After seeing several years of growth, the McKinney Philharmonic Orchestra now looks to further its reach and standing within the community.

The McKinney Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) has been under the leadership of its artistic director, Jason Lim, who launched the orchestra in the Denton area in 2012 before moving it to Collin County a year later.

“I did some research, and McKinney had a good grant program,” Lim told Community Impact.

Grants, donations, sponsorships, and ticket sales currently fund MPO’s activities, which continue to grow in scope.

Currently, MPO comprises 60 skilled professional musicians with mastery of various instruments ranging from strings to woodwinds. The 2023-2024 season will be its biggest yet, with seven concerts, two chamber concerts, and three recitals scheduled.

Looking to the future, Lim said he wants to add 20 new members to the orchestra and a few more concerts to its seasonal repertoire.

“I’d like this orchestra to be one of the leading orchestras in this region,” Lim explained, per Community Impact.

A performance on September 30 called “A Night of Musical Masterpieces: Mozart’s Final Work” focused on classical pieces, but the upcoming “Family Halloween Concert” will center around pop music and Disney favorites.

Tickets for this spooky performance on October 28 can be found here.

“It’s important for the orchestra to have those different [concert] series so that we engage all different kinds of people, not just classical music lovers,” Lim said, according to Community Impact.

Another way Lim has sought to branch out into the community has been through MPO’s youth initiatives. In 2017, he created the Greater North Texas Youth Orchestra, which now has over 130 young musicians playing. The youth orchestra is split into three skill levels and gives kids the opportunity to partake in a mentorship program with musicians from MPO.

“We’re not just a musical organization, we’re a community organization that connects through music,” explained Liz Strand Cimini, MPO’s board president, per Community Impact.

Other performances in store for the season include:

  • Recital concert series featuring ​Yulia Petkevich on the violin on November 11.
  • Sixth Annual All-Star Christmas Concert on December 2.
  • Chamber Music Series’ Winter Concert on February 3.
  • A Tribute to Ella Fitzgerald featuring Tatiana Ladymay Mayfield on March 2.
  • The Music of John Williams, the composer behind the epic soundtrack of the film Jurassic Park, on May 4.
  • Recital concert series featuring​ Emmanuel Kwok on the cello with an art exhibit from the Arts & Music Guild of McKinney on May 10-11.
  • Gustav Holst: The Planets performed side-by-side with the Greater North Texas Youth Orchestra on May 25.

Tickets cost between $10 and $15 per show, with season ticket package deals starting at $99.