New York Youth Symphony to End Inaugural Season This Month

When New York Youth Symphony launched Crescendo as the start of this season, it was a first in their 60-year history - a second orchestra. And now, with the inaugural season of Crescendo coming to a close, the NYC musicians have taken great strides in their musicianship.

Music Director of Crescendo, Tanatchaya (Tanya) Chanphanitpornkit, explained, "When we first got together this year, many of my students had never played in an ensemble before. And now, when they prepare to play in the final performance of the season, you would never know that." Crescendo will be performing on Sunday, April 21st at Zankel Hall at 3pm. Tickets are available at www.nyys.org/events.

Crescendo will be joined by Aizuri Quartet - who is the Ensemble-in-Residence for the first year, as they perform Vaughan Williams Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis. Crescendo will also be joined by Oboists William Ju and Andres Ayola performing Handel "The Arrival of The Queen of Sheba." Full repertoire is: SAINT-GEORGES Allegro Presto from Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 11; HANDEL "Arrival of the Queen of Sheba," from Solomon; GRIEG From Holberg's Time; J. S. BACH Allegro from Brandenburg Concerto No. 3; PRICE Andante Moderato from String Quartet in G Major and Vaughan Williams Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis.

Launched at the start of the 2023/24 season, New York Youth Symphony's Crescendo is a 44-piece string orchestra (violin, viola, cello and bass) for New York City residents ages 10-18 years old. It will provide access to outstanding music education for a diverse range of students from all the five boros. In addition to weekly ensemble rehearsals, students will receive chamber music coaching, workshops, and masterclasses with professional musicians; plus, guidance on topics including audition preparation, audience engagement, careers in the arts, and festival and school admissions.

Students, parents, and administrators interested in receiving more information about Crescendo should visit the Crescendo page on the NYYS website, which includes detailed information about the program and be sure to fill out the form so we can let you know when applications go live. Auditions will be held in August for rehearsals beginning in the fall.

About NYYS

The New York Youth Symphony is one of the most awarded youth programs of its kind in the nation, including the 2023 Grammy award for Best Orchestral Performance. It is recognized for its innovative, educational programs for talented young musicians. Founded in 1963 as an orchestra to showcase the metropolitan area's most gifted musicians ages 12-22, its activities have since grown to encompass programs in chamber music, conducting, composition, jazz, and musical theater songwriting with performances at world class venues including Carnegie Hall and Jazz at Lincoln Center. Through its commissioning program, First Music, the NYYS has commissioned over 170 works from young composers since 1984.

About Tanatchaya Chanphanitpornkit

Tanatchaya (Tanya) Chanphanitpornkit, a double bassist from Trat, Thailand, is a conductor focused on inspiring and educating young musicians. As a double bassist, she has performed at Carnegie Hall, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, and Kodak Hall, and under the batons of Dr. Sandra Dackow, Jeffrey Grogan, Dr. Mark Scatterday, and Ankush Bahl.

Ms. Chanphanitpornkit received her education from the Eastman School of Music, where she studied the double bass with James VanDemark. At Eastman, she served as the President of the Eastman Students' Association. Her contributions to the community earned her the Susan B. Anthony Women's Leadership Award and Linda Muise Student Life Award for outstanding dedication, enthusiasm, and collaboration to promote and maintain a strong quality of life for all.Ms. Chanphanitpornkit continued her education at Teachers College, Columbia University, where the emphasis of her Master of Arts and Master of Education degrees was on social justice through orchestral pedagogy and her pedagogy was highlighted in an exhibit for the Smith Learning Theater. Currently, she is continuing her studies as a doctoral candidate at Teachers College, where her research interests include first-generation college students at music conservatories.

Ms. Chanphanitpornkit's expertise as a teacher range from working with toddlers to young adults. Having taught toddlers at the Eastman Community Music School and young musicians at the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra's El Sistema program and the New Jersey Youth Symphony summer camp for many years, she is thrilled to continue setting up young musicians for success in their musical endeavors.

Ms. Chanphanitpornkit currently holds positions teaching orchestra at the Nyack public schools and Manhattan School of Music Precollege. Her current faculty positions in higher education include Columbia University, William Paterson University, and The College of New Jersey. As she continues her journey in music education with her students, she will always base her decisions and teachings on the belief that the symphony is for everyone.

About Aizuri Quartet

The Aizuri Quartet has established a unique position within today's musical landscape, infusing all of its music-making with infectious energy, joy and warmth, cultivating curiosity in listeners, and inviting audiences into the concert experience through its innovative programming, and the depth and fire of its performances.

Praised by The Washington Post for "astounding" and "captivating" performances that draw from its notable "meld of intellect, technique and emotions," the Aizuri Quartet has been awarded major chamber music prizes on three continents, including Chamber Music America's Cleveland Quartet Award, the Grand Prize at the M-Prize Chamber Arts Competition, the Osaka International Chamber Music Competition, and the Wigmore Hall International String Quartet Competition. The Quartet's debut album, Blueprinting, featuring new works written for the Aizuri Quartet by Lembit Beecher, Yevgeniy Sharlat, Caroline Shaw, Gabriella Smith, and Paul Wiancko, was released by New Amsterdam Records to critical acclaim ("In a word, stunning" - I Care If You Listen), nominated for a GRAMMY Award, and named one of NPR Music's Best Classical Albums. The Aizuri Quartet's follow-up to Blueprinting, Earthdrawn Skies is out on Azica Records in 2023.

The Quartet has drawn praise both for bringing "a technical bravado and emotional power" to bold new commissions, and for its "flawless" (San Diego Union-Tribune) performances of the great works of the past. Exemplifying this intrepid spirit, the Aizuri Quartet curated and performed five adventurous programs as the MetLiveArts String Quartet-in-Residence at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, leading The New York Times to applaud them as "genuinely exciting," "imaginative," and "a quartet of expert collaborators." Notable recent highlights include the Quartet's Carnegie Hall debut, its major orchestral solo debut performing John Adams's Absolute Jest with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra led by Ken-David Masur, appearances at the Library of Congress, 92Y, Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Phillips Collection and Celebrity Series of Boston, and a fellowship with WQXR's Artist Propulsion Lab. The Quartet opened for the legendary indie rock band Wilco on their Yankee Hotel Foxtrot 20th anniversary concerts, with appearances at the United Palace in New York City and on The Tonight Show with Stephen Colbert. The Aizuri Quartet's free, online educational series for children, AizuriKids, uses the string quartet as a catalyst for creative learning through vibrant, whimsical and interactive videos lovingly produced by the Aizuris.

Formed in 2012 and combining four distinctive musical personalities into a powerful collective, the Aizuri Quartet draws its name from "aizuri-e," a style of predominantly blue Japanese woodblock printing that is noted for its vibrancy and incredible detail.

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