The South Bend Youth Symphony Performs Windborne's The Music of Queen!

The Music of Queen

Featuring Robert Boardman, conductor
MiG Ayesa, vocalist
George Cintron, guitar & vocals
Justin Avery, keyboard & vocals
Dan Clemens, bass & vocals
Powell Randolph, drums & vocals

In the history of rock music, few groups have made a bigger splash than Queen. One of the best-selling musical artists of all time, with record sales of nearly 300 million, the British group’s performance at the 1985 Live Aid concert, just two years before the death of lead singer Freddie Mercury, is considered one of the greatest shows ever staged. Relive the magic with “The Music of Queen.” Conductor Robert Boardman leads a cast of powerhouse rockers and the Summer SBYSO Orchestra in such classic songs as “nother One Bites The Dust, We Will Rock You, We Are The Champions and Bohemian Rhapsody.

About MiG Ayesa

MiG started his career in Australia in Buddy. He was then chosen to join the London cast including a Royal Variety Performance for Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. MiG’s other West End credits include We Will Rock You, Rent, Thriller Live and Seasons of Larson.

His Broadway credits include Burn the Floor and Rock of Ages, which he also joined on the 1st US National Tour and in the Philippines. Back in Australia, his credits include Grease, Cinderella, Aladdin, West Side Story, Rent, Fame, The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber, and a UK and Australian Tour of The Music of Queen: Rock and Symphonic Spectacular. He reprised the role of ‘Galileo’ for the 10th Anniversary World Arena Tour of We Will Rock You and as one of the Tenors of Rock at their resident headline show in Las Vegas and on the high seas. MiG also sailed with Rock Rhapsody, as well as headlining his own one man show MiG Rocks the Boat.

In the Philippines, MiG played ‘Robert Kincaid’ in the first international production of The Bridges of Madison County and starred with Lea Salonga and Tanya Manalang for the major concert event Curtains Up, as well as his own concert celebrating Shangri-la’s 25th Anniversary, and most recently originated the role of ‘Jamie Crimson’ in the World Premiere Production of All Out of Love.

MiG starred as ‘Joe King’ in the TV series The Ferals. His other TV credits include Fil it Up, Mission: Top Secret, Hits and Memories, The Midday Show, IMT, Carols in the Domain, It's About Time, Carols by Candlelight, People's Choice Awards, Vidiot, Good Morning Australia and Hey Hey it's Saturday as well as various commercials including a global campaign for Ray Ban.

MiG’s film credits include Queen of the Damned and Subterano. A finalist in the global hit TV show Rockstar:INXS, MiG released his self-titled debut album, through Decca/Universal and was an original cast member of Handel's Messiah Rocks: A Joyful Noise As well as releasing his 2nd album More Than Ever, MiG has also penned theme songs for various TV shows as well as writing Fill My Cup for FWD, along with his own fund raising awareness campaign for the victims of Philippine floods with United as One.
 

About conductor, Robert Boardman

The 2024-2025 SBYSO season marks Robert Boardman’s fourteenth season as Music Director and Conductor of the South Bend Youth Symphony Orchestras. He was awarded 1st place in 2024, 2018 and 2015 for The American Prize, Maestro Vytautas Marijosius Memorial Award in Orchestral Programming, for his work with the SBYSO.

Highlights from past SBYSO seasons include commissioning the world premiere saxophone concerto by Jorge Muniz, Motown Dreams for Grammy Award winning saxophonist Timothy McAllister, as well as commissions of world premieres by composers Thom Limbert, John Griffith, Jessica Carter, Andrew Osano, and Ryan Olivier. In 2015, the SBYSO gave the North American premiere of Anna Clyne's Masquerade, which premiered the year before at the BBC Proms. The SBYSO is the first youth orchestra in the world to perform Howard Shore's The Lord of the Rings Symphony in 2019, 2017 (The Fellowship of the Ring) and 2025, 2019 (The Two Towers and Return of the King).

From 2012-2018 Boardman served as frequent Cover Conductor, and Artistic Director of Live from Orchestra Hall, the free worldwide webcasts of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, where he often led pre-concert lectures and interviews. During this time, he assisted conductors Neeme Järvi, Leonard Slatkin, Fabien Gabel, Thomas Dausgaard, Hans Graf, Giancarlo Guerrero, Hannu Lintu, Andrey Boreyko, Carlos Miguel Prieto, and Nicolaj Znaider. 

In 2017, Robert led a sold out performance at Boston Symphony Hall, of the Berklee College of Music Contemporary Symphony Orchestra, Berklee Choruses, and Voices Boston with Scottish soprano Maureen McMullen honoring the lifetime achievements of Berklee alumnus, composer Howard Shore, who was in attendance. Since 2006, Boardman has been a Conductor for Howard Shore's The Lord of the Rings Symphony with CAMI Music, assisting in over 75 performances, touring both North America and Europe.

During the summers of 2010 and 2009, Robert was Assistant Conductor to Music Director Marin Alsop at the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in Santa Cruz, California. There he served as cover conductor and worked alongside dozens of composers, including Philip Glass, Anna Clyne, Aaron Jay Kernis, Mark-Anthony Turnage, as well as Pulitzer Prize winners John Adams, Jennifer Higdon, and Kevin Puts. 

In both 2017 and 2015, Robert Boardman led the Grand Central Symphony of New York City on a national tour, collaborating with India’s Bollywood celebrity singer and songwriter, Arijit Singh, and his rock band. The tour traveled through sold-out 20,000 seat arenas in the cities of Atlanta, New York, Trenton, Orlando, Chicago, Oakland, San Jose, Tampa, Los Angeles, Houston, Austin, and Dallas. 

Other highlights include assisting Michael Christie and the Phoenix Symphony in a semi-staged production of John Adams’ opera, Nixon in China. At the University of Michigan, Boardman also conducted the world premiere performances and recording of Lembit Beecher’s multi-media oratorio "And Then I Remember...", a musical documentary about the life of Beecher’s Grandmother and her escape from Estonia during WWII. Robert has conducted 24 World Premieres and over 30 orchestras, including the Interlochen Academy Arts Orchestra, Cornell University Symphony Orchestra, Ithaca College Symphony Orchestra, Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra, South Bend Symphony Orchestra, Spokane Symphony Orchestra, and Cabrillo Festival Orchestra.

Boardman studied conducting with Marin Alsop, Kurt Masur, Larry Rachleff, Harold Farberman, Lawrence Golan, Jean Reigles, Mark Hijleh, Gustav Meier, and Kenneth Kiesler. He has also participated in dozens of masterclasses, workshops and seminars with major orchestras and conductors throughout the United States. In 2010, Robert achieved Doctor of Musical Arts in Orchestral Conducting from the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance, the #1 ranked conducting program in the nation by USNEWS & World Report.