A student musician group that began a half-century ago is still going strong in Oakland County.

The Oakland Youth Orchestras (OYO) was established in 1975 as the Oakland Youth Symphony Inc., by Joan G. Berndt, a lecturer in the Music Department of Oakland University, and Raynold Allvin, department chairman.

They began with 50 students and in 1990, it was incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

Ervin Monroe, principal flutist of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, was hired as founding conductor.

Zeljko Milicevic is celebrating 30 years as the current conductor of the OYO.

OYO is a four-tiered orchestra program teaching students from second grade through high school. Students travel from numerous counties, nearly 30 school districts and 100 schools from throughout southeast Michigan. The orchestra enrolls nearly 350 students who want to be challenged beyond their school music experience.

Rehearsals are held in the Rochester area, with each group rehearsing weekly from September through May.

“Our 50th season has been very exciting looking back on the history of the organization and looking at what we have today and how far it has come in the last 50 years,” said Nicole Shogren, OYO executive director.

The entry-level orchestra consists of students getting orchestra experience for the first time and getting started with their instruments.

There is the string group made up of middle school students playing stringed instruments and with a few years of experience.

There is the philharmonic group of woodwinds, brass and percussion, along with the string players.

“It is the first time we are introducing the brass and woodwinds and percussion players to an orchestra setting even though they may have real experience with their instrument,” Shogren said. “They may even have experience in a band, but it is a unique challenge for them.”

At the top, is the symphony-level orchestra of all high school students.

“A lot of students in this group are at a very high level of performance in their school orchestra or other programs and a lot of these students go on to study music and many go on to play music for the rest of their lives,” Shogren said.

Each level has its own conductor, with Milicevic overseeing the symphony orchestra.

“It is a very welcoming and nurturing environment for students,” Shogren said. “It is not cutthroat or competitive and I think that is why it has a lot of resonance for a lot of students who are looking at expanding their musical opportunities beyond what a school or private lessons might offer.”

Shogren said the number of students participating in the program has been consistent over the last 30 years.

“Occasionally there has been a missing part here or there, but there has always been interest in all four levels of what we have been able to offer,” she said.

Clarke Bonten, president of the OYO board of directors, said everyone involved is pleased with the orchestra’s many accomplishments.

“As we celebrate OYO’s 50th season with a special concert series, we are proud to honor those who have brought us to this point, grateful to all who continue to support OYO, and excited to see what our future will bring,” he said. “We’re pleased to celebrate 50 years of music-making with the broader community as we honor our past and chart a course for the future.”

The OYO’s first concert of this season was in November.

The next concert, scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 30, is at the Oxford Performing Arts Center at Oxford High School, 745 N. Oxford Road. It will showcase OYO soloists Chloe Kim, an eighth grader at Smith Middle School, and Isabelle Bonten, a senior at Stoney Creek High School.

The third concert, set for early May, will see the premiere of the original composition “Elements” by Catherine McMichael, a Michigan-based composer. Consisting of four movements, the piece was specially commissioned for OYO’s 50th season and will be performed for the first time by the OYO orchestras. The performance will be held at the Seligman Performing Arts Center at Detroit Country Day School, 22305 W. 13 Mile Road, Beverly Hills.

Tickets for the Jan. 30 concert will be available at the door. It’s $15 for adults and $5 for students.

For more information about OYO, visit oyomi.org.