Senior Spotlight: Henry Wolfe, Viola
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Read More“Don’t stress- it’s just not worth it! Put in the work, and have fun while you’re at it.”
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Senior Spotlight: Lily Enderle, Bass
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Read More“Cristian Măcelaru because of his ability to personally connect with each one of the members of his orchestra.”
Senior Spotlight: Daniel Ahn, Cello
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Read More“Feel the music.”
Senior Spotlight: Maggie McDowell, Bassoon
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Read More“It’s important to enjoy what you’re playing! Being able to appreciate your music makes practicing easier, and experiencing the result of your hard work much more gratifying.”
Senior Spotlight: Gabriel Sufitchi, Clarinet
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Read More“Be bold while playing, and don't be afraid to make mistakes, because they are what make you improve!”
Senior Spotlight: Olivia Tilley, Harp
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Read More“Don’t get overwhelmed by your mistakes - they can create the most beautiful opportunities for growth.”
Senior Spotlight: Christian León, French Horn
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Read More“My older sister really inspired me to play horn. She played horn in high school and I remember wanting to be like her, which is why I picked the instrument. I thank her for all of my accomplishments because it was her support and motivation that got me to this point today.”
Senior Spotlight: Evan Chu, Clarinet
Miranda Martin Southwood
Read More“Even the most boring music can be fun if you play it with enough conviction.”
Senior Spotlight: Gabriel Cha, Bassoon
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Read More“The musician that inspired me the most was definitely my private teacher, Kelly Stratil. She works both as an elementary school band director, inspiring young kids to learn an instrument, and as a dedicated private teacher to a plethora of bassoonists. Despite all this, her hard work often goes under appreciated. Even so, she works tirelessly to support the musical community of Northern Virginia.”
Senior Spotlight: Perry Francis, Violin
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Read More“Augustin Hadelich inspires me because he shows that you can express such emotion through music, and persevere through music.”
Senior Spotlight: Justin Smith, Bass Trombone
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Read More“My biggest advice for younger musicians is to never give up. The idea of perseverance has gotten me through so much stuff both musically, academically, and mentally.”
Senior Spotlight: Ethan Mandojana, Violin
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Read More“Making music together is about contributing your own unique experience to something bigger than any one person. But most importantly, it's supposed to be fun, so never let competition, fear, or ostentation get in the way of that.”
Senior Spotlight: Sarah Chernesky, Bassoon
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Read More“My advice for young musicians not quit when it gets hard but strive to get better. One passage of music is not impossible, just impossible at the moment.”
Senior Spotlight: Ben Schirmeier, Percussion
Miranda Martin Southwood
Read More“Stick with it! Music is truly a life long skill. It has been a vehicle for my creativity, it has enabled me to forge connections with a diverse group of individuals, and it has provided me with listening and learning skills that I cannot say I would glean from any other pursuit. While you will have auditions or performances that go poorly, know that playing music it is well worth it in the long term.”
Senior Spotlight: Benjamin Portner, French Horn
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Read More“Grigory Sokolov has inspired me as a pianist and an orchestral musician with his interpretations of Beethoven.”
Senior Spotlight: Maddie Schaefer, Trombone
Miranda Martin Southwood
Read More“Play with your friends, form small groups and play chamber music! Not only is it really fun to collaborate together, you’ll all grow as musicians and as friends.”
Percussion Ensemble in Concert
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In their annual performance, the AYPO Percussion Ensemble led by Director, Doug Wallace performed at Yorktown High School on April 23rd. This season, the program was FRONTIERS (Earth, Space, Spirituality, Mind, Technology). The performance included several of Doug Wallace's own compositions, The Artemis Generation and Climate Change, along with his own arrangement for Rush, Cygnus X-1 Book I - The Voyage, and more. Ben Schirmeier, AYP, the only senior this season, took the stage to perform Nathan Daughtrey's Lost Souls, and the performance from each and every percussionists was celebrated by the audience in this memorable concert.
JCE Performance at Greenspring
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On Sunday, April 16th, the four Junior Chamber Ensemble groups performed at Greenspring Senior Living Community, marking the first time an AYPO ensemble has been able to perform an outreach concert since the end of Covid. The performance was well attended by more than 200 residents, parents, and friends.
Directed by Tsuna Sakamoto and Loewi Lin, pieces performed by the groups were Mozart’s “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik,” Joplin’s “Country Club,” and various string quartets by Haydn, Mendelssohn, and Dvorák. This performance marked the end of a very successful season for JCE.
AYS & AYP in Concert
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The American Youth Sinfonietta and the American Youth Philharmonic performed on Sunday, March 19th at the Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center.
For the American Youth Sinfonietta, this was their debut performance on the Schlesinger stage, performing selections from Bizet's Carmen Suite, the entire Holberg Suite by Grieg, David Cameron's Ballade, with Ellin Kwak, piano, and Danza Final from Estancia, by Ginastera joined by the American Youth Philharmonic percussionists. American Youth Sinfonietta promises to delight audiences in their third and final concert of the season on May 6th at 3:00pm at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in Washington, DC.
American Youth Philharmonic, marking March as the third concert of the season, started the program with exciting Huapango by José Pablo Moncayo and dazzled audiences with the performance of Rachmaninoff's Symphonic Dances. They prepare for the fourth and final concert at Schlesinger Concert Hall with the von Dittersdorf Double Bass Concerto, performed by concerto competition winner, Joshua Thrush, and the much anticipated Mahler Symphony No. 1.
AYDO & AYSE Second Concert of the 22-23 Season
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The American Youth Debut Orchestra and the American Youth String Ensemble presented their second performance of the 2022-2023 season at the Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center in Alexandria on Sunday, March 5th.
The American Youth Debut Orchestra and the American Youth String Ensemble are performing a New York to L.A. theme this season, starting with a New York City-themed performance in December and continuing the theme with their Heartland-themed performance in March. AYDO began the performance with the American folk song medley, American Heartland. They also performed the popular traditional, Amazing Grace, as well as an orchestra arrangement of Booker T. & the M.G.'s Green Onions. AYDO finished their second performance of the season with Soon Hee Newbold's Blue-Fire Fiddler.
AYSE took the stage with American Landscape, another piece of Soon Hee Newbold's, and performed a beautiful rendition of the popular traditional, Shenandoah. AYSE musicians, Timothy Oh (violin), Eleanor Pomerance (violin), James Post (violin), Anisha Veeraraghavan (violin), Chloe Lee (viola), Daniel Xia (cello), and Timothy George (percussion) performed the solo on Leroy Anderson's Fiddle Faddle for Soloist and String Orchestra. AYSE finished the concert with an arrangement of Dvorak's American Rondo from the Quartet in F, Op. 96 and Doug Spata's Westward Motion.
Come hear AYDO & AYSE's final performance of the 22-23 season on Sunday, May 14th at 3PM at Schlesinger Concert Hall & Arts Center!