The Boynton Regional Symphony Orchestra (BRSO) is an intergenerational orchestra dedicated to bringing classical symphonic music to the Palm Beach County community. While we still are encouraging musicians to join our growing roster, current player backgrounds include devoted and experienced amateurs, extremely talented students from our local schools, and musicians who have retired from major symphony orchestras.

We are enlarging the orchestra as Beethoven did, adding instruments and balancing the sections to better enable us to perform more of the great works of musical literature derived from the 18th century through the present time.

 

Barry Volkman | Music Director

Barry Volkman began conducting while in New York City's High School of Music and Art, attaining his Bachelor's and Master's degrees from the Manhattan School of Music. Awarded scholarships at Tanglewood, he studied with Leonard Bernstein, Lukas Foss, Hugh Ross and Seymour Lipkin. After sharpening his skills at the Paris Conservatory, he entered the first Pan-American Competition for Conductors in Mexico City. Despite being the only entrant without his own orchestra, Volkman finished among the top ten.

Next came study under the eminent Pierre Monteux, as classmate of such well-known conductors as Erich Kunzel and Harry Ellis Dickson. Further pursuing his studies at Columbia University, he was given the honor of conducting the U.S. premier of the Haydn Symphony #75 with the Columbia University Symphony Orchestra.

In his career Volkman has also conducted for the La Puma Opera Co, has been Music Director for many school productions of Broadway shows and has guest conducted the Community Orchestra of the Portland (ME) Symphony, among others. He is a member of the American Symphony Orchestra League and the Conductors Guild.

Locally, besides conducting the Florida Mandolin Orchestra, Maestro Volkman was the founding conductor of the Hallandale Symphonic Pops, growing the orchestra from 30 to 65 musicians and the audience from 300 to 1,145, with sold-out subscriptions for each succeeding year.