The Score | Bridges to College

One of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra’s more important activities doesn’t take place at Powell Hall, the orchestra’s historic concert venue. Through SLSO College Connections, launched in 2018, orchestra musicians give chamber concerts at local colleges to attract music students from middle schools and high schools with limited opportunities to visit campuses. This year, partner colleges and universities included St. Louis College of Pharmacy, Goldfarb School of Nursing at Barnes Jewish College, University of Missouri–­St. Louis, McKendree University, and Harris-Stowe State University. Visits include a tour of the college, lunch, and a one-hour SLSO chamber concert. The program grew out Symphony in Your College, the orchestra’s long-running series of free chamber concerts on college campuses. Maureen Byrne, the St. Louis Symphony’s associate vice president of education and community partnerships, says, “We realized the unique position of the SLSO to serve as a special bridge to connect music students with area colleges. Colleges are very aware that students involved with school music programs are among the most likely to perform well academically in high school and go on to college.”