Carnegie Hall

In July 2021, the 77 gifted teen musicians of Carnegie Hall’s NYO2 gathered at Purchase College, State University of New York, for an intensive four-week residency, alongside their peers in the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America (NYO-USA) and NYO Jazz. It was the first time since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic that many of the young players met in large ensembles to perform in person with fellow musicians.

NYO2 worked with leading players from America’s finest orchestras, and Joseph Young served as NYO2’s resident conductor. The young musicians focused on preparations for a culminating streaming performance at the end of their residency that featured all three ensembles. NYO2 performed Hindemith’s Symphonic Metamorphosis after Themes by Carl Maria von Weber and Price’s Ethiopia’s Shadow in America under the direction of conductor Mei-Ann Chen. NYO2 had the chance to work with two living composers during the residency. In the first-ever commission for NYO2, Molly Joyce wrote a work titled Side by Side, specifically with a digital video premiere in mind and including open captions by blind media artist Andy Slater, which describe the aural content for artistic and accessibility purposes. Mexican composer Juan Pablo Contreras also visited Purchase to help the orchestra prepare to record his evocative Mariachitlán. The final concert film recorded by Mei-Chan and NYO2 featured Beethoven’s Egmont Overture.

Taking advantage of the extended residency at Purchase, the musicians of NYO-USA and NYO2 reconfigured as three reading orchestras of about 60 players, with rotating wind/brass/percussion players. Each ensemble participated in six reading sessions, giving students the chance to work on a much wider range of repertoire than is typically possible, with a focus on music by female and non-European composers.

HINDEMITH Symphonic Metamorphosis after Themes by Carl Maria von Weber
PRICE Ethiopia's Shadow in America
MOLLY JOYCE Side by Side (commissioned by Carnegie Hall)
BEETHOVEN Egmont Overture
JUAN PABLO CONTRERAS Mariachitlán