Philadelphia Youth Orchestra Presents 10th Annual PRYSM Festival Concert, Today

After months of practice, Philadelphia Youth Orchestra's PRYSM (Philadelphia Region Youth String Music) and PRYSM-YA (PRYSM Young Artists) will showcase their skills at the tenth annual PRYSM Festival Concert on Saturday, February 4, 2017 at 3 p.m. It will be held in Centennial Hall at the Haverford School in Haverford, PA. General admission tickets are $15. For information, call (215) 545-0502.

PRSYM is under the direction of Conductor Gloria dePasquale, who has been a member of The Philadelphia Orchestra's cello section since 1977 at the invitation of Maestro Eugene Ormandy. She takes great pride in the students of PRYSM and said, "The PRYSM string orchestra students never cease to amaze me. This concert gives them an opportunity to showcase and celebrate their talent, which is reflected in the excellent performances of the students". The younger division of PRYSM is the PRYSM Young Artists orchestra, and is conducted by Andrea Weber.

PRYSM will perform Mozart's Eine kleine Nachtmusik; Puccini's Chrysanthemum; Grieg's Holberg Suite, Op. 40; Selections from Bartok's Romanian Folk Dances and Joplin and Zinn's The Entertainer.PRYSM-YA will perform Spata's Meridian Pass, Holst's Songs Without Words, and Del Borgo's Dance Senario.

About PRYSM: PRYSM (Philadelphia Region Youth String Music) is a string music education program created in 2007 to offer a unique introduction and preparation for string students to acquire and build skills. PRYSM and PRYSM Young Artists provide string ensemble and sectional master class instruction for intermediate and beginning students in and around the mainline, with rehearsals hosted at Bryn Mawr College. Graduates of PRYSM have matriculated successfully into other PYO organization ensembles. It was co-founded by Gloria dePasquale and the late William dePasquale, Co-Concertmaster of The Philadelphia Orchestra.

About the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra:

Now in its 77th year, training tomorrow's leaders, the renowned Philadelphia Youth Orchestra organization, led by President and Music Director, Maestro Louis Scaglione, is one of the nation's oldest and most respected community music education and youth orchestra performance programs, providing 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. The organization is comprised of six program ensembles designed to meet specific needs and experience levels of students selected through a competitive audition process. The anchor group is the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra (PYO), conducted by President and Music Director Louis Scaglione, featuring 120 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. www.pyos.org.