Truly Unique, Both 'Trend-Setting And Forward-Thinking'

Photo by Bachrach Photography

Returning to the beautiful St. Mark’s Church in Center City Philadelphia, the talented members of the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra’s Bravo Brass ensemble will present a concert titled “Ye Olde Brass” on Saturday, March 4 at 7:30 p.m. The concert features music of English Elizabethan composers William Byrd, John Bull, Giles Farnaby, Orlando Gibbons, and others. St. Mark’s is located at 1625 Locust St, Philadelphia, PA.

Paul Bryan, dean of faculty and students at the Curtis Institute of Music, is the Director and Conductor of Bravo Brass. In looking forward to this concert, he said, "the members of the ensemble have enjoyed preparing the unique music for this concert. Elizabethan England is often referred to as the English renaissance, and the music of the time was as trend-setting and forward-thinking as the works of another of the period's great artists, William Shakespeare. Performers and audience members alike are sure to enjoy the music of the evening."

There is a $15 ticket price. For more information about Bravo Brass and the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra and tickets, please visit www.pyos.org or call (215) 545-0502.

About Bravo Brass
Bravo Brass, founded in 1997, is the brass ensemble program of Philadelphia Youth Orchestra led by Director and Conductor Paul Bryan. The only year-round brass ensemble in the Philadelphia area and one of only three in the country, Bravo Brass offers the highest level of individual and ensemble training and performance opportunities for the most accomplished young brass musicians in the area.

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.