RPYO opens concert season on November 17

The Rochester Philharmonic Youth Orchestra begins its 33rd season with Mentors and Masterworks, a concert named in honor of its professional orchestral Mentors, the musicians of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. This annual Joint RPYO/RPO Concert in Eastman Theatre, for decades a Rochester tradition under the sponsorship of the RPO, will be conducted by RPYO Music Director David Harman at 3 p.m. on Sunday, November 17. Concert tickets are $8 and $5.

The RPYO concert will feature several well-known and exciting orchestral works, including Rossini's "William Tell Overture" and Sibelius' "Finlandia." RPO Principal Clarinet, Kenneth Grant, will perform with the youth orchestra two virtuosic clarinet pieces, Debussy's "Rhapsodie" and von Weber's "Concertino."

One of the most admired of RPO musicians, Kenneth Grant's command of the clarinet displays equal facility from Mozart to Mahler and from jazz to klezmer riffs. In addition to his position with the RPO, Grant teaches on the faculty of the Eastman School of Music and has been a long-time supporter of the RPYO and Mentor to its clarinet section. The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra will join the student musicians of the RPYO on stage during the concert's second half for music with a Spanish flavor, de Falla's "Three Cornered-Hat Suite," No 2 and Rimsky-Korsakov's "Capriccio espagnol."

The Rochester Philharmonic Youth Orchestra is comprised of 95 middle and high school musicians from 33 schools in the greater Rochester area and selected through highly competitive auditions. It is sponsored by the Education Department of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and rehearses at Apollo Middle School in Greece.

Discounted ticket rates for groups of ten or more are available upon request. There is open seating for all ticket prices. Call (585) 454-7311 extension 224 or (585) 377-3537. Tickets are also available at the door at the time of the concert.