Holiday Pops 2025

On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Ashland Symphony Orchestra, welcome to our 56th season! I feel such warmth and pride that our small town supports a professional symphony orchestra. The ASO is truly a gem of our community, sharing the joy of orchestral music with people of all ages and backgrounds. Our Grammy-award winning Music Director and Conductor Michael Repper and the talented professional musicians of the ASO have created another incredible season for your enjoyment. We are eager for you to hear the beautiful, powerful, soul-filling music that they have prepared for you. Meanwhile, our Executive Director Martha Buckner continues to provide innovative opportunities, such as the ASO Fan Club, that support the development of young musicians throughout Ashland County and beyond. I am deeply thankful to our musicians, staff, board members, and supporters for making this season possible. And to our patrons, please know that your presence at ASO performances means so much! Whether you are joining us for a pops concert, a concert in our Saturday night subscription series, or one of our concerts presented especially for young people, your attendance lifts up the ASO. Thank you for choosing to spend your time with us!

Diane Bonfiglio, Ph.D.
President, ASO Board of Directors

Dear Friends,

Welcome to the Ashland Symphony Orchestra’s 2025–2026 season! It is a joy and an honor to continue this musical journey with you as your Music Director.

This year, we invite you to come aboard for a season of imagination, discovery, and connection—a musical journey that takes flight and carries us to every corner of the world. Like a great plane ride full of wonder and anticipation, each concert is a stop on a global adventure. You’ll hear the brilliance of Beethoven, the soul of Coleridge-Taylor, the energy of Jessie Montgomery, the lyricism of Schubert, the fervor of Borodin, and so much more. These works, drawn from across time and cultures, remind us that music is a language that speaks to the heart.

One of the highlights of our season is a groundbreaking spring concert that reflects our deep commitment to community and innovation. In partnership with Goldberry’s Coffee, we’ll combine music with global storytelling and curated coffee tastings—an immersive, sensory celebration that brings people together in a truly unique way. This collaboration is one of many ways we continue to grow as a vibrant cultural hub in Ashland and beyond.

Whether you’ve been with us for years or are joining us for the first time, your presence is what gives our music life. Thank you for supporting live orchestral music and for being a vital part of our ASO family.

I look forward to sharing the season with you—and to welcoming you on this musical adventure.

With warmest regards,
Michael Repper
Music Director
Ashland Symphony Orchestra

Executive Director’s Message

I am thrilled to have you join us on our ‘round the world tour of classical music! From the old masters to the new trailblazing composers, the musicians of the ASO will bring the pieces to life.

Hanna Strickland, ASO Administrative Assistant, and I had great fun creating the theme of “Your Passport to Great Music” and naming the concerts, and we hope you enjoy the journey.

The $100,000 challenge set forth by Bob and Jan Archer was met and they have established a new $1 million endowment to benefit the ASO. My challenge to you is to invite friends and family to each of the concerts this season.

Sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight!

Martha Buckner, Executive Director

Conductor Michael Repper’s work spans six continents. In 2023, he became the youngest North American conductor to win a Grammy® Award in Best Orchestral Performance. He has an international reputation for engaging and exciting audiences of all spectrums, and for promoting new and diverse musical talents.

Repper is currently the Music Director of the Ashland Symphony Orchestra, Mid-Atlantic Symphony Orchestra, and the Northern Neck Orchestra of Virginia.  He recently concluded tenures as Music Director of the New York Youth Symphony at Carnegie Hall, and as Principal Conductor of Sinfonía por el Perú, the elite youth orchestras and choruses of one of South America’s most versatile social impact music programs. Repper was the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Conducting Fellow for two seasons, and he served as the BSO’s New Music Consultant. Recognizing his success at these ensembles, and his growing profile as a guest conductor all over the world, Repper was awarded a Solti Foundation US Career Assistance Award in 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023.

His album with the New York Youth Symphony, which features debut recordings of works by Florence Price, Jessie Montgomery, and Valerie Coleman, achieved widespread critical acclaim, reached #1 on the Billboard Chart, and won a Grammy® Award, marking the first time a youth orchestra achieved this milestone.

Repper has collaborated on large-scale productions of symphonic and theatrical works with the Weill Music Institute at Carnegie Hall, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Ravinia Festival, Peabody Institute of Music, and the New School of Music, among others. An avid pianist, he regularly performs as a soloist alongside his orchestras.

​Alongside the standard repertoire, Repper is especially invested in programming new music and showcasing fresh talent. His ensembles have performed dozens of world premieres and pursued innovative commissions, as well as a variety of Carnegie Hall premieres from established and emerging composers.

His experience with choruses has been recognized with significant positions, including his tenure as the Music Director at the Baltimore Basilica, the first Catholic Cathedral in the United States. Internationally, Repper has performed with highly regarded ensembles and in the world’s greatest venues, including the São Paulo Symphony, and at the Palau de la Musica in Barcelona, Carnegie Hall, and others.

His discography includes the aforementioned album of music with the New York Youth Symphony, alongside an album with the Grammy®-Nominated Metropolis Ensemble and Grammy®-Winning Brooklyn Youth Chorus (“Musical America”), and several with the Peabody Institute as an Assistant Conductor. With the New York Youth Symphony during the Coronavirus pandemic, he was one of the first to pioneer the practice of distanced orchestral performance videos, and he made two performance appearances on CNN, the final one with Platinum-Artist Billy Ray Cyrus.

