Annual Report

Dear MYAC families and friends,

Midwest Young Artists Conservatory enjoyed an exciting and successful season in 2025-26, celebrating students’ achievements and the impact music has on the lives of families, friends and communities. 

The Symphony Orchestra presented four Holiday Concerts in local malls and at Lake Geneva’s beautiful Riviera Ballroom. Featured orchestra soloists included Chicago Symphony Orchestra clarinetist John Bruce Yeh, performing John Williams’ Clarinet Concerto, along with O’Malley Concerto Competition winners Oliver Mah, performing Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto No. 1, and Callia Murray, performing Stacy Garrop’s Krakatoa. Major orchestral works this season included Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, Sergei Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet Suite, and Dmitri Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10. We are also proud that Dr. Allan Dennis, MYAC’s President and Founder, was selected to conduct the Illinois All-State Honors Orchestra in Peoria this year. 

The Jazz Program was selected by the Chicago Jazz Festival to perform as an opening ensemble on the Millennium Stage. Our featured soloist for Jazz in January was acclaimed jazz bassist Katie Ernst, and we added a pre-season Jazz Band concert in Lake Geneva’s beautiful lakeside park. 

Our Choral Program continues to improve, adjust, retool and grow as we hired a new Choral Director, Dr. Diego Pinto. Dr. Pinto also teaches in the Music Education department at Northwestern University, is from Brazil and is keen on including literature reflecting different styles of music. Everyone appreciates his professional, systemized, yet fun, approach to teaching choral music as well as his bright smile and friendly personality! 

This year, we shifted our annual collaboration with the Lang Lang Foundation from featuring young pianists as soloists with the orchestra to partnering them with MYAC chamber ensembles. Together, they performed three Holiday Soirées featuring Felix Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio No. 1 in D Minor, performed in its entirety, along with holiday carols presented by each ensemble. Two of these Soirées were performed for children and families at Lurie Children’s Hospital, bringing music and holiday cheer to patients undergoing long-term treatment.

The O’Malley Foundation National Concerto Competition attracted more than 150 live performances, evaluated by two panels of four judges representing major universities, conservatories, and professional ensembles, including Carnegie Mellon University, Carthage College, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, SUNY Fredonia, and the University of Notre Dame. 

The Chicago Chamber Music Competition also saw strong participation, with 26 ensembles and 103 students performing for distinguished judges representing strings, winds, and piano disciplines from Carnegie Mellon University, Lawrence University, the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, and the University of Iowa. 

MYAC continues to engage some of the nation’s most accomplished musicians, educators, performers, coaches, and clinicians to work with our students each week. In addition to our outstanding regular faculty, we hosted 55 guest artists, masterclass instructors, competition judges, festival faculty members, and guest conductors who provided exceptional instruction, coaching, and mentorship to our students and families. 

Through all of this, MYAC remains financially strong and stable, once again demonstrating exceptional leadership and a steadfast commitment to our mission: building a home with the power of music to enrich the lives of our students and their communities. We concluded the year with a positive bottom line. Total operating expenses were $1,419,907, supported by a healthy revenue mix of 61% earned income and 39% contributed revenue. 

While these numbers show our growth, the real impact lies in the personal development of our students. Our families continually affirm the lifelong values that MYAC instills, which are truly priceless: work ethic, responsibility, and respect. 

Allan Dennis (Founder & President)
Martha Arroyo (Chairman of the Board)