Carnegie Hall Names 2016 National Youth Orchestra of the USA Musicians

Carnegie Hall today announced the names of the 109 outstanding young musicians selected from across the country for the fourth annual National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America (NYO-USA). The members of the 2016 orchestra-ages 16-19, hailing from 32 US states-have been recognized by Carnegie Hall as being among the finest players in the country following a comprehensive and highly competitive audition process. This summer's NYO-USA will feature 38 returning musicians. The program is free for all participants.

See below or click here for the names, instruments, and hometowns of the members of the 2016 National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America.

In 2016, NYO-USA performs under two renowned conductors: Christoph Eschenbach and Valery Gergiev. Mr. Eschenbach will lead the orchestra in a program to include Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 22 in E-flat Major, K. 482 featuring acclaimed pianist Emanuel Ax as soloist alongside Bruckner's Symphony No. 6 in A Major at the Performing Arts Center in Purchase, NY (July 13) and at Carnegie Hall in New York City (July 14). Tickets for the Carnegie Hall performance are on sale now at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, by calling CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800, or at carnegiehall.org.

Following their New York appearances, the NYO-USA musicians will fly to Europe, joining Mr. Gergiev and esteemed pianist Denis Matsuev for a tour of some of the continent's music capitals, including performances at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Holland (July 21), part of Robeco SummerNights at the Royal Concertgebouw Amsterdam; the Opéra Berlioz in Montpellier, France (July 22), part of the Radio France Festival; Tivoli Hall in Copenhagen, Denmark (July 24), part of the Tivoli Festival; and Smetana Hall in Prague, capital of the Czech Republic (July 25). The orchestra's European tour repertoire will feature Debussy's Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune; Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3 (Amsterdam, Montpellier, Copenhagen); Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 4, "Italian" (Prague only); and Prokofiev's Symphony No. 4. NYO-USA's July 21 concert at the Royal Concertgebouw Amsterdam will be streamed live online for free by medici.tv.

NYO-USA's touring activities will allow America's finest young musicians to share their artistry with American and European audiences while also experiencing the richness of European culture and music. As part of their travel schedule, NYO-USA players will have the opportunity to tour cities, interact with local young musicians, and participate in informal community performances.

"With each successive year of the National Youth Orchestra of the USA, the quality and level of playing among applicants has grown higher and higher," said Clive Gillinson, Carnegie Hall's Executive and Artistic Director. "The musicians who make up NYO-USA's 2016 roster are truly among the very best. We are excited to embark on another wonderful summer of music-making, with these young artists serving as great musical ambassadors for the US as we travel abroad."

NYO-USA musicians will arrive in New York in late June 2016 to begin an intensive three-week training residency on the campus of Purchase College, State University of New York, working with principal players from some of the country's finest professional orchestras. James Ross, director of orchestral activities at the University of Maryland, returns to lead the NYO-USA faculty for a fourth year. The faculty will oversee rehearsals during the orchestra's residency in Purchase and will also lead master classes, chamber music readings, and other seminars on essential music skills, all leading up to the launch of NYO-USA's annual tour.

For the first time, two young musicians have been selected as apprentice composers for NYO-USA. During the Purchase residency, they will have the opportunity to have their music workshopped with musicians from the orchestra, providing experience with orchestration and writing for larger forces and creating opportunities for dialogue between instrumentalists and composers who are peers. Celebrated American composer Sean Shepherd (whose work Magiya was commissioned by Carnegie Hall for the inaugural NYO-USA in 2013) will serve as mentor and teacher for the young composers. The apprentice composers join an apprentice orchestra manager, apprentice librarian, and two apprentice conductors as members of the 2016 NYO-USA.

In addition, the summer of 2016 will see the launch of NYO2, a new intensive training program for talented young musicians, ages 14-17, with a special focus on those from communities underserved by and underrepresented in the classical orchestral field. Run in conjunction with NYO-USA's annual summer residency at Purchase College, State University of New York, NYO2 aims to expand the pool of young musicians across the country equipped with the tools to succeed at the highest level, particularly those who will bring greater diversity to classical orchestral music or those who have not had access to highly selective training opportunities.