Repper complements his work with professional orchestras with a firm commitment to education, and travels worldwide to work with ensembles of young musicians. As Artistic Director of the Chamber Music Society of Maryland, he ushered in a slate of innovative educational programming, such as the Reinecke Youth Chamber Music Scholarship and Fellowship Program. He has conducted several masterclasses for orchestras from all over the United States on behalf of the New York Philharmonic, and conducts side-by-side and educational concerts with major orchestras, including the Baltimore Symphony, the Colorado Symphony, and the Sarasota Orchestra.
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Repper’s most influential conducting mentors are Marin Alsop and the late Gustav Meier. He believes that a conductor’s main role is to connect people and to use performance as a vehicle for positive change. He aims to promote a diverse and inclusive future for the arts, and to pay forward the passion for community that his mentors demonstrated to him.

Silent Night

Silent night! Holy night! All is calm, all is bright. Round yon Virgin Mother and Child, Holy Infant so tender and mild, Sleep in heavenly peace! Sleep in heavenly peace!

Silent night! Holy night! Shepherds quake at the sight; Glories stream from heaven afar, Heav’nly hosts sing ‘Alleluia! Christ the Savior is born! Christ the Savior is born!

Silent night! Holy night! Son of God, love’s pure light, Radiant beams from thy holy face With the dawn of redeeming grace, Jesus, Lord, at thy birth! Jesus, Lord, at the birth!

A Holiday Sing-Along

Deck the Halls 

Deck the halls with boughs of holly, Fa la la la la la la la la.

‘Tis the season to be jolly, Fa la la la la la la la la.

Don we now our gay apparel, Fa la la la la la la la la.

Troll the ancient Yuletide carol, Fa la la la la la la la la.

Fast away the old year passes, Fa la la la la la la la la.

Hail the new ye lads and lasses, Fa la la la la la la la la.

Sing we now with joyous pleasure, Fa la la la la la la la la.

Heedless of the wind and weather, Fa la la la la la la la la.

Jingle Bells

Dashing through the snow, in a one-horse open sleigh,

O’er the fields we go laughing all the way,

Bells on Bob-tail ring, making spirits bright;

What fun it is to ride and sing a sleighing song tonight!

Oh, Jingle bells! Jingle bells! Jingle all the way!

Oh, what fun it is to ride in a one-horse open sleigh!

O Christmas Tree 

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,

How lovely are your branches.

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,

How lovely are your branches.

Not only green in summer’s glow,

But ever green ‘mid winter snow,

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,

How lovely are your branches.

We Wish You a Merry Christmas 

We wish you a Merry Christmas,

We wish you a Merry Christmas,

We wish you a Merry Christmas

And a Happy New Year!

Glad tidings we bring, to you and your kin,

Glad tidings for Christmas

And a Happy New Year!

We wish you a Merry Christmas,

We wish you a Merry Christmas,

We wish you a Merry Christmas

And a Happy New Year!

Thank you for your cooperation.

In 1997, Bob and Jan Archer established the first donor fund through the Ashland County Community Foundation to benefit the Ashland Symphony Orchestra. The ASO then partnered with the ACCF in 1999 and created the “Ashland Symphony Orchestra Fund in Memorium of James E. Thomas”. Since then, three new agency funds and fourteen additional donor advised or designated funds have been established! The Ashland County Community Foundation can assist you in creating a fund to benefit the Ashland Symphony Orchestra now or as part of your estate plan. For more information, call the Foundation at 419-281-4733.

Donations may be made to existing endowments at any time. Contact the Foundation for more information www.ashlandforgood.org.

*To contribute to these funds, please send donation to Ashland Symphony Orchestra, 401 College Ave., Ashland, OH 44805.

The Ashland Symphony Orchestra is thankful for the following funds:

Robert M. & Janet L. Archer Fund est. 1997 and 2025

Ashland Symphony Orchestra Fund in Memorium of James E. Thomas est. 1999*

ASO Podium Endowment Fund in Honor of Maestro Arie Lipsky est. 2018*

ASO Harold Weller Music Education Endowment Fund est. 2019*
gift from Nick & Edna Weller Charities: Harold & Betsy Weller and Thomas Weller

ASO Rev. John H. Landrum Memorial Endowed Chair for Flute 2 est. 2020*
gift from Marybelle H. Landrum

Ashland Symphony Orchestra est. 2000

Mary M. Case Memorial Fund est. 2005

Ann K. Guthrie Fund est. 2009

Arie Lipsky Honorary Endowment Fund est. 2010

Kopp Family Fund est. 2011

Dr. Alvin W. Garrett Fund est. 2017

William and Marlene Rose Fund est. 2017

J. Robert and Ruth L. Tipton Fund est. 2017

Dr. JoAnn Ford Watson Fund est. 2017

Dr. Beverly Bixler Fund est. 2018

Billy Harris Charitable Fund est. 2018

Lawrence and Catherine Hiner Endowed Chair for Percussion of the ASO Fund est. 2020

John R. Donelson for the benefit of the ASO est. 2021

Elizabeth Pastor Fund for the benefit of the ASO est. 2021

F. Dean and Joan Bartosic Family Fund for the benefit of the ASO est. 2023

Julia A. Wright Fund for the benefit of the ASO est. 2025

Martha Landrum Buckner Fund for the benefit of the ASO est. 2025