Queens Musicians Wanted:
The Birth Of Two Symphonies & One Lost Dog

By Angela Montefinise

When professional conductor, composer and musician Silas Huff decided to settle down in New York City last year, he chose a neighborhood in Queens as the place to hang his baton.

Astoria is such a “cool little neighborhood,” Huff said. “It has so much art and culture packed into a small spot. It has great little restaurants and shops. It’s just a cool place.”

But as much as Huff loved his new home, he admitted that the “cool place” was missing something.

It didn’t have a music group.

When he wanted to see a concert, he would have to hop on the N Train and go to Brooklyn or Manhattan, or take a drive to Flushing Town Hall. “I would need to go over the river or to Flushing to see shows, and Flushing isn’t really that close to Astoria . . . Astoria is this unbelievably artistic neighborhood, but for some reason, there wasn’t a music outlet there.”

Huff decided to change all that.

He founded a non-profit music group known as the Astoria Music Society, which will kick off its first season on Oct. 26. It includes four separate music groups: The Astoria Jazz Orchestra, The Astoria Symphony, The Kids’ Symphony and an avante garde modern group called The Lost Dog New Musik Ensemble.

Now Huff, who will act as Musical Director of the Society, is looking for players for the orchestras.

Huff said, “Anyone who can get there can sign up. I wish there was something like this for me when I was younger. Exposing classical music to young kids is an important thing. It enriches their lives.”

The launching of the group has been “strenuous,” but Huff said his ideological beliefs make it all worth it. “I am a musician, and I believe music is one of the values that make humans human. So I’m kind of starting a grassroots movement to bring music to Western Queens.”

Huff said he is “really excited” about the children’s orchestra, which will give kids ages six to 17 the chance to play in a “high quality orchestra” and get free music lessons from staff at the Variety Boys and Girls Club.

Among the groups included in the first Astoria-based music organization are the Kids’ Symphony, the Astoria Jazz Orchestra, the Astoria Symphony and an avant garde group called the Lost Dog New Musik Ensemble. Tribune Photo by Reed Albergotti

“That’s an incredible thing. Lessons can be so expensive, but with this program, they are free of charge. The only requirement is that the kids have to be members of the Boys and Girls Club, which charges a whopping $12 a year.”

Kids will receive group lessons from Boys and Girls Club staff members after school and occasionally on Saturdays. Huff said, “The after-school music lesson program will group all kids together, but eventually we may do subgroups based on the different levels and so on.”

Huff is expecting between 50 and 60 kids to participate in the program. “Kids of all abilities are invited to participate,” he explained. “The Boys and Girls Club actually already has a flute teacher, so the flutists are going to be a little more advanced, but that’s OK. We want as many kids as possible to join in.”

The orchestra will play traditional favorites and put on two recitals a year, one in December and one in June. Huff said, “It’s amazing what kids can do when they put their minds to it. They really take pride in their work.”

For Huff, the fact that Astoria didn’t have its own symphony orchestra was shocking. He said, “There are so many artists who live nearby. How could there not be an orchestra for the neighborhood?”

He dreamed of starting a professional orchestra in the area, and said, “Now that it’s happening, it’s just really exciting. To bring a professional-quality performance group to Astoria is like a dream come true for me.”

Huff, who currently works with the Greenwich Village Orchestra, will conduct the Astoria Symphony, which he hopes will have between 40 and 100 members.

Huff said about half of those slots have been filled and that auditions are currently being held for the rest.

He is primarily looking for string players, and said, “We’re going to play traditional classical music, mostly. Bach, Vivaldi, Schubert, things like that. We’re going to have Christmas concert, and on Feb. 22, we’re going to have a show called ‘The Greek Masters,’ with all Greek music. That will be cool, and should go over pretty big in Astoria.”           

The Astoria Symphony will play the Astoria Music Society’s first show on Oct. 26. “We’ll probably have food afterwards and everything. It will be a big part to kick off the whole program. It should be really nice,” Huff said.

In addition to The Kids’ Symphony, the Society will include a 22-member Jazz Ensemble led by Director Chad Bloom. Huff said he is currently looking for brass players to participate. “We have filled some slots already. We have some musicians from the area and some not from the area. We’re reaching out to everyone,” he added.

The jazz group plays it’s first show on Nov. 15, while the Lost Dog New Musik Ensemble begins on Oct. 30 with a Halloween concert complete with costumes and face painting. The experimental group predates the Astoria Music Society and has already performed several times. “For each performance, we have a different number of players. For the first performance, we will have four, but we usually have been four and five players,” Huff said.

He added, “We like to get a little funky.”

While Huff is looking forward to bringing music of all types to Astoria, there are a few obstacles and he needs the public’s help. He said with a laugh, “Did I mention it’s a non-profit? Did I mention we take donations?”

The first thing he needs is a donation of instruments to help the Kids’ Symphony and the after-school lessons program get off the ground.

“If someone has an instrument in pretty good condition, they should let us know and donate it. It’s tax deductible and everything, and a child gets to play. It’s a win-win situation,” he said.

In addition to instruments, Huff said the group is looking for charitable donations to help bring as many shows to Queens as possible. He said, “People can call us and find out how to make a donation. It would be truly appreciated.”

Donors can contact the Variety Boys and Girls club at (718) 728-0946 or the Astoria Music Society at (718) 204-9034 about donating instruments. Huff said, “We’re looking for anything that you would find in a traditional orchestra.”

He added that tickets to each event are $8 per person, or $5 for students, kids and seniors, and said, “When people tickets, they’re not only supporting us by being there, but they are supporting the group and its efforts, so we invite everyone to come out and see our shows.”

The group does offer money saving ticket packages, like the $40 Symphony Pass for all six Astoria Symphony shows of the 2003-2004 season, or the $50 Astoria Music Society Gold Pass for all six Symphony shows, two jazz shows and two Lost Dog events. 

There are also opportunities for corporate sponsorships, Huff said, adding that people interested should either call the Society or go to its website at www.astoriamusic.org for more information.

Huff said the Society is still in negotiations with several churches and elementary schools in Astoria for space to give performances, and he added, “I don’t want to say anything until the space is settled. But we’ll have space to play, and it will be in the area.”

Huff was born in Texas and he developed an interest in music during high school. He said, “I was going to be a rock star. I was sure of it. I though that would be great.”

He learned guitar, and although he said he was jealous of his sister because she could play the more “complex” flute, he joined a rock band in high school with his buddies. After he joined the choir and took a music theory class, Huff’s view of music changed somewhat.

He said, “Classical music affected me like I never thought it could . . . I decided guitar wasn’t really an orchestra instrument, so I took up the cello, then the viola and then the violin.” He also plays piano and sings. “I just love music. It’s an amazing thing,” he explained.

Over the course of his career, Huff performed in New York, California, Texas, Indiana, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, France, Italy, Germany, and Russia. His compositions have also been performed by university and professional musicians in Texas, California, New York, Italy, Spain and Germany.

He has won several awards, including the 2000 California State University Conductor of the Year and the 1998 Los Angeles Valley Symphony Composition Competition.

Currently, he teaches music on the Upper East Side, but his focus is on his new group. He said. “I’m kind of a baby for this business. I’m really proud of what I’m doing. Hopefully, people will get to me and my group really well.”