As a central part of this free program, NYO2 participants will have the opportunity to work closely with select members of The Philadelphia Orchestra and conductor Giancarlo Guerrero. NYO2's 2016 season will culminate with the young musicians performing in an exciting side-by-side performance in Philadelphia with members of The Philadelphia Orchestra on July 2. Further details, including an NYO2 roster, will be announced in April 2016

NATIONAL YOUTH ORCHESTRA OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
2016 Orchestra Roster

* Returning NYO-USA member

Arizona Justin Kang, Timpani/Percussion (Gilbert) Bobby Nunes, Oboe (Mesa) *

Arkansas

Eric Meincke, Apprentice Conductor (Little Rock)

California

Elena Ariza, Cello (Cupertino) Jonathan Chu, Violin (San Francisco) Andrew Lee, Violin (Los Altos Hills)

Minku Lee, Cello

(Palo Alto) * Jamie Pfauth, Horn

(San Diego)

Connor Rowe, Trombone (Lompoc) Jay Shankar, Clarinet

(San Diego)

Colorado

Jessica Shand, Flute

(Colorado Springs)

Florida

Annabel Chyung, Violin

(Miami) *

Marco A. Gómez, Bass Trombone

(Miami)

Alejandro Lombo, Flute

(Miramar) *

Elias Medina-Brewster, Oboe

(Miami)

David Norville, Oboe

(Fort Myers)

Jimmy Qin, Cello

(Lake Mary)

Emma Shaw, Horn

(Tampa)

Kevonna S. Shuford, Viola

(West Palm Beach)

Georgia

Emma DeJarnette, Viola

(Snellville)

James Kang, Viola

(Lawrenceville)

Nick Pelletier, Viola

(Duluth) *

Idaho Anna Black, Violin (Eagle)

Illinois

Kayla Cabrera, Viola

(Crete)

Alec Mawrence, Tuba (Northbrook)

Charles Stuedemann, Trumpet

(Geneva) Lucie Ticho, Cello

(Chicago)

James Vaughen, Trumpet (Champaign) *

Indiana

Travon DeLeon, Violin

(South Bend)

Iowa

Nina Bernat, Bass

(Iowa City)

Kansas Akshay Dinakar, Violin (Prairie Village) * Dana Rath, Cello (Lawrence) Emily Shehi, Violin (Olathe)

Maine Seoyeon Kim, Violin (Falmouth) * Maryland Nicholas Kim, Violin (Clarksville) Ethan Shrier, Trombone (Potomac) *

Massachusetts Reuben Stern, Bassoon (Needham) *

Michigan

Sara Han, Clarinet (Interlochen) * Elisabeth Pesavento, Horn

(Interlochen)

Minnesota

Sarrah Bushara, Oboe

(Eden Prairie) *

Jamie Gorski, Trumpet (Little Canada) Lydia Grimes, Viola (Shoreview)

Missouri Ryan Wahidi, Bass (Creve Coeur) * Montana Rosie Weiss, Violin (Billings) * Nevada Corbin Krebs, Bassoon (Las Vegas) * Paul Novak, Apprentice Composer (Reno)

New Jersey

Mikaela Chang, Apprentice Orchestra Manager

(Closter) Omar El-Abidin, Timpani/Percussion (Wall) Simon Housner, Cello (Cherry Hill) Andrew Hughes, Viola (Old Tappan)

David Kim, Cello

(East Brunswick) * Daniel Kim, Clarinet (Skillman) Soyeong Park, Violin (Princeton Junction) * Timothy Ruszala, Bassoon (Fairfield) Samuel Wang, Violin (Medford) * Ryan Zhang, Apprentice Conductor (West Windsor) New York

Taylor Abbitt, Bass

(Ballston Lake) * Ryan Chung, Cello (Manhasset) Elizabeth Egan, Apprentice Composer (New York)

Michael Gabriel, Bass

(Manhasset) Sean Juhl, Viola (New York)

Sae Rheen Kim, Viola

(New York) Faith Pak, Viola (Auburndale) * Michael Stevens, Horn (East Islip) * William Swett, Bass (New York)

