Saturdays at 11:00 am
Members of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras perform during a live broadcast of Introductions from Millennium Park. (Photo: Tipping Point Photography)
Hear talented pre-college classical musicians from the Chicago area
Introductions is WFMT’s weekly Saturday morning program that features talented pre-college classical musicians in the Chicago area. Soloists and chamber ensembles perform live in WFMT’s Levin Performance Studio. Large ensembles, including orchestras, choirs, and bands, are recorded at their home venues and broadcast at later dates. The program also features youth music competition winners. While many Introductions alumni pursue careers outside of music, some have gone on to study at some of the most prestigious music schools around the world and maintain careers as professional musicians.
Kevin Hernandez, cello
September 19, 2026
We hear once again from cellist Kevin Hernandez, playing a piece by his father Belford Hernandez and another by Rachmaninoff.
Jeremy Liu, piano
September 12, 2026
Jeremy Liu, 15, is a 10th grader at Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville. He has been under the tutelage of Mrs. Sueanne Metz since the age of six. Jeremy is the 2025 winner of the Crain-Maling Foundation CSO Young Artists Competition. As a result, he had the honor of performing with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra last fall. He also ...
Encore broadcast | Hemingway Quartet
September 5, 2026
This week, we hear a rebroadcast of the Hemingway Quartet from the Music Institute of Chicago Academy. The Hemingway Quartet is made up of Romeo Vashishth, Elle Cho, and Sebastian Manning alternating between violin and viola, as well as cellist Lucy Wu. More details and a podcast are available on the original episode page.
Evangeline Selking, 17, flute
August 29, 2026
Evangeline Selking, 17, is a recent graduate of Downers Grove South High School, and has studied under the guidance of Laurel Tempas for six years. She is joined by collaborative pianist Dr. Katherine Petersen for this recital. Evangeline played flute and piccolo in the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras’ flagship ensemble, Symphony Orchestra, which has performed at venues such as Lollapalooza ...
Neal Eisfeldt, 17, violin
August 15, 2026
Neal Eisfeldt, a talented 17-yr old violinist, is rapidly making a name for himself in the music world. Studying under Almita Vamos and Injoo Choi, he holds dual distinction as a Negaunee Foundation Scholarship Fellow as well as a Fellow of the Chicago Musical Pathways Initiative. Today on Introductions, Neal debuts a recently uncovered violin sonata from turn of the century ...
Encore broadcast | Noah Kim, 17, piano
August 8, 2026
For this week’s Introductions we hear a rebroadcast of a performance by pianist Noah Kim, winner of the 2022 CSO Young Artists Competition. This episode first aired on December 9, 2023. More details and a podcast are available at the original episode page.
Encore broadcast | Jeffery Tong, 16, cello
August 1, 2026
Today we hear from cellist Jeffery Tong of Lisle. He’s joined by pianist Liang-yu Wang in music of Beethoven. This episode first aired on April 27, 2024. More details and a podcast are available at the original episode page.
Callia Murray, 17, viola
July 25, 2026
Callia Murray, 17, is from Vernon Hills, Illinois. She currently studies viola with Jonathan Brown, Professor of Chamber Music and Viola, at the Colburn Music Academy where she is a recipient of the Provost’s Fund Scholarship for the 2025-2026 school year. Callia is a 2025 and 2026 YoungArts Winner in the Classical Music/Viola category and a 2025 winner of the ...
Encore broadcast | Evelyn Zhang, 17, guitar
July 18, 2026
We revisit the guitar recital of Evelyn Zhang, a student of Brad Conroy. She brings music from Cuba, Venezuela, Austria, Italy, the UK and Brazil to the Fay and Daniel Levin Performance Studio. This episode first aired on September 27, 2025. For more information, visit the original episode page.
Encore broadcast | Clara Zhang, 16, piano
July 11, 2026
We hear once again from pianist Clara Zhang, playing Bach and Chopin. This episode first aired on February 17, 2024. More details and the podcast are available at the original episode page.
DePaul Symphony Orchestra and Olha Tytarenko, Violin
July 4, 2026
This week, Introductions visits the Gannon Concert Hall at DePaul University to listen in on the DePaul Symphony Orchestra’s spring concert on May 22, 2026, conducted by Francesco Milioto. We hear the cinematic Violin Concerto, Op. 35 by Erich Korngold, with violinist Olha Tytarenko. In 2019 Olha’s family moved from their native Ukraine to the United States. She studied in ...
