PORTLAND YOUTH PHILHARMONIC TO PREMIERE NEW WORK BY JAMES STEPHENSON AT BREAKFAST FUNDRASIER, AHEAD OF VIRTUAL CONCERT IN APRIL
Posted on March 3, 2021
PORTLAND, OR – Portland Youth Philharmonic, the nation’s first and oldest youth orchestra, will host its annual Meet the Musicians Breakfast Fundraiser virtually this year. Friends, supporters, and alumni of PYP will gather online at 8:00 AM on Wednesday, March 17, 2021, for a livestream presentation and world premiere performance of Chicago-based composer James Stephenson’s Green, by PYP’s chamber orchestra, Camerata PYP. The piece is a movement from Stephenson’s larger work Suite of Suites, commissioned especially for PYP’s 97th virtual season.
Viewers can tune into PYP’s Meet the Musicians Breakfast livestream at www.portlandyouthphil.org/breakfast. Audiences will be inspired by the accomplishment of PYP’s young musicians, meet some of the musicians and alumni, and learn how the orchestra’s diverse programs positively change the lives of children in the Portland community. The orchestra invites participants to support PYP’s 97-year legacy of accessible music education with a tax-deductible contribution.
At last year’s fundraising Breakfast, thanks to generous donor support, the organization raised over $95,000 for PYP’s outstanding music education programs provided at no charge to individuals or schools. This year’s goal is $100,000 to support PYP’s multiple community programs serving 13,000 students annually.
Since its founding in 1924, Portland Youth Philharmonic has provided young musicians with a challenging opportunity to explore their creativity while receiving the highest quality music education possible. Need-based financial aid is available to all qualifying enrolled musicians. The orchestra’s long tradition of affordable music education and inspiring performances dates back to its first concert in February 1925.
Just a few weeks after the 96th anniversary of the orchestra’s first-ever performance, PYP will proudly present PYPFEST Vol. 2: The Orchestra Strikes Back on Saturday, April 10, 2021, at 7:00 PM PST. A continuation of the November 2020 virtual PYP New Music Festival, the performance will once again feature all-new works composed primarily by women and musicians of color, as part of the Youth Orchestra Commissioning Initiative. YOCI strives to connect young musicians with composers who write new, short chamber music pieces to be practiced, performed, and recorded from individual musicians’ homes. PYP’s musicians meet weekly, rehearsing and receiving instruction from their conductor and music coaches, as well as the composers, over Zoom. All musicians are responsible for recording their own individual parts, which then are mixed together into an ensemble performance for the virtual concerts.
Following the March Breakfast, PYP will premiere James Stephenson’s full Suite of Suites in April alongside 9 other new compositions from Eduardo Alonso-Crespo, Tatev Amiryan, Jonathan Bingham, Sakari Dixon Vanderveer, Erberk Eryılmaz, Gabriel A. Meneses, Gordon Rencher, Bruce Stark, and Rain Worthington.
On Saturday, June 5, 2021, the orchestra will conclude its 97th season with PYPFEST Vol. 3: Return of the Orchestra, premiering 9 new compositions. Commissioned composers for this round include Nicole Buetti, Alfonso Fuentes Colón, Kamran N. Ince, Nancy Ives, Texu Kim, Isabella Morrill, Reinaldo Moya, and PYP alumnus Kevin Walczyk.
Due to the ongoing global pandemic, “e-tickets” to PYPFEST are offered on a “pay what you can” fee structure. To learn more about PYP’s New Music Festival and to get an e-ticket to watch from home, visit www.portlandyouthphil.org/concerts.
Viewers can tune into PYP’s Meet the Musicians Breakfast Fundraiser livestream and learn more at www.portlandyouthphil.org/breakfast.