The Fredonia College Symphony on the King Concert Hall stage.
The Fredonia College Symphony Orchestra's first concert of the academic year is on Saturday, Oct. 17 during Homecoming Weekend.
The free concert is slated for 8 p.m. in King Concert Hall.
The program will include the Moussorgsky/Rimsky-Korsakov masterpiece, “Night on Bald Mountain;” the first movement, “Rapsodie”
of Bloch’s “Suite Hébraïque;” Ortiz’ “Kauyumari” and the always exciting “Firebird Suite” (1919) by Stravinsky. The orchestra’s director is Dr. Emily Schaad.
The viola soloist in the Bloch suite is Gavin J. Aquino, a winner of the 2026 Fredonia Concerto Competition from the viola studio of Associate Professor David Rose. Gavin, a member of the Class of 2027 from North Babylon, NY, is majoring in Music Education and Music Performance.
When asked about his upcoming performance, Gavin noted, “Getting the opportunity to perform with the Fredonia College Symphony Orchestra this October is a dream come true for me. I have always known from a young age that I wanted to share my passion of music in any way I can, and this specific experience is one that I will never forget.
“It is such a rare experience for student musicians to showcase the thousands of hours of practice they have done in the practice rooms at such a unique opportunity, and I am very excited to be doing this with several of my friends in the orchestra.” - Gavin J. Aquino
“It is such a rare experience for student musicians to showcase the thousands of hours of practice they have done in the practice rooms at such a unique opportunity, and I am very excited to be doing this with several of my friends in the orchestra. I am so grateful for all my family, friends, colleagues, and teachers who have supported me during my time at Fredonia. Special shout-out to my viola professor David Rose for being such an amazing teacher to me these past three years.”
When asked about Gavin, Associate Professor Rose noted, “Gavin really eats, sleeps and breathes music. The work he'll be performing seeks a deep spiritual connection to Hebrew heritage in the use of Jewish and liturgical folk melodies. It packs a big emotional wallop and shows off the beautiful sound of the viola.”
Gavin was a teaching assistant in MUED 285 Advanced Violin/Viola this year and has been president of the Fredonia Viola Society since Fall 2025 and secretary of the American String Teachers Association student group since Fall 2024. He has served as a House Manager in the Michael C. Rockefeller Arts Center since Spring 2024 and in Juliet J. Rosch Recital Hall in the School of Music since Fall 2025.In addition, he is Head Music Librarian for Fredonia Orchestras, and in Fall 2024 was an intern for the Institute of Composer Diversity, which is in-residence in the Fredonia School of Music.
