PHILADELPHIA, PA (February 7, 2023) – The winter concert of the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra (PYO), the most advanced full orchestra of the PYO Music Institute (PYOMI), showcases guest artist Gloria dePasquale, former cellist of The Philadelphia Orchestra and the Director/Conductor of PYOMI’s Prysm Strings.
The concert, led by Music Director and Conductor Maestro Louis Scaglione, will take place on Sunday, February 12, at 3 pm in Verizon Hall of the Kimmel Cultural Campus. The orchestra will perform Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto and Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony.
Scaglione looks forward to the concert and said, “Performing with distinguished soloists like Gloria dePasquale is an important and impactful educational experience for PYO Music Institute students. I find that sharing the stage with a colleague of Gloria’s status, given her 45-year career with The Philadelphia Orchestra, is rewarding and gratifying for both the students and me.”
dePasquale shared her enthusiasm as well “I always treasure the opportunity to perform with PYO Music Institute on stage at Verizon Hall. The chance to share the poetic elegance and pathos of the iconic Elgar Cello Concerto is a dream come true for me!”
Tickets for the concert can be purchased at https://www.kimmelculturalcampus.org/events-and-tickets/ and range from $20-$30. For more information, visit https://pyomusic.org/.
About PYO Music Institute: The Philadelphia Youth Orchestra Music Institute is the tri-state region’s premier youth orchestra organization for gifted, young classical musicians and one of the oldest and most highly regarded youth orchestra organizations in the United States. For 83 years, the PYO Music Institute has been providing professional-caliber musical experiences to young instrumentalists while thrilling audiences in the Greater Philadelphia region and across the globe.
The organization has nine program divisions: Philadelphia Youth Orchestra (PYO), Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra (PYAO), Young Musicians Debut Orchestra (YMDO), Bravo Brass, Prysm Strings, Pizzicato Players, Philadelphia Youth Jazz Orchestra (PYJO), Philadelphia Youth Symphonic Band (PYSB), and Tune Up Philly – Orchestral Pathways Program. Ranging in age from 5 to 21 years, the musicians of the PYO Music Institute come from a 70-mile radius of Philadelphia encompassing nearly 20 counties within Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware.
Through advanced orchestra repertoire, students are challenged to perform at the highest levels, strive for advanced musicianship, and achieve superior technical, musical, and personal application. Former PYOMI musicians currently hold chairs in most of the top 20 professional orchestras in the United States, with 12 PYOMI alumni currently serving in The Philadelphia Orchestra.
Extraordinary artistic leadership is a hallmark of the PYO Music Institute. Adolph Sorian (1940–1941), J.W.F. Leman (1941–1952), William R. Smith (1952–1954), and Joseph Primavera (1954–2005) served as Music Directors, with Maestro Primavera having had the extraordinary distinction of being the longest-serving active conductor of any orchestra in the world. Louis Scaglione, appointed in 1997 by Maestro Primavera and the PYOMI Board of Trustees, continues the legacy of leadership, currently serving as the PYO Music Institute’s President, CEO, and Music Director.
For more information, please visit www.pyomusic.org.
