From Student Tickets to 18 Years of Board Service: Mathew Jasinski’s HSO Story

Mathew Jasinski didn’t plan on becoming a long-time member of the Hartford Symphony Orchestra Board of Directors—it just sort of happened, one concert at a time.

He arrived in Hartford for law school with a lifelong love of classical music already in place, shaped by childhood violin lessons and summers at Tanglewood. It didn’t take long to find the Symphony—and once he did, he was all in. Student tickets turned into tickets for the season (two of them, because “who wants to go alone?”), and before long he had a steady rotation of classmates and friends joining him in the hall. “Unless somebody truly had a conflict, they would always say yes,” he recalls. “And I haven’t stopped coming since.”

That instinct—to share the experience—is still central to how Mathew connects with the Symphony today. While he values the organization’s work in education and the community, for him it all starts with what happens on stage. “It’s definitely the music,” he says. The draw is simple but powerful: sitting in the hall, immersed in the sound, especially when the orchestra takes on sweeping Romantic works. Those are the moments that deliver, in his words, “goosebumps, the whole way through.”

Over the years, certain experiences have stayed with him. One that stands out began with a pre-concert gathering focused on Bruckner’s Third Symphony—an evening of listening, conversation, and a deeper dive into the music. What made it unforgettable was what followed: attending the concert alongside his father, who had been studying with the guest conductor. The overlap of personal and musical worlds made it “a great experience.”

His path to the board came just as organically. Early in his legal career, he was encouraged to pursue civic involvement, and the Symphony was the first place that came to mind. One introduction led to another, and soon he was invited to join. Eighteen years later, he’s still here—still attending, still bringing others along, still making the case for what makes live orchestral music so compelling.

And his advice for anyone new? It’s exactly what you’d expect: “Come to a concert and bring somebody with you.” Because in the end, he says, “once they’re in the hall, the music does the work.”