“Bach to Flint” Concert Brings Violin Virtuosos Back to Their Roots
Two Flint School of Performing Arts (FSPA) alumni, Drs. Kirsten Yon and Ernest Salem, will be returning to their first musical home for a special workshop and performance on Oct. 1 and 3. “Both are strong teachers, very well-liked and well-respected in their field,” said Alesia Byrd Johnson, a FIM legacy in her own right, who knew both visiting musicians when they were students at FSPA.
Dr. Kirsten Yon, professor of violin and chair of the string division at the University of Houston Moores School of Music, began violin instruction at just 4 years old with current FSPA Director, Davin Pierson Torre. By age 7, Yon was playing Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 3, the first clue for Torre and her parents that she was a virtuoso in the making. Yon has since taught and performed all over the world and founded a number of renowned international chamber ensembles as well as a pedagogical outreach program in Honduras.
Dr. Ernest Salem got his start at FSPA before Yon and left a lasting impression. “He’s a serious guy, but very funny. I think the kids will really appreciate him,” said Byrd Johnson, who grew up with Salem, sitting next to him in FYSO and during their undergraduate program at Michigan State University. They also carpooled from East Lansing to their gigs with the Flint Symphony Orchestra (FSO), where Salem played for five years, and Byrd Johnson, daughter of longtime FSO conductor William Byrd, has played ever since.
Now a professor of music at California State University, Fullerton, Dr. Salem has come a long way since his days in FYSO. In addition to teaching, Salem has a lengthy performance resume, including a number of freelance performances in the Los Angeles area, and he stays busy giving recitals across the United States, Europe and South America.
During their travels as performers, Yon and Salem first met as new colleagues. After a brief conversation, the two realized they had the same roots in Flint, and more specifically at the Flint Institute of Music. And in May 2024, the two accomplished alumni approached Torre about giving back to the music program that had laid the foundation for their individual successes.
“The Flint Institute of Music was very important in my training, and my experiences in the youth symphony and the Flint Symphony helped me build a good foundation,” said Salem, whose parents didn’t have any experience in music. “I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing today without that exposure. It was a whole different world for me.”
On Oct. 1, Salem and Yon will contribute to that exposure for the current generation of FYSO musicians as they present a workshop in the Anderson Room of Dort Music Center from 4 – 6 pm. Yon will offer a violin masterclass and Salem will give a special presentation on bow arm technique. Though the workshop will focus on violin technique, all young musicians are welcome – and encouraged – to attend.
Afterward, the visiting violinists will rehearse Bach’s beloved Concerto for Two Violins with FYSO, in preparation for a public concert on Thurs., Oct. 3. The concert, which is free and open to the public, will take place at 7 pm in MacArthur Recital Hall and feature several violin duos performed by Yon and Salem, concluding with the Bach “Double Violin Concerto.” Drs. Yon and Salem will make themselves available after the concert to meet with students and audience members who will all have an opportunity to draw from their wealth of performance experience.
“I really want to encourage students who are now in the Flint Youth Symphony that they can have big dreams,” said Byrd Johnson of her hopes for the alumni workshop and concert experience. “I knew both Kirsten and Ernie when they were young and they were both hard workers, loved music and practiced all the time. I want these students to know if they work hard, they can be just like them.”