Come One, Come All: Westchester’s Newest Symphony Orchestra

Local music lovers can welcome a new symphony orchestra to Westchester—one that invites amateur musicians to join for the pure love of playing music in a judgment-free environment.

The New Westchester Symphony Orchestra, founded in November 2011, calls itself a community orchestra—and is made up mostly of county residents. Their mission, according to general manager Belinda Kan, is to provide the opportunity “for anyone who has ever secretly longed to play the great music they have heard on the radio and in the concert halls of New York City and beyond,” to join an ensemble.

Benjamin Niemczyk, conductor and co-founder, thinks that this is a great time to start such an orchestra.

“With all of the stress that many people are experiencing these days, there are a multitude of people who yearn to play meaningful music with a meaningful group,” he said.

Niemczyk said the 22 members of the NewWSO, as it is called, pay moderate membership dues and practice together once a week in White Plains. There are no auditions and musicians of all skill levels and abilities are welcome to attend the noncompetitive rehearsals.

“Only a few of us have studied music formally, so the satisfaction of discovering and playing a great piece of music is intensely fulfilling,” Kan said.

Despite being an audition-free group with a wide range of abilities, the conductor said the orchestra performs music close to its original form, and looks to history for music that is already adapted for their ensemble. 

Their debut concert on March 18 will feature a repertoire that includes selections from Mozart, Bizet, Bach, Massenet, Grieg, Purcell and Elgar among others. The ensemble even has plans for vocal collaborations of contemporary music, such as a Gilbert and Sullivan sing-along, according to Niemczyk, who is also a conductor of two choral ensembles in Westchester.

Another unique feature of the orchestra is that Niemczyk leads entirely from an Apple iPad 2, something he said allows him to greatly increase the amount of music he can offer the orchestra to play.

 “I can load hundreds of scores, make annotations and turn pages with a touch or a swipe,” he said. “Most people who have seen me conduct remember me as the conductor with the iPad 2.”

The musicians of the NewWSO, whose ages range from late teens to some in their eighties, might have played in high school or college but put their instrument away for years to pursue careers or because they were busy with their families. Niemczyk believes his biggest challenge is to inspire these players to believe that they are capable of producing great art.

“I've encountered so many singers and instrumentalists who shake their heads in bewildering doubt only to shake again in utter astonishment upon producing a masterpiece.They forget that most fine artists come from humble means and rise to greatness via talent, imagination and perseverance,” he asserted.

As these players take the stage in a few weeks, they have their conductor’s admiration.

“I am most impressed with the musicians' willingness to step into the unknown. They have a can-do attitude and are willing to tackle almost anything I put in front of them,” he said. 

The New Westchester Symphony Orchestra will perform on Sunday, March 18, 3 p.m. at Arts Westchester, 31 Mamaroneck Ave. in White Plains. Click the link for tickets and more information.