The Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestras (SYSO) is the largest youth orchestra program in the US, serving over 1,500 students each year. SYSO's programs include four full orchestras, summer festivals, and partnerships with local schools. SYSO in the Schools brings professional musicians into schools to provide instrumental instruction to students free of charge. Two key outreach programs are the Southwest Seattle String Project and the Endangered Instruments Program, both of which aim to increase access to music education. SYSO tracks program impacts such as student engagement, perseverance, achievement, and personal growth beyond music.

1. Seattle
Youth Symphony
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2. An Introduction to SYSO
Founded in 1942, Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestras (SYSO) is the
largest youth orchestra training program in the United States.
The organization serves more than 1,500 diverse students each
year with four full orchestras, three summer festival programs,
and extensive partnerships with local public schools.
SYSO in the Schools brings professional musicians into
the school setting to provide one-on-one and small
group instruction, free of charge, as an enhancement to the
school-offered instrumental music program. We offer two outreach
programs that increase access to outstanding music education in Seattle
area public schools:
Southwest Seattle String Project
Operating in one of Seattle Public School’s highest poverty areas in the district, SYSO
provides free support from professional musician coaches to co-teach with school
instrumental music instructors, aiding students in the early stages of learning string
instruments. SYSO also provides free before-school lessons and coaches at the West
Seattle Community Orchestras to extend the support to beginning musicians.
Endangered Instruments Program (EIP)
EIP was founded in 1991 to address the shortage of students studying certain orchestral
instruments and the subsequent shortage of players of these instruments for orchestras
at every level, student, community and professional. The program has led to students
advancing further and playing longer and in some cases earning entrance into a SYSO
orchestra. EIP has also been replicated by organizations in the United States and abroad.
Tracking program activities year over year has identified improvement in
four key areas of impact:
• Engagement - Active recruitment by SYSO coaches introduces more
students to instrumental music. This increases awareness, access, and
participation in learning to play a string instrument.
• Perseverance - SYSO supports each student’s commitment to multi-year
participation in music programs, leading directly to retention rates that
are significantly higher than in previous years.
• Achievement - There is evidence that as students move at a faster pace to
higher-level music classes and repertoire; they also show advancement in
other academic areas.
• Growth Beyond the Music - Parents, teachers, and students report that
studying a musical instrument nurtures social and emotional skills that
are transferrable to other areas of a student’s life.
www.syso.org | 206.362.2300

3. More Music Students...
Enga gement
A goal of the SYSO in the Schools program is to recruit students to experience the joys
of playing an instrument, whether it is picking up a violin for the very first time or
challenging oneself by trying a less commonly played or “endangered” instrument.
Professional musicians come to schools to demonstrate the instruments, often
playing for the students so they are inspired to a high-level of music making
someday.
Southwest Seattle Strings
In the Southwest Seattle String Project, the impact of
professional musician coaches engaging very beginners,
has enabled many more students to make music in this
area of the city. A historically low access to instrumental ke
music education is due to economic barriers which lead s li r.
ram ove s
to an inequitable distribution of music instruction in this rog sed kid
p s
community. In 2011-12, more than half (57%) of the students ve a ny t
h a be p s ma th a
in this program qualified for Free and Reduced Lunch. SYSO n’t ld a re ”
provides the support for students to engage in music education did wou erve e mo cks.
we s ts b ra er
they might not otherwise be able to afford. “If s, kid ldn’ ould the c ach
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thi wo re w ugh IP T
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W dt th ro ~E
an ped
slip
2012-13
377
2011-12
students
2010-11
296
247 students
students
94
students Southwest Seattle
Strings Project
Student participation has more than
quadrupled since starting in 2009.
2009-10
EIP
As music teachers have attested over the twenty years of this
program, SYSO coaches help students acquaint themselves
with instruments that are not as frequently taught,
such as viola, bass, oboe, bassoon, French horn,
trombone, and tuba. More students engage in
making music because coaches help them find an
instrument that is a fit and exciting challenge.

