The Canton Youth Symphony was founded in 1961 as a way to give young musicians the opportunity to participate in a high-quality regional youth orchestra that strives to provide a professional atmosphere for music making and the highest artistic standards. The Canton Youth Symphony is meant to supplement, not replace, school instruction and ensemble participation.
Membership in the Canton Youth Symphonies offers musicians the opportunity to:
• Play with students from a variety of area schools
• Perform an array of challenging orchestra repertoire
• Study with Canton Symphony Orchestra musicians through sectionals and/or to play a side-by-side concert with the Canton Symphony Orchestra
• Grow by providing a progressive orchestra training program: Canton Youth Strings, Canton Youth Symphony, and Canton Youth Symphony Advanced Orchestra
Led by CYSAO Coductor Matthew Jenkins Jaroszewicz, CYS Conductor Michele N. Monigold, and Youth Strings Conductor Raylena Bevington, the Canton Youth Symphony has grown to include three ensembles and is made up of students from ten counties in the Northeast Ohio area. Elementary through high school students occupy the three ensembles of the program and enjoy the challenging and joyful educational experience that CYS creates.
Ensembles
All ensembles rehearse at the Zimmermann Symphony Center in Canton, Ohio. The Canton Youth Symphony season is split into 3 cycles that end with a public concert.
The Canton Youth Strings rehearses every Monday evening from 6:30-7:30pm and performs beginning and intermediate string repertoire. All beginning and intermediate string players are allowed to participate in CYS Strings if they have basic skills and sight-reading abilities. However, an audition is still required for placement.
The Canton Youth Symphony Advanced Orchestra rehearses every Monday evening from 6:00 to 8:30pm and performs diverse and challenging pieces from the standard orchestral repertoire.
The Canton Youth Symphony rehearses every Tuesday evening from 6:00 to 8:30pm. The group begins the year by performing educational arrangements of the standard orchestral repertoire and works its way up to original editions of major works by the end of the year.
In support of school music programs, it is the policy of the Canton Youth Symphonies that members are required to also participate in at least one of their school’s instrumental ensembles. Exceptions are made for home schooled students and students who play an instrument that is not taught at their school. Each musician will be required to have the ensemble director sign a Proof of Ensemble Participation form at the beginning of each season. Extenuating circumstances will be considered on a case-by-case basis and must be discussed with the Music Director and Manager of Education and Community Engagement.
Conductors
Matthew Jenkins Jaroszewicz, CYSAO Conductor has been with the Canton Symphony Orchestra since 2017. Matthew Jenkins Jaroszewicz recently concluded an eight-year tenure with the Canton Symphony Orchestra, during which he served as Assistant Conductor and Associate Conductor under the late Gerhardt Zimmermann before taking over as Music Director for the 2024-2025 season. Highlights from his tenure with the CSO include Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto with world-renowned pianist Garrick Ohlsson, Saint-Saёns’ Symphony No. 3 “Organ” with Heather Cooper, Rhapsody in Blue with Baron Fenwick, Beethoven’s First Piano Concerto with Reed Tetzloff, symphonies of Mahler, Elgar, Beethoven, Sibelius, Hailstork, Prokofiev, Shostakovich, Schumann, Mendelssohn, and Beach, two side-by-side performances with the Canton Youth Symphony Advanced Orchestra, and fully-staged performances of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker with the Canton Ballet at the Palace Theatre. On the pops side, he conducted the silent films The Freshman and The Snowman, collaborated ten times with Canadian band Jeans ‘N Classics, and had the honor of sharing the stage with nationally renowned Americana Roots band The Steel Wheels, as well as with local acts The Vindys, The Labra Brothers, The Speedbumps, and Ben Gage. He has also conducted the Canton Youth Symphony Advanced Orchestra for eight years, and looks forward to doing so for many years to come.
He made his Severance Hall debut in November of 2021 with the Cleveland Pops Orchestra, and his Carnegie Hall debut in July 2018, conducting works by Fauré and Zach Gulaboff Davis at Weill Recital Hall. In 2019, he conducted the world premiere of Our Voices: Democracy Revisited by legendary jazz trumpeter and Oscar-nominated film composer Terence Blanchard. He was Co-Founder and Artistic Director of Apotheosis Opera in New York City, where he conducted fully-staged productions of works by Wagner, Puccini, and Strauss. Matthew holds degrees from Brown University and Mannes College of Music, where he studied under David Hayes. He served as a Julius Rudel Conducting Fellow with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, where he received mentorship from Music Director JoAnn Falletta. He is a native of Cincinnati, where he attended The School for Creative and Performing Arts before graduating from Walnut Hills High School. He swam competitively for the Cincinnati Aquatic Club and continues to train and compete through U.S. Masters Swimming as a member of O*H*I*O Masters Swim Club. He is an active member of Trinity Cathedral in Cleveland, where he sings in the choir and is a member of the Congregational Life Mission Team. He is also an avid skier, cyclist, triathlete, hiker, bourbon enthusiast, and devoted baseball and football fan. He lives in Cleveland with his husband, Andrew, and their dog, Pappy.
Michele N. Monigold, CYS Conductor has been the conductor for the intermediate Canton Youth Symphony since the 23-24 season. A Stark County native, she currently serves as Education Co-Chair for the Board of Tuesday Musical Association and is an Assistant Lecturer at the University of Akron. Michele is an active OMEA adjudicator and continues to perform as a member of Akron Symphonic Winds.
