El Camino Youth Symphony

The El Camino Youth Symphony (ECYS) is a youth orchestra located in Palo Alto, California.

Founded in 1963, the El Camino Youth Symphony educates and trains more than 450 K-12 students from over 100 schools from San Francisco to Santa Cruz. The Symphony Orchestra is the top-level ensemble, and it is composed of talented musicians ranging from middle to high-schoolers from throughout the Bay Area. The orchestra studies under the baton of Jindong Cai, a conductor and master teacher who challenges the musicians to reach a high level of achievement. Other staff include Debra Gardner, clarinetist, who serves as wind coach for all of ECYS and assistant conductor, and Cathy Spieth, the executive director for ECYS.

The Symphony Orchestra performs to capacity crowds (2000+) at Flint Center in Cupertino, CA, and the California Theatre in San Jose, CA.

Preparatory Ensembles

In addition to the Senior Symphony, ECYS also maintains several preparatory ensembles for less advanced musicians. At the youngest level, students can participate in Chamber Players (1-2 years experience) or Camerata (3+ years), orchestras led by Dr. Michail Gelfandbien. Galbraith Honor Strings, under Dr. Kolchinsky, is a string orchestra named after the founder of ECYS, William Galbraith; its level is between the Camerata and Sinfonietta orchestras. ECYS also offers the El Camino Wind Orchestra, conducted by Christopher Florio, which performs wind ensemble repertoire, and prepares students for Sinfonietta and Symphony.