Hendersonville Symphony
Youth orchestras
Hendersonville Symphony Youth Orchestra:
The Hendersonville Symphony Youth Orchestra is an advanced symphonic ensemble for strings, winds, brass, and percussion with 4+ years of playing experience. HSYO is conducted by Dr Teodora Peeva and performs intermediate and advanced repertoire. Rehearsals are Mondays from September through May from 6:00 - 8:00 pm in the Bo Thomas Auditorium of Blue Ridge Community College.
HSYO Allegro Ensemble:
The HSYO Allegro Ensemble is an intermediate level string orchestra designed to foster musical growth and ensemble skills for players with 2-4 years of playing experience. Allegro is conducted by Jennie Quinn and rehearses on Monday evenings from 5:30 - 7:00 on Mondays at Flat Rock Middle School.
The Hendersonville Symphony Youth Orchestra Programs provide symphonic orchestra coaching and performance opportunities for accomplished students at middle school level and up to age 21. Students are accepted by audition only. For the 2025-2026 season (September – May), the HSYO Programs will offer students more opportunity than ever before, focused coaching and ensemble work. Students enrolled in the Youth Orchestra programs will benefit from professional coaching to advance skills and technique as they prepare for a full orchestra performance at the year end.
For questions, please contact Elizabeth Terry, the Manager & Music Director of the HSYO, at Elizabeth@hendersonvillesymphony.org or (828) 697-5884.
HSYO Manager, Elizabeth Terry
Elizabeth Terry has over 20 years of experience working with middle and high school students in a variety of settings including chamber groups, youth orchestras, and all-county orchestras. Elizabeth currently serves as the Music Director of the Hendersonville Symphony Youth Orchestra and the Orchestra Director for Koontz Intermediate, Valley Springs Middle, and TC Roberson High Schools in Asheville, NC. Prior roles include orchestra director for Flat Rock Middle School and East Henderson High School and conductor for the Asheville Symphony Youth Orchestra's prelude and chamber ensembles. Her passion for music began in a 5th-grade classroom, where she first learned to play the violin, sparking a lifelong journey in music education and performance. Now, Elizabeth is dedicated to helping students develop their skills and confidence through music education. Elizabeth is an active performer, and has performed on violin with the Hendersonville Symphony, Brevard Philharmonic, Asheville Lyric Opera, Spartanburg Philharmonic, Asheville Choral Society, and Café Strings Quartet, among others in the Western North Carolina area. She holds a BA in Music from UNC Asheville and a Master of Music Education from UNC Greensboro, as well as National Board Certification in Early Adolescence Through Young Adulthood Music. Elizabeth currently acts as the NCMEA Western Regional Orchestra Auditions chair and founded the Buncombe County Schools Summer Bash Strings Camp.
Conductor,
Dr Teodora Peeva
Teodora Peeva began her musical journey as viola student at age 10 and attended the National Music High School in Sofia, Bulgaria before moving to the United States. She holds a BM from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Teodora was a graduate teaching assistant at Louisiana State University where she earned a Master and Doctorate degrees in viola performance.
She has over 15 years of experience working with young musicians as a violin and viola instructor, a chamber music coach and orchestra teacher. She is currently the Orchestra Director at North Windy Ridge Intermediate, North Buncombe Middle, and North Buncombe High Schools in Asheville, NC. Prior to teaching in Buncombe County, she was an orchestra director at East Baton Rouge Parish Schools in Louisiana and a member of the Baton Rouge Symphony, the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra, and the Louisiana Sinfonietta.
Jennie Quinn
Jennie Quinn is currently the Orchestra Director at Flat Rock Middle School and East Henderson High School in Flat Rock, North Carolina. She began her musical journey at the age of nine when she started playing the violin under the direction of Mrs. Jane Hinkins in St.Clair Shores, MI.
Mrs. Quinn holds a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Eastern Michigan University where she performed with the EMUSO under the direction of Mr. Kevin Miller. She studied violin in the studio of Mr. Daniel Foster and viola in the studio of Ms. Eva Stern. She also holds a Master’s of Executive School Leadership from Gardner-Webb University and is a National Board Certified Teacher.
Prior to joining the Henderson County Public Schools in 2017, Mrs. Quinn served as Orchestra Director for Shelby Intermediate and Shelby Middle Schools in Cleveland County, North Carolina for 12 years. Mrs. Quinn has served as Chair of the Junior Western Regional Orchestra Auditions, Event Chair and Site Host of the Western Regional Music Performance Adjudication, and as an All-County clinician. Mrs. Quinn has also been a mentor to multiple beginning teachers during her career.