Karen Kobayashi, 17, flute
June 27, 2026
Karen Kobayashi, 17, is a Japanese-born flutist currently based in Barrington IL. She is a recent graduate of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra’s Symphony Orchestra and the Phil and Eli Taylor Performance Academy for Young Artists at the Royal Conservatory of Music. Karen is also an alumna of the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra and the Toronto Youth Wind Orchestra. Most ...
Encore broadcast | Clark Snavely, 18, violin
June 20, 2026
We revisit the violin recital of Clark Snavely, formerly a student of Almita Vamos through the Music Institute of Chicago Academy and now a freshman at the New England Conservatory studying with Miriam Fried. He’s joined by pianist Milana Pavchinskaya in Chopin, Chausson, and Corigliano. This episode first aired on August 3, 2024. For more information, visit the original episode page.
Encore broadcast | Zarin Mehta, 16, piano and composer
June 13, 2026
We welcome a return guest, pianist and composer Zarin Mehta. In addition to music of Bach, Beethoven, and Lyapunov, Zarin presents a composition and a transcription of his own, plus the North American premiere of Augusta Read Thomas’s Amalgam. This episode was first broadcast on March 30, 2024. More details and the podcast are available at the original episode page.
Encore broadcast | Aurum Quartet
June 6, 2026
On today’s Introductions we feature a rebroadcast of the Aurum Quartet. They are violinists John Lee & Vincenzo Zuppardo, violist Kay Ito, and cellist Jocelyn Gao. This episode first aired on November 4, 2023. More details and the podcast are available at the original episode page.
Encore broadcast | Porphyrion String Quartet
May 30, 2026
On this week’s Introductions we hear a rebroadcast of a performance from Porphyrion String Quartet. They are Mingshi Xia and Sasha Varchenko, violins, Neena Agrawal, viola and Simon Updegraff, cello. This episode first aired on September 6, 2025. More details and the podcast are available at the original episode page.
Encore broadcast | Amelia Zitoun
May 23, 2026
Amelia Zitoun is in her fifth and final year in the Music Institute of Chicago Academy, commuting every week from Wisconsin. She’s joined by pianist Liang-yu Wang in music of Alfredo Piatti, Nadia Boulanger, and Johannes Brahms. This episode first aired on October 14, 2023. More details and the podcast are available at the original episode page.
Encore broadcast | Jan Vargas Nedvetsky
May 16, 2026
On this week’s Introductions we revisit a recital by cellist Jan Vargas Nedvetsky of Wilmette. This episode first aired on September 14, 2024. More details and a podcast are available at the original episode page.
Encore broadcast | The Purple Hippopotami and Trioscuro
May 9, 2026
We feature two chamber trios, one of flutes and a traditional piano trio, with students from Merit School of Music and the Music Institute of Chicago Academy. Some players have appeared on Introductions as soloists: – Sofia Villanueva was featured in the CMPI Class of 2024 episode in July 2024 – Simon Updegraff performed a live cello recital in November 2023 – Ethan Zheng ...
Encore broadcast | Esme Arias-Kim, 18, violin
May 2, 2026
We welcome a return guest, Esme Arias-Kim, who grew up in the Chicago area but has spent the last two years studying at the Colburn School in Los Angeles. She’s joined by Milana Pavchinskaya in music of Bach, Brahms, Debussy, Price, Wieniawski, and Tchaikovsky. Esme Arias-Kim, 18, recently graduated from the Colburn Music Academy as a Kohl Scholar, holding a ...
Cecilia O’Malley, violin
September 26, 2026, 11:00 am
17-year-old violinist Cecilia O’Malley was the winner of the 2026 Crain-Maling Foundation CSO Young Artists Competition. She visited WFMT this summer to record a handful of works for violin and piano. Today, we will hear her perform Debussy’s Violin Sonata as well as Lutoslawski’s Subito. Cecilia O’Malley was joined by collaborative pianist Liang-Yu Wang. About Cecilia O’Malley… Violinist Cecilia O’Malley, ...