Michele earned a bachelor’s degree in clarinet performance and music education from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and a master’s degree in music education from The University of Akron. Michele recently retired as Director of Bands and Music Department Head at Jackson High School where she conducted the Marching Band and Symphony Band and taught advanced courses in Music Theory, Music history, Composition, and World Music. While at Jackson, she established a chapter of Tri-M Music Honor Society and developed an international travel initiative, organizing music exchange programs to China and Ireland. She was selected as the State Board of Education District 8 Ohio Teacher of the Year for 2019 and is the 2023 University of Akron School of Music Distinguished Music Educator Alumni Award winner. Michele and her husband, Sean, reside in Jackson Township and are both proud alumni of the Canton Youth Symphony. Their son, Nolan, is a participating Grammy award-winning music engineer and producer in Cincinnati.
Raylena Mae Bevington, Youth Strings Conductor has been with the Canton Youth Strings since 2017. A native of Canton, Ohio she began playing the violin and taking vocal lessons at the age of seven. Raylena achieved her Bachelor of Music Education Degree (BME) from the University of Mount Union, graduating cum laude. While attending the University of Mount Union, she played the viola in the Alliance Symphony. After graduating from college, she worked for Plain Local Schools for two years as their Orchestra Director. She is currently the Director of Strings for Canton City Schools where she teaches at McKinley HS (Downtown & Main Campus) and the Arts Academy at Summit. Raylena achieved her Master of Arts in Education as an Intervention Specialist, with a reading endorsement, from Malone University.
In 2013, alongside Ms. Betty Smith, Beverly Bevington and S.C. Toe, she became Co-Founder of the 501c3 program En-Rich-Ment. This program gives inner-city children the opportunity to learn any musical instrument at no charge to the family. “In a society where we are connected through technology, music gives us the experience of having human interactions. We are able to have basic human relations and express our feelings through something that we all have in common; it gives us something to relate to. Everyone has a talent – music helps find it. I teach much more than just notes and rhythms on a page. I teach compassion, empathy, basic skills ie: reading/math, and how to work as a team. I teach LIFE through music.”
In Raylena’s career, she has achieved numerous recognitions including: The Williams Scholarship in Fine Arts, Mu Phi Epsilon Merit Award, The Gerald & Esther Garland Palmer – ‘32 Music Scholarship, Joseph A. & Rhea M. Jeffries Memorial Scholarship, Cecil T. & Marian H. Steward Award, The National Cabinet of Mount Union Women Scholarships, and Top 10 Finalist in the Canton Symphony Music Educator of the Year two years in a row.
Aside from teaching music, Raylena is an avid equine enthusiast participating in many events including Ranch Riding and Cutting.
Administrative Staff
Caroline Eberhard has served as the Director of Education & Community Engagement for the Canton Symphony Orchestra since December, 2022. Caroline oversees all education & community programming for the CSO, and is the primary administrator for the Canton Youth Symphonies. In her tenue as Director of EdCE, she is proud to have expanded participation across all programs, deepened quality of learning activities taking place, and actively seeks to address the ever-changing needs of the Stark County Community. Caroline is a board member for Artful Living and Learning and is a graduate of Leadership Stark County’s 2024 Spotlight Program. She is a member of OMEA (Ohio Music Educators Association), LAO (League of American Orchestras), and NAfME (National Association for Music Education).
Caroline is a graduate of Baldwin Wallace Conservatory and holds a Bachelor’s of Music Degree in Vocal Performance. She has a combined 18 years of musical experience and 13 years of experience in education. She has spent her time as an educator in public schools, private schools, and non-profit organizations, working in an assortment of classroom sizes, with students of varying age, access, and ability. Caroline has worked as a voice, piano, and sailing instructor, and has been as a substitute teacher in Cuyahoga County. Prior to joining the CSO, Caroline has 3 years of experience in administration from her work as a Medical Assistant in Canton and Administrative Assistant at the non-profit organization Regatta Point Community Sailing in Worcester, MA. Originally from Shrewsbury, MA, Caroline grew up continuously involved in theater and musical productions. She began taking vocal lessons at age 11, and studied under Angela Gooch of the Longy School of Music. In college, Caroline studied under Jim Mismas and Cynthia O’Connell. Caroline continues to teach private voice and piano lessons locally in Canton and out of her home in Akron, and occasionally performs. Caroline ever-grateful for the opportunity to serve the CSO and surrounding community, and is eager to continue to do so in the coming years.
CYS Assistant
Lauren Carley, Canton Youth Symphonies Assistant is a recent graduate of the University of Iowa, where she earned dual degrees in Arts Management and Oboe Performance. During her time in Iowa, she worked and volunteered with several arts organizations, including Hancher Auditorium, Orchestra Iowa, the Quad Cities Symphony Orchestra, Girls Rock Iowa City, and the University of Iowa School of Music.
As a performer, Lauren has appeared with regional orchestras and chamber ensembles throughout the Midwest and maintains a private oboe studio. She is especially passionate about supporting the next generation of musicians and creating accessible, meaningful arts experiences for young people.
Lauren is excited to join an organization that reflects her dedication to musical excellence and education. She looks forward to contributing to the growth of the Canton Youth Symphonies and serving the Northeast Ohio community.