PYO Music Institute Announces 8th Annual Ovation Award For Inspiration & Outstanding Leadership In Music Education

Each year, the PYO Music Institute (formerly known as Philadelphia Youth Orchestra organization) and its partners honor the excellent qualities of music teachers who make a positive impact on students. Music teachers are recognized for their talent as music teachers, and their ability to build a student's character, self-confidence, and capabilities that make a positive impact on their overall development and achievements.

Maestro Louis Scaglione, President and Music Director, has announced the 8th Annual Ovation Award that recognizes inspiration and outstanding leadership in music education. Current and former students of all ages are invited to nominate a music teacher who has made a major impact on their lives. Nominators are asked to submit a 250-word statement about "the music teacher who changed my life" for the PYO Music Institute Ovation Award, which is sponsored by Jacobs Music Company, J.W. Pepper, and WRTI-90.1 FM, the media sponsor.

Nominations open March 1, 2021 and are due by March 31, 2021. To nominate a music teacher for the Ovation Award, statements should be submitted online at pyomusic.org. Nominees from prior years are still eligible and nominators are welcomed and strongly encouraged to nominate them again. A blue-ribbon panel of representatives from major music organizations and music departments of area universities will choose ten finalists and the award recipient. All finalists are awarded prizes with the Ovation Award recipient also receiving a $1,000 honorarium. Additionally, the nominator of the Ovation Award recipient will receive a $250 Visa gift card The Ovation Award recipient will be announced during the PYO Music Institute's 2021 Virtual Gala: More Than Music on Thursday, June 10, 2021.

Scaglione is very proud of this award. He said, "Each year we look forward to reading the beautiful nominations of so many music teachers, who do more than teach music skills to students. They build the confidence of students and help them overcome challenges. As a music education institution, we recognize how dedicated these teachers are and how they enhance the lives of hundreds of music students each year. We extend our sincere gratitude to our partners who share in our appreciation of music teachers, people who rarely get the attention they deserve."

The PYO Music Institute is one of the nation's oldest and most highly respected youth orchestral and college preparatory music education institutions for gifted and talented students. Three renowned music organizations with historic ties to the Philadelphia community are partners with PYO as sponsors of The Ovation Award: Jacobs Music, one of the nation's most respected piano merchants and the Tri-state region's exclusive representative for new and authentically restored Steinway & Sons pianos. Steinway's Boston and Essex pianos, J.W. Pepper, one of the leading sheet music merchants in the world and WRTI 90.1 FM, broadcaster of the region's most comprehensive classical and jazz radio programming.

Chris Rinaldi, President of Jacobs Music Company and member of the PYO Music Institute Board of Trustees, is happy to continue Jacobs' support of the PYO Music Institute Ovation Award. He said, "Students' participation in music education provides them with valuable life tools as well as the personal enrichment that music-making provides. This pursuit of music is developed and advanced through the tireless efforts and guidance of dedicated music educators. Jacobs Music Company is delighted to continue to be a part of the Ovation Award which recognizes these teachers and the inspiration they provide for generations of young musicians"

Lee Paynter, COO of J.W. Pepper & Son, is also a member of the PYO Music Institute Board of Trustees. He is proud to have participated in this eight-year PYO tradition and said, "Many people at Pepper, myself included, have personally experienced the gift great music teachers give to their students. Supporting music teachers is part of our company DNA, so we happily join the PYO Music Institute in showing them appreciation through the Ovation Award."

Bill Johnson, general manager of WRTI 90.1 FM, has long been a fan and friend of the PYO Music Institute. His station's ongoing support includes promotion of the Ovation Award and the broadcast of Philadelphia Youth Orchestra concerts performed in Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center. Johnson said, "The pursuit of music brings lifelong rewards. From discipline to collaboration to critical listening, students of music become well-rounded adults who recognize the importance of music education and the arts for a well-lived life. We're proud to be a part of their journey in partnership with the extraordinary leadership and team at the PYO Music Institute."

For more information and to access the Ovation Award application, visit pyomusic.org, or email questions to the PYO Music Institute at ovationaward@pyomusic.org

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