“We are all so grateful for [Peters], and we wish him all so well for his future endeavors.” said Akemi Nuñez, a music marketing major who played violin for the orchestra. “In general, I feel our orchestra is just so well prepared, so we always have a blast every time, and especially, this concert is a very bittersweet moment for all of us since [Peters] is leaving.”

“I get goosebumps when I’m on stage and there’s a symphony behind me,” Diego Navaira said. “Because there’s certain songs of my dad’s that get me emotional already, and then to hear it with these beautiful arrangements that Troy Peters has made, it just takes it to a whole different level.”

The audience on Saturday will see Act 2 of the holiday ballet featuring ballet folklórico performers in colorful traditional attire alongside ballet dancers and the classical Tchaikovsky music with San Antonio-inspired embellishments.

Gilbert Garcia interviewed Troy on KLRN’s Texas Talk, exploring the power of music to change kids’ lives.

“I think of it like all-stars of San Antonio indie music,” said Troy Peters, YOSA’s music director. “And for me, I just think it’s kind of cool to have several of these musicians be folks who grew up steeped in Mexican American culture and Tejano music, but are also 100 percent fluent with the language of the Beatles and that confluence of cultures, which is what this city is all about.”

“Whether I’m working with the San Antonio Symphony or with YOSA, my job is enable the musicians to realize the composer’s goals. The composer… has given us a package of music to deliver, and it’s up to us to bring to life the vision of that composer. As conductor my job is to create the circumstances in which everybody can do the best job they are capable of.”