Philadelphia Youth Orchestra Presents Opening Concert, 11/4

Verizon Hall at The Kimmel Center for Performing Arts will once again host the opening performance of the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra on November 4, at 3 p.m. This first concert of the 2018-2019 season will be recorded for a later date to air on WRTI-FM. It will showcase the 130 members of the ensemble, between the ages of 14 to 21 and is conducted by the esteemed Maestro Louis Scaglione.

The afternoon's program will open with Wagner's Overture to The Flying Dutchman. Known to many as the host of WRTI's Saturday Classical Coffeehouse, Debra Lew Harder will be featured as soloist in Schumann's Piano Concerto. Completing the program is Shostakovich's First Symphony, a work written for his graduation from the Leningrad Conservatory, and grounded in the rich Russian traditions of Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, Glazunov, and Scriabin.

Scaglione said about the performance, "A season's opening performance often sets the tone for the year, and we look forward to this opportunity to showcase the talent of our students. I'm always complimented by the many members of our audiences who are surprised the music is being played by students, not adults, because they are among the most gifted and talented students in our tri-state region."

Tickets for the PYO Concert are only $15-25 and can be purchased through Ticket Philadelphia by calling 215.893.1999.

About the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra:

The renowned Philadelphia Youth Orchestra organization, now in its 79th season, is one of the nation's oldest and most respected community music education and youth orchestra performance programs. Training tomorrow's leaders, PYO provides talented young musicians from across the tri-state area with exceptional musical training. Students go on to excel in many diverse fields, and it is with pride that Philadelphia Youth Orchestra notes that many members of the prestigious Philadelphia Orchestra are alumni. For more information, please visit www.pyos.org.

The anchor group is the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra (PYO), conducted by President and Music Director Louis Scaglione, featuring 130 gifted instrumentalists who range in age from 14-21. Young musicians 12-18 years old are featured in PYO's companion ensemble, the Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra, which is led by Director and Conductor Maestra Rosalind Erwin, who is Music Director and Conductor of Drexel University Orchestra. Philadelphia Young Musicians Orchestra (PYMO), directed by Maestro Kenneth Bean, is a beginning to intermediate-level full symphonic orchestra that provides most students with their first introduction to large orchestral playing featuring students age 10-17 years old. Bravo Brass, directed by Curtis Institute Dean of Faculty and Students, Paul Bryan, is an all brass ensemble for promising middle and high-school instrumentalists. PRYSM (Philadelphia Region Youth String Music) and PRYSM Young Artists ensembles provide string large ensemble and sectional master class instruction for beginning and intermediate musicians ages 6-14. The director and conductor of PRYSM is Gloria DePasquale, cellist with The Philadelphia Orchestra, and conductor of PRYSM Young Artists is Andrea Weber. Tune Up Philly (TUP) is PYO's engagement program, directed by Paul Smith, that focuses on creating and inspiring true community by providing children in under- resourced communities with invaluable opportunities to learn and perform a differentiated orchestral music curriculum.