The San Antonio Community Orchestra is an all-volunteer community orchestra in San Antonio, Texas. The orchestra members currently rehearse weekly and put on free concerts around six times per year. The group loves to welcome new members and strives to be a welcoming place for the community to come with their instruments and have fun playing orchestral music!

The group is currently under the direction of conductor Matty Saltibus (since 2017) and meets and performs on Tuesdays at the Coker Methodist Church (U.S. 281 and Wurzbach Parkway). Orchestral selections are intended to not only bring classical works to the community, but also to highlight local talent within the orchestra and within San Antonio. 

One of the oldest community string orchestras in the state, according to the Berklee College of Music, the San Antonio Community Orchestra has its start in the 1960s (circa 1968) when Domenick Saltarelli, a teacher at Trinity University, began the Trinity University Community Orchestra. This orchestra included students from the university and community members to form a full string orchestra. When Domenick Saltarelli retired, the orchestra continued to meet at the nearby Episcopal Church (later First Mexican Baptist Church). The group at this time was renamed the Saltarelli String Orchestra. When Domenick Saltarelli passed away, the orchestra contacted the wife of Domenick Saltarelli. The members came to her with the message: "We took a vote and we all want the orchestra to continue. And we want you to conduct us." Florence Saltarelli continued to conduct the orchestra for many years.

During COVID-19, the orchestra's audience and membership was in decline. In 2020/21 the orchestra chose to rename itself to an audience-friendly name: the San Antonio Community Orchestra. However, the members of the orchestra still remember and honor the memory and legacy of the Saltarelli family. Since the orchestra's rebranding, the community orchestra has grown in membership and is a thriving all-volunteer orchestra in the San Antonio community.

The orchestra frequently collaborates with the Coker Methodist Church Chancel Choir and Joe Gonzales (guitar). Prior collaborations have included Janet Tracy (tuba), Aaron Prado and George Prado, as well as others (reference our soloists pages on this website).  The orchestra continually seeks opportunities to collaborate with local musicians.

The San Antonio Community Orchestra strives to be a welcoming environment for all ages and skill levels of stringed musicians, providing a place for individuals to come together and play orchestral music in a fun and educational environment.

Florence Saltarelli conducts the Saltarelli String Orchestra

Saltarelli String Orchestra
Volunteers keep classical music alive in one of Texas’ oldest community orchestras
https://www.sanantoniomag.com/saltarelli-string-orchestra/

The Saltarelli String Orchestra, An All-Volunteer Orchestra With A Long History
https://www.tpr.org/arts-culture/2013-11-25/the-saltarelli-string-orchestra-an-all-volunteer-orchestra-with-a-long-history

Matthew “Matty” Saltibus is currently the Orchestra Director at Harlan High School in Northside ISD and the conductor of the San Antonio Community Orchestra. 

He attended The University of Texas at San Antonio and became a Music Education Major and currently holds a Master’s Degree in Instrumental Conducting. He taught in the UTSA “String Project” for seven years, teaching orchestra to 3rd-7th grade students in the San Antonio area. He has been teaching orchestra in the public school system for 12 years. He also served as Region Chair for the Texas Music Educators Association for 4 years. With his expertise in music education he has served as a clinician, providing clinics for school districts, music programs, and the Texas Orchestra Directors Association. He has also taught students and teachers in multiple music schools on the island of St. Lucia.

Over the course of 12 years, he has earned more than twenty UIL String Orchestra Sweepstake Trophies, six UIL Performance Plaques, and eight UIL Full Orchestra Sweepstakes Trophies. His most recent major award includes the “2017 TexASTA Marjorie Keller Young Teacher of the Year Award,” which recognizes one young Texas music educator for their meritorious service and outstanding promise in string education grades K-12.