4. Practicing Year after Year...
Perseverance
Southwest Seattle Strings
Because SYSO provides individualized and small group lessons, students in the Southwest region of the
district have a greater tendency to continue playing an instrument through the school year.
94% of students in Southwest Seattle continue, compared with 83% in Seattle Public Schools overall.
And 4 out of 5 elementary students report wanting to continue to learn to play an instrument.
Higher retention in the elementary school grades leads to more students continuing to
play in middle school. The middle school orchestra program as increased tremendously
in size (see data below) necessitating that the school offer three full orchestras –
beginning, junior and senior. In this way, SYSO helps to increase student
orchestra enrollment which requires more class offerings, thereby enabling
the school to build its own capacity for offering more arts education.
EIP
The Endangered Instruments Program can be the first step on a musical
pathway for a student. Several EIP students, because of the support
and encouragement of their coaches, have entered into one of SYSO’s
training orchestras and ultimately into the top-tier Youth Symphony
Orchestra. Students and parents attest they would not have known of these
opportunities if were not for being introduced to a new instrument through
i
EIP. One such student who has followed this path to a unique professional
career is Danielle Kuhlman, freelance musician, cultural ambassador, and
founder of the innovative, post-feminist horn ensemble, Genghis Barbie.
Read more about how EIP inspired Danielle’s career on the next page.
112 enrolled
iiii
Denny International Middle School
Orchestra Growth in 2012-13
Orchestra enrollment tripled as a result of SYSO
in the Schools, which began in 2009-10 in feeder
elementary schools, then expanded 77
to include Denny Middle School
in 2011-12
63
in 2010-11. in 2010-11
39 39
in 2008-09 in 2009-10
www.syso.org | 206.362.2300

5. Making Great Music.
Achievement
Southwest Seattle Strings
Beginning at the elementary school level, SYSO in the Schools lays the foundation for lifelong music
engagement. Through interviews and surveys of parents, students, teachers, coaches, and school
principals, we know that students are making great strides in their musicianship. It is reported that
SYSO coaches help students advance musically for the following reasons:
• Coaches provide high quality instruction;
• Coaches allow for student exposure to more instructional styles;
• Coaches reinforce important concepts and techniques; and
• Coaches improve technical playing and performance skills
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eiv
Or as one Southwest Seattle Strings student simply says: rec he
to t
“It makes me a better violin player.” l e th at e
ab nd w t
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EIP we ften n wh d wh
we y o d o
t rl a n
Music students know that the coaching they receive through EIP increases ha i se ing . ” nt
their skills. So, too, do the music teachers who work closely with our d t on fa focu play ost tude
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coaches to provide opportunities for students to engage and excel in “I truc wer call y with hool
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An overwhelming majority of EIP students surveyed in 2011-12 – 82% – we ~
said they plan to continue playing an instrument.
Additionally, a wealth of national research shows connections between musical
learning and academic achievement. SYSO’s initial analysis of SYSO in the Schools
program participants’ achievement on math and reading standardized tests has
revealed a correlation between studying instrumental music and highter test scores as
compared to non-participants. SYSO plans to further investigate the impact
of its program on students’ growth both as scholars and musicians.
Danielle Kuhlmann’s EIP Journey
Danielle (pictured at right) recalls being really eager to join the Seattle
Youth Symphony, but knowing that competition was steep because there
were so many flute players like her. When an EIP coach encouraged her to
try French horn, it might have felt like a consolation prize. Instead, that advice
led to her career as a professional french horn musician. She travels the world
performing a repertoire from classical to pop. Danielle is also actively involved in
Cultures in Harmony, a non-profit organization that promotes cultural diplomacy
through music. The EIP program was important to her musical journey because
“you get individual instruction from someone who really knows what they’re doing.”
www.syso.org | 206.362.2300

6. S EATTLE
Youth Symphony
O RCHESTRAS
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ner 11065 Fifth Ave NE, Suite A Funding for this publication has
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uc ed fo tting Seattle, WA 98125 been provided by The Wallace
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SYSO is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit
m ic o b e organization. To make a donation or We are grateful to MEM Consultants
ve o gh th c es
h a a ch e hi th at usi t th rk, for additional program information, for providing the program evaluation
uld ad n th ion tal m th a wo r.” visit us at www.syso.org or call
wo h i t w m e and data analysis that informs this
“I y if I ears ques men kno , tea matt (206) 362-2300. report.
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SYSO Changes Lives.
More students practicing year after year to make great music has an impact on their
lives and the life of the communities in which they live. Everyone involved in the
program – from students to their parents and teachers – report areas of personal
growth which go beyond a student’s musical ability:
Self-discipline
Concentration Teamwork
Sense of accomplishment
SYSO’s mission of making music and changing lives is the driving force behind
SYSO in the Schools.
“[SYSO coaching] is the best school experience my
daughter has had in Seattle Public Schools.”
~ Parent of a SYSO in the Schools musician
www.syso.org | 206.362.2300