Perfect for families and the young at heart, The British Are Coming is a lively, daytime concert designed to delight and inspire. With narrator David Johnson as your guide, Britten’s Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra introduces each orchestral section in turn, building to a thrilling finale. It’s an engaging, accessible way to experience the orchestra up close—fun, interactive, and easy on the wallet.

12:30pm Sensory Friendly Children’s Music Fair
1:00pm Children’s Music Fair
2:00pm Concert

Benjamin Britten
A Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra

Total Runtime: 50 minutes

GUEST CONDUCTOR

Sebastian Serrano-Ayala

Recognized for his inclusive leadership, international reach, and innovative, fresh programming, Colombian-born conductor Sebastián Serrano-Ayala has led professional and student orchestras across the U.S., Latin America, the Philippines, and the Netherlands, blending cultural perspective with artistic excellence.

He is an active conductor and guest artist, having led the Saratoga Orchestra and Skagit Symphony, and held fellowships with Symphony Tacoma, the National Orchestral Institute, the Allentown Symphony Orchestra, Cabrillo Festival, and the Mostly Modern Festival. He has premiered and recorded new works with the American Modern Ensemble in New York, and has served as cover conductor for the Seattle Youth Symphony and Yakima Symphony Orchestra.

Serrano-Ayala has also appeared with prominent ensembles through international competitions and festivals, conducting the Royal Military Chapel "Johan Willem Friso" at the Dutch International Festival BLOW, The United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own” in Washington, DC, and the Denver Philharmonic as a finalist in their international conducting competition. He was a semi-finalist at the World Music Contest (WMC) Conductors Competition, where he led the Marinierskapel der Koninklijke Marine, Blazerensemble Helicon, and the Royal Symphonic Band of the Belgian Air Force.

A champion of contemporary and Latin American repertoire, his recent concerts have featured works by Anna Clyne, Grażyna Bacewicz, Victor Agudelo, Sérgio Azevedo, and Adolfo Mejía, performed alongside symphonic staples by Mozart, Ravel, Bartók, and Dvořák. Serrano-Ayala has conducted numerous world and U.S. premieres, including Sérgio Azevedo’s Double Concerto, Florence Maunders’ Badder Gyrations (American premiere), Randall Smith’s Suite Humana, Noah Hertzman’s No Strings Attached, Bradley Kirkendall’s Fallingmere, and Huijuan Ling’s Septa Thresholds. These performances reflect his commitment to amplifying new voices and broadening the orchestral repertoire. In 2025, he received third place in The American Prize in Orchestral Performance, recognizing excellence in artistic programming and performance.

He was appointed Director of Orchestras and Assistant Professor of Practice in Orchestral Conducting at the University of the Pacific Conservatory of Music in 2025, where he leads the Pacific Orchestras and teaches conducting. Prior to this, he served as Director of Orchestral Studies at the University of New Mexico, where he conducted UNM Symphony Orchestra and Sinfonia, taught graduate-level conducting, and redesigned the orchestralUpdated 11 | 25curriculum to center student artistry and diverse repertoire. At UNM, he collaborated on guest residencies with conductors Michael Sanderling, Colonel Jim Keene, composer Sérgio Azevedo, and soloists including Falko Steinbach, Cármelo de los Santos, Christoph Wagner, Kim Fredenburgh and Kevin Vignau. He frequently works with honor ensembles and educational programs across California, Washington, and New Mexico.

He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in Wind and Orchestral Conducting from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM), a Master of Music from Andrews University, and additional music education degrees from the Adventist University of Colombia and the Philippines. He has studied under Marin Alsop, Mei-Ann Chen, Cristian Măcelaru, JoAnn Falletta, Diane Wittry, Sarah Ioannides, Ankush Kumar Bahl, Mark Heron and others, with mentorship from Anna Edwards, Terence Milligan, and Kevin Holzman.

NARRATOR

David Johnson

Skagitonians may recognize the voice of our narrator, David Johnson, from his 15 years as a volunteer interviewer on KSVR-FM’s “Skagit Talks” broadcasts. Or, you might recognize his face from the several years he spent as part of the year-round staff of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, helping to promote one of the largest festivals in the country, as the Sponsorship Coordinator for several years.

Then again, you might have seen him as a Master of Ceremonies or Auctioneer at one of dozens of non-profit fund-raising events he’s regularly hosted since he moved to our region in 2009. Regardless, we’re happy he’s been part of the Skagit Symphony family as a member of our Development Committee as well as co-host with Music Director Dr. Michael Wheatley on the KSVR-FM series, “Symphony 101,” while having been a subscriber along with his wife, Cheri Whitlock-Johnson, for several years.

Prior to his time in the Skagit Valley, David enjoyed a 30-year career in student affairs administration at colleges and universities in four states beginning with Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, where he is also an alumnus, and ending with Cal Poly, Pomona, where he worked for 25 years.  He has served on PLU’s Alumni Board and its Board of Regents. 

David and Cheri live in Mount Vernon, look forward to welcoming their first grandson this month,  and enjoy reminding  us that they live close enough to McIntire Hall that they can walk to our performances… but never do.