Alan Yao, Violin

(Scarsdale) Elizabeth Yeoh-Wang, Harp (New York)

North Carolina

Ella Sharpe, Bass (Winston-Salem) Emilia Sharpe, Violin (Winston-Salem)

Ohio

Marguerite Cox, Bass

(Hudson) * Joshua Elmore, Bassoon (Shaker Heights) * Claire Geho, Violin (Twinsburg)

Henry Shapard, Cello

(Cleveland Heights) * Chad Wesselkamper, Bass (Cincinnati) * Oklahoma Joseph Bates, Violin (Tulsa) Ben Lanners, Cello (Stillwater) * Oregon Fumika Mizuno, Violin (Portland) * Pennsylvania

Sein An, Violin

(West Chester) * Julie Choe, Violin

(Pittsburgh)

Jim Cunningham IV, Viola (Pittsburgh) Neil Goh, Violin (North Wales) * Cheyenne J. King, Violin (Philadelphia) Ziqi Meng, Violin (Pittsburgh) Devin Moore, Violin (Pittsburgh) Jason Vassiliou, Violin (Berwyn) * Elizabeth Geena Woo, Viola (Radnor) Joy Zhao, Cello (Chalfont)

Rhode Island

William Yao, Violin (Barrington) * South Carolina

Katherine Woo, Violin

(Greer) Tennessee David Bender, Cello (Nashville) Chloe Harvel, Violin (Brentwood) Texas Hannah Burnett, Viola (Waco) * Harry Dearman, Bass (Denton) Jonathan Jalbert, Clarinet (Houston)

Nitish Jindal, Timpani/Percussion

(Dallas) Evan Jose, Timpani/Percussion (San Antonio) Ethan Le, Violin (Katy) Patrick Magee, Orchestral Keyboard (Dallas) Adam Phan, Harp (Dallas) *

Ethan Russo, Apprentice Librarian

(Austin) Mei Stone, Flute (Waco) * Megan Wade, Trumpet (Friendswood) Vermont David Horak, Violin (Norwich) Washington Andrew Angelos, Horn (Seattle) * Evan Falls Hjort, Violin (Fall City) * Bronwyn James, Violin (Seattle) * Evan Johanson, Violin (Seattle) * Elise Kim, Flute (Mukilteo) Daniel Miles, Viola (Puyallup)

NYO-USA China Tour-Summer 2016 July 13 Purchase The Performing Arts Center, Purchase College, SUNY July 14 New York Carnegie Hall, Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage July 21 Amsterdam Robeco SummerNights at the Royal Concertgebouw Amsterdam July 22 Montpellier Radio France Festival; Opéra Berlioz July 24 Copenhagen Tivoli Festival; Tivoli Hall July 25 Prague Smetana Hall
About the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America
Each summer, Carnegie Hall's Weill Music Institute brings together the finest young musicians from across the country (ages 16-19) to form the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America (NYO-USA). Following a comprehensive audition process and a two-week training residency at Purchase College, State University of New York, with faculty made up of principal players from top professional orchestras, these remarkable teenagers embark on a tour to some of the great music capitals of the world, serving as America's dynamic music ambassadors.

Launched in summer 2013 to great acclaim, the first-ever National Youth Orchestra of the USA presented concerts with conductor Valery Gergiev and violinist Joshua Bell to enthusiastic audiences at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC; St. Petersburg and Moscow in Russia; and at the BBC Proms in London. The 2014 orchestra, led by American conductor David Robertson with violinist Gil Shaham as soloist, made its debut at Carnegie Hall in New York City, followed by a coast-to-coast US tour to Tanglewood in Lenox, Massachusetts; Boone, North Carolina; Chicago, Illinois; Jackson Hole, Wyoming; Sonoma County, California; and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, California. In 2015, NYO-USA, with conductor Charles Dutoit and pianist YUNDI, made its debut in China, performing at some of the country's greatest concert halls in many regions of the country, including concerts in Beijing, Shanghai, Suzhou, Xi'an, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Hong Kong.

In summer 2017, NYO-USA will make its debut in South America, performing under the baton of conductor Marin Alsop.