Carnegie Hall announces the launch of the National Youth Orchestra of the United
States of America, a major new initiative that will
bring together the most talented young orchestral players from across the United
States. Created by Carnegie Hall’s Weill
Music Institute, NYO-USA provides an opportunity for 120 exceptional young
musicians (ages 16–19) from across the US to come together with their peers, supported
by a faculty of leading professional orchestra musicians and a different celebrated
conductor each year, for a two-week intensive musical residency, followed by an
international tour to top music capitals around the world.
World-renowned conductor Valery Gergiev will lead the orchestra
in its inaugural year. Students will come together to create NYO-USA, the
first US national youth orchestra in recent history, from June 30 through July
23, 2013. Following a rigorous two-week training
residency on the campus of Purchase College, State University of New York, Mr.
Gergiev will conduct the orchestra in its debut performances at Purchase College’s
Performing Arts Center and Washington DC’s Kennedy Center, followed by an exciting
international tour spanning Moscow, St. Petersburg, and London, with a program to
include Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10.
“I look forward to getting
to know many new, gifted musicians—sharing ideas, learning together, and going
on a cultural journey.”
—Valery Gergiev, inaugural conductor for NYO-USA
“I was very excited to be asked to
conduct the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America in its first
year,” said Maestro Gergiev, who is also music director of the Mariinsky Theatre in
St. Petersburg and principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, as well
as founder and artistic director of several major international music
festivals. “I think every youth
orchestra around the world is very important, and I expect that the National
Youth Orchestra of the USA,
in particular, will be very highly accomplished, both technically and
artistically. I look forward to getting
to know many new, gifted musicians—sharing ideas, learning together, and going
on a cultural journey, discovering new places. For students, I expect playing in NYO-USA will be an honor, a
challenge, a pleasure, and an unforgettable experience not to be missed.”
Tour dates, venues for all cities, and
complete concert program will be announced in early 2013. Due to ongoing construction, NYO-USA will
first perform at Carnegie Hall in summer 2014. Musicians are invited to apply to this tuition-free
program, which is designed to shine a light on the extraordinary talent of young
American instrumentalists, offering each NYO-USA member a life-changing musical
and cultural experience as they develop their musical skills, receive training
at the highest professional level, and travel abroad, serving as musical youth ambassadors
for the US.