Audience Symphony Orchestra – Full Article

December 2025

Aidan, who is in his third season as a double bass player with SLO Symphony, learned of the concert from a colleague at UCLA where he is pursuing his Masters of Music in Double Bass Performance. 

“I’m a long-time fan of Jacob and his music,” he said. “Any opportunity to connect with other musicians from around the world at this level is an opportunity I want to be a part of.”

Once Aidan and Emily submitted their auditions, there was a two-month wait before they received their invitation to play – a thrilling moment for both.

The 62 musicians selected for the Audience Symphony Orchestra had approximately two weeks to prepare for the concert. They practiced independently for most of that time, then came together for a rehearsal the day prior to the concert. It was held at San Francisco Conservatory, which is both Aidan’s and Emily’s alma mater.

The orchestra rehearsed with conductor Suzie Collier, who is Jacob’s mother. Aidan shared a pivotal moment when Suzie asked the orchestra to select a note in F Major and play it according to how they were feeling at the moment. “Somehow after a moment of group noodling, we formed a musical mass,” he said. “We were all communicating together in that moment.”

From that point on, a connection was forged between these newly-assembled musicians. It continued even after the rehearsal, when a group of around 20 gathered in the courtyard of a local wine bar. “After a few drinks, someone took out a violin and suddenly a band formed,” remembered Aidan. “People called out jazz standards and without hesitation, music was made.” Emily noted that the resourceful musicians used tabletops and forks as percussion instruments.

One final rehearsal took place on the day of the concert. It was a ticketed soundcheck with Jacob and Suzie, but a surprise guest made an appearance; singer, songwriter and conductor Bobby McFerrin conducted the orchestra for one song.

The program at the main event included pieces ranging from Mozart’s Symphony No. 29 to Jacob’s own compositions. The performance was “electric, uplifting, and emotional,” according to Emily. “It surpassed every expectation I had of this experience. It is so rare to be on stage with an orchestra where everybody is on the same wavelength- in mind, body, spirit, musicality. It was like being in a complete flow state.”

Aidan agreed, calling the show “truly magical. The feeling of sharing that level of music making was like soaring over a sea of harmonies, free to pluck a melody out at will.”

Emily stayed after the show to meet Jacob, noting that he was “very gracious as I commented on the deep connection he seemingly has with his mom on stage, which he described as being like a telepathic connection.”

Emily took away several lessons from the experience, that she hopes to apply to her role as a player and teacher of music. Especially compelling to her was the way Jacob and Suzie encouraged expression without limitations, “as if mistakes could be safely made and even contribute positively to the end result.  Which, as a violinist steeped in classical music culture, is kind of a mind-blowing concept,” she said. “Suzie also often referred to the ‘moment’ as being ‘there,’ we just had to grasp it.  There was a lot of mindfulness in her approach to conducting.”

Emily was also grateful for the opportunity to connect with people she had not seen in many years, including another violinist she had gone on a youth symphony tour with 25 years prior.

Aidan’s takeaway from the evening was “realizing how much camaraderie there was in the world. As classical musicians we spend an untold number of hours alone in the practice room, but there was something about the high level of music making that night that made me realize how happy I was to be a part of a team creating something bigger than myself,” he said. “I would do this again in a heartbeat.”