The Frederick Symphony Orchestra, where it all started...

The Frederick Symphony Orchestra (FSO) is a community orchestra composed of professional and amateur musicians from Central Maryland. Founded in 1997, the orchestra performs a series of concerts each year which include classical masterworks, music by contemporary composers, pops concerts, and educational programs. Through its affiliation with Frederick Community College, FSO performs at FCC's Jack B. Kussmaul Theater, and qualified musicians receive college credit for playing in the orchestra.

The Frederick Symphony Orchestra is committed to enriching the cultural climate of Frederick, Maryland and its surrounding communities by providing opportunities for local musicians to perform and further develop their musicianship. In 1999, the orchestra instituted its Young Artist Competition to showcase and encourage talented local music students and expanded its fund-raising goals.

FSO's combination of educational outreach, community involvement, and affordable entertainment has attracted increasing support from the community. Now in its eleventh season, FSO is responding to audience demand by adding a fifth concert to its performance schedule and by starting the new Frederick Orchestra Guild (affectionately known as the FROGs) for volunteer community service. Throughout its brief history, FSO has enjoyed support from the Maryland State Arts Council, the Frederick Arts Council, local corporations, and generous private donors.

Elisa Koehler, Music Director and Conductor

Elisa Koehler enjoys a versatile musical career as a conductor, trumpeter, and scholar. Currently an Assistant Professor of Music at Goucher College in Baltimore, she conducts the Goucher Chamber Symphony and teaches music history and theory as well as conducting and trumpet. She was appointed Music Director and Conductor of the Frederick Symphony Orchestra in 1997. An active guest conductor and adjudicator, she has conducted All-County orchestras in six Maryland counties and has served on the judging panel for the National Trumpet Competition (USA). Her articles have appeared in the International Trumpet Guild Journal, Journal of the Conductors Guild, Maryland Music Educator, and the Heritage Band Encyclopedia Supplement. Elisa Koehler served as Recordings Review Editor for the ITG Journal between 2002 and 2005 and has also authored several major research articles for the ITG (www.trumpetguild.org). As a trumpeter, Elisa Koehler currently performs and records with the Lyric Brass Quintet (www.lyricbrass.com), past winners of the Baltimore Chamber Music Competition. She has appeared as soloist with the Columbia Orchestra, the Peabody Wind Ensemble, and the Handel Choir of Baltimore. Also active in historic performance, she has performed and recorded on cornett and natural trumpet with the Washington Cornett & Sackbut Ensemble, the Orchestra of the 17th Century, Modern Musick, and the Bach Sinfonia. Dr. Koehler holds degrees from the University of Tennessee (M.M.) and the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University (B.M., B.M.E., D.M.A.), and has studied at the Oberlin Baroque Performance Institute. Her major teachers include Wayne Cameron (trumpet), Catherine Leach (trumpet), John Spitzer (musicology), and Frederik Prausnitz (conducting).

Glenn S. Quader, Assistant Conductor

Glenn S. Quader, a native of Washington, DC, received his training at the Peabody Conservatory and the Universities of Indiana, Illinois, and Miami. He has worked extensively as a performer, conductor, session musician, and educator in the U.S. and Europe.

In 2005, Mr. Quader was appointed Music Director of  the Piedmont Regional Orchestra, located in Warrenton,  Virginia, outside of  Washington DC. Mr. Quader also serves as Resident Conductor for the Fairfax Symphony Orchestra, the Washington DC area's largest and most established professional regional orchestra. He is extremely active with the symphony's S.C.O.R.E. outreach program, which takes symphony musicians into area schools for side-by-side master classes and concert performances. In 2003, Mr. Quader was appointed Assistant Conductor for the Frederick and Columbia Orchestras, both located in Maryland. Mr. Quader also serves as Music Director/ Conductor of the Potomac Valley Youth Orchestra, in Gaithersburg.

In 2004, Mr. Quader conducted in the Cabrillo Contemporary Music Festival in Santa Cruz, California where he worked under Marin Alsop and Gustav Meier. In 2003, he attended the Catania International Conducting Institute in Sicily, where he earned a performance diploma. That same year, he also participated in the Sibelius Conducting Master Course under the direction of Jorma Panula with the Brasov Philharmonic, in Romania. Mr. Quader served two seasons (2000-2001) as Music Director/Conductor of the Broward Symphony Orchestra based at Broward College. In 1999, he founded and served as Artistic Director of the Florida Youth Conservatory (FYC), which reached a total student enrollment of over 550 musicians participating in over 25 ensembles across all genres.

Mr. Quader's guest conducting appearances include performances with the White Noise Chamber Players - Ensemble in Residence with the New World Symphony (1991), the Czech Virtuosi (1999), and the Czech Moravian Chamber Orchestra (2000). Mr. Quader's principal conducting teachers have included include Gustav Meier, Markand Thakar, Marin Alsop, Ovidiu Balan, and James Brooks-Bruzzese.