ensembles, the symphony has one of the largest and most professionally designed collegiate orchestra staffs in the country. During the academic year, the orchestra rehearses four times a week and presents an average of eight public performances each season. These performances range from regular symphony concerts to children's concerts, operas, ballets, and pops programs. The 80-member orchestra tours and performs concerts throughout the southeast United States. With its regularly sold-out seasons, the Southern Mississippi Symphony Orchestra is the most exciting orchestra in Mississippi.

History

The Southern Mississippi Symphony Orchestra is the oldest orchestra in Mississippi and was first organized in 1920. Dr. Jay Dean, the SMSO’s current conductor, became Director of Orchestral Activities at Southern Miss in 1988. With his appointment, the SMSO has grown significantly over the last two decades, and with each year, it reaches a higher level of artistry. The orchestra is truly an international organization and includes over 80 musicians from the U.S. and 14 other countries. As Director of Orchestral Activities, Dr. Dean selects works for each program with the aim that they be educationally and technically purposeful for the musicians and aesthetically pleasing and interesting for audiences. Programs with a wide variety of artists from myriad backgrounds and nationalities are a main goal of Dr. Dean and the SMSO. Children’s concerts, ballet, opera, and pops concerts round out the repertoire of the SMSO. SMSO is the only orchestra in Mississippi to work with Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute Communities Link Up! program. This groundbreaking effort has given over 1,600 secondary school Mississippi students the opportunity to perform with the university orchestra and study orchestral music. Additionally, the symphony orchestra has developed a model community and educational outreach program in conjunction with the City of Hattiesburg to bring musical opportunities to the community through performances and visits to local nursing homes, grade schools (K-12) and community centers. Internationally renowned artists such as Itzhak Perlman, Yo-Yo Ma, Doc Severinsen, Ray Charles, John Browning, Jean Pierre Rampal, Denyce Graves, Christopher Parkening, Edgar Meyer, Roberta Peters, Sir James Galway, Joshua Bell, and Plácido Domingo have performed with the orchestra. In fact, the SMSO is the only university orchestra in the world to have performed with Domingo, and it is the only orchestra in the world to have ever performed with the world's top four classical music performers. A large part of the SMSO’s mission and the direction in which the symphony orchestra is heading is in establishing itself as an impetus to change people’s lives and redirect them in a positive way. This includes areas of the community that have heretofore been denied access to the arts partly owing to lack of income and also to the previous dearth of artistic expression in the city and its surrounding areas. Another part of the symphony orchestra’s mission is to prepare its members to become professional performers and educators as well as contributing citizens and leaders in the community. The SMSO strives for professional excellence in performance and first rate musical opportunities for our audience as well as its members. The musicians have opportunities to showcase their talents through various musical activities as well as interaction with other businesses and organizations in the region. The musicians play with virtually every other orchestra within a 100 miles radius. The SMSO not only serves the Southern Mississippi community but provides a service to other communities in the state and beyond. The symphony orchestra’s musicians have played venues such as Bossier City, Mandeville, Meridian, Jackson, Biloxi, and Tupelo. In addition, an orchestra member is currently a featured soloist at New York's Kennedy Center. The SMSO brings an artistically and culturally rich experience to Hattiesburg, its residents and visitors, and is the only orchestra to market its events internationally with people crossing state lines and international borders to attend performances, which average eight per year and some of which have been broadcast for television. When Ray Charles performed with the symphony orchestra, an audience of 4000 from a 200 mile radius attended the concert. Additionally, Itzhak Perlman’s, Yo Yo Ma's and Edgar Meyer’s appearances each drew people locally as well as from Alabama, Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Georgia, and internationally in the case of Mr. Meyer. Jean Pierre Rampal brought in all of Mississippi’s contiguous states as well as visitors from Michigan and Texas. Approximately 2,000 people statewide attended the Mississippi, the Birthplace of America’s Music concert in which 1,500 musicians from all over Mississippi played. Night of a Thousand Trumpets with Doc Severinsen, who remarked, “The USM Symphony Orchestra performs at a level equal to or better than some professional groups of sterling reputation,” realized almost 1,000 guests from 32 states and 3 foreign countries not including the 4,000 local residents who attended.

Placido Domingo's sold out appearance, his only appearance with a collegiate orchestra, on the Mississippi Gulf Coast enjoyed an international audience and rave reviews for this amazing evening of music that also featured his music director Eugene Kohn and renowned soprano Ana Maria Matrinez. He proclaimed "No amount of advanced expectation could have prepared me for what I discovered at the very first rehearsal, a veritable treasure trove of truly outstanding young musicians from so many different parts of the world. To call your orchestra unique is, in my opinion, not an exaggeration. In every number, they played not only brilliantly, but also truly inspiringly. The distinguished University of Southern Mississippi and the audiences of its state can be very proud of Jay Dean and his splendid young players. I consider this kind of venture a model, which I hope will be followed by other learning organizations."

Quotes

"The Southern Mississippi Symphony Orchestra's performance of the Brahms Symphony No. 4, played with such precision, commitment and energy, followed by a superlative rendition of the Shostakovich Cello Concerto No. 1, was absolutely remarkable. Congratulations to you, the orchestra, and the institution for the achievements of the University of Southern Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, and of your key work in its formation." YO-YO MA

"I have to tell you how impressed I was with the University of Southern Mississippi Symphony Orchestra. The orchestra's sound and playing was on an extremely high level, and I loved making music in such an inspired atmosphere. I congratulate you for your excellent work. Keep it up." ITZHAK PERLMAN

"The concert with your orchestra was so outstanding the memory of it is still fresh in my mind. Nobody had prepared me to expect something of this standard. This orchestra of young musicians played the program brilliantly. I really could not believe my ears. I think many of the major cities in the USA would be very happy to hear an orchestra play so inspired. The one thing lacking in classical music is the dedication and enthusiasm both of which were so obvious in your young orchestra. You have set a standard in my mind for doing things with care and diligence that is lacking in many classical music performances." SIR JAMES GALWAY

"The USM Symphony Orchestra and their conductor, Jay Dean, perform at a level equal to or better than some professional groups of sterling reputation. I was overjoyed and rewarded beyond my expectations. ...a great artistic experience!" DOC SEVERINSEN

"It was a great pleasure to play with The University of Southern Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, wonderfully conducted by Jay Dean. We had a marvelous relationship and the musicians played with great inspiration, and the result was beautiful music. Merci & Bravo!" JEAN PIERRE RAMPAL

"Congratulations to you for a wonderful production of Carmen; it was truly a work of art!" DENYCE GRAVES