Free String Fiesta Concert at HHS on Sunday
March 10, 2025
Huntington UFSD student-musicians are the best! Don’t take anyone’s word for it, come and listen to them perform in concert. Concerts in December and February were very well attended and another opportunity awaits.
The Huntington UFSD orchestra program will present a free concert on Saturday. March 15 in the Huntington High School auditorium at 1:30 p.m. Billed as a “string fiesta,” this year’s concert theme is “The 90’s Are Back!”
Huntington UFSD orchestra students in grades 9-12 will perform popular music from the 1990’s. Organizers promise that it is going to be fun for folks of all ages.
The Huntington High School orchestra organization is led by a talented and altogether dynamic set of musicians in Kyra Scott (president), Deandre Simmons (vice president), Anne Tyrrell (treasurer), Toni Reyes-Sorto (secretary), Josephine Sullivan (historian/social media) and Rachel Huth (librarian). Faculty member James DiMeglio directs the high school orchestra.
“The Huntington UFSD orchestra program has provided me a great opportunity to grow my cello performance,” Toni Reyes-Sorto said. “I’m proud to see how far I have come in this program, from late fifth grade to now as a senior, with all the technical skills and artistic expression that I have gained over the years. I want to express my gratitude to Mr. [James] DiMeglio for the immense motivation he provides to me. One example is preparing me for the New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA) for the first time ever.”
Huntington High School’s orchestra program was first organized in the 1920s, largely coinciding with the appointment of music teacher James Cloyd Doty in 1924. It picked up steam following the construction of an auditorium with a stage during a larger extension project in 1926/27.
As president of the high school orchestra, I am extremely proud to work alongside Mr. DiMeglio,” Kyra Scott said. “We just completed our concert with the Long Island Symphonic Pops and it was amazing!”
Mr. Doty, the high school orchestra’s founder grew up in Bedford, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Oberlin College in Ohio and went on to study music at New York University. During World War I, he served in the US Army in France. He lived in Huntington for more than 55 years and taught in Huntington UFSD for more than 40 years, retiring in 1966. He also served as director of music for 20 years. He was also a founder of the Huntington men’s chorus and a member of the Huntington Symphony Orchestra.
Mr. Doty was a choir director for several local churches and he continued to give private violin lessons after his retirement. He passed away on October 3, 1978 at Huntington Hospital. He is buried in Bedford Rural Cemetery in Bedford, PA.
