Charles County Youth Orchestra, Osman Kivrak, Director with Encore Band, Takako Mato, Director; Encore Strings, Teri Lazar, Director; and Prelude Strings, Dennis Murphy, Director
CCYO’s annual Winter Concert on Sunday January 15, will begin at 3:30 p.m. and will be held at Thomas Stone High School, 3785 Leonardtown Rd, Waldorf, MD. This concert is free and open to the public.
Conducted by, Dennis Murphy, Prelude Strings; Teri Lazar, Encore Strings; Takako Mato, Encore Band, and Osman Kivrak, Charles County Youth Orchestra, the program will include “The Great Gate of Kiev” by Mussorgsky, Symphony No. 7 by Beethoven, and Bartok’s Viola Concerto with CCYO Concerto Competition winner Joseph Bonney as soloist. Other works will include arrangements of music by Bach, Handel, Saint-Saens, Gershwin, and music from “The Avengers”. The concert will conclude with a rousing rendition of Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy” with all four ensembles performing together.
Upcoming CCYO events include Mid-Year Auditions for all four ensembles on January 21. Information and sign ups can be found at https://www.charlescountyyouthorchestra.org/auditions. The popular “Bring a Friend Day” where new students can sit in with current students to discover the joy of making music together will be the last week of January.
Recently, CCYO has been spotlighted in an online film by the Charles County Arts Alliance and has