About the Orchestra
The Bach Society Orchestra, Harvard's premier undergraduate chamber orchestra, is devoted to the study and performance of works for smaller orchestras, from intimate chamber pieces to mid-sized symphonies, taken from a wide range of historical periods. Each season includes four performances throughout the year, often including student and professional collaborations with guest soloists or Harvard choral groups.
Popularly known as BachSoc, the Bach Society Orchestra is staffed, managed, and conducted entirely
by students. Each year, the members of the orchestra select a student, always an undergraduate, to
be their conductor for the following year. In turn, at the beginning of the new year the inaugurated
conductor reauditions every member of the orchestra, ensuring that the quality of the orchestra
remains high. BachSoc's rehearsals and concerts provide a refreshingly egalitarian ethos combined
with the highest standards of musical performance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Music Director
Reuben Stern '20, Music Director
Reuben Stern is a Mathematics concentrator living in Dunster House. An experienced bassoonist, Reuben has performed dozens of concerts in the Greater Boston area with the Boston Youth Symphony, Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra, and contemporary music ensemble Alea III. Additionally, he has toured domestically and internationally as a member of the 2014 and 2016 iterations of the National Youth Orchestra of the USA, under the direction of David Robertson, Christoph Eschenbach, and Valery Gergiev. Outside of music, Reuben enjoys philosophy, creative writing, and calligraphy, and at one point in his life aspired to be a close-up magician. He is thrilled to be working with the Bach Society orchestra for the '19 – '20 season!
More about ReubenOur Officers
- Jacquelyn Ho '20, jacquelyn_ho [at] college.harvard.edu Production
- Esther Plotnick '21, eplotnick [at] college.harvard.edu Finance
- Claire Millett '21, clairemillett [at] college.harvard.edu External Relations
- Matthew Parsons '20, matthew_parsons [at] college.harvard.edu Internal Relations
- Beverly Ge '20, bge1 [at] college.harvard.edu Internal Relations
- Johanna Alstott '22, jalstott [at] college.harvard.edu Librarian, & Stage Manager
- Matt Finlayson '21, matthewfinlayson [at] college.harvard.edu Competitions Coordinator
- Christie Hung '22, hungc [at] college.harvard.edu Archivist, & Attendance Chair
- Maggie Chen '22, maggiechen [at] college.harvard.edu Treasurer
- Nick Lee '21, nicholaslee [at] college.harvard.edu Ticketmaster
- Justin Tseng '22, justintseng [at] college.harvard.edu Merchandise
- Zev Nicolai-Scanio '22, znicolaiscanio [at] college.harvard.edu Web
- Melissa Yamada '21, melissayamada [at] college.harvard.edu Co-Publicity
- Paige Lee '22, paigelee [at] college.harvard.edu Co-Publicity
- April Chen '22, aprilchen [at] college.harvard.edu Co-Publicity
- Chris Sun '21, c_sun [at] college.harvard.edu Co-Design
- Nina Chung '22, ninachung [at] college.harvard.edu Co-Design
- David Ma '22, david_ma [at] college.harvard.edu Alumni, & Development
- Brandon Gong '22, brandongong [at] college.harvard.edu Co-Social
- Kathy Enright '22, kenright [at] college.harvard.edu Co-Social
Our Musicians
Conductors
- Reuben Stern '20, Music Director
- Ryan Zhang '21, Associate Conductor
Violin
- Beverly Ge '20
- Jacquelyn Ho '20
- Christie Hung '22
- Raymond Jow '22
- Joyce Lu '21
- David Ma '22
- Claire Millett '21
- Esther Plotnick '21
- Simeon Radev '22
- Jasper Schoff '22
- Melissa Yamada '21
- Phelan Yu '19
- JingJing Zhu '19
Viola
- Matthew Finlayson '20
- Anna Gibbs '19
- Jarod Stone '21
- Amy Zhou '21
- Anthony Zhu '22
Cello
- Moritz Bonacker, Visiting Undergraduate
- Annabelle Finlayson '21
- Nicholas Lee '21
- Soren Nyhus '22
- Chris Sun '21
- Justin Tseng '22
- Matt Ybarra '20
Flute & Piccolo
- Isabel Bernhard '20
- Eunice Lee '19
- Paige Lee '22
Oboe
- Johanna Alstott '22
- Brandon Gong '22
- Annabelle Lee '21
Clarinet
- Maggie Chen '22
- Brennan Dizdar '19
- Matthew Parsons '20
Bassoon
- Paul Georgoulis ‘21
French Horn
- Katherine Enright '22
- Alex Kelser '19
- Zev Nicolai-Scanio '22
Trumpet
- Henry Bosch '22
- Nina Chung '22
Trombone
- Trevor Bishai '21
- Johnathan Clark '22
Orchestral Piano
- April Chen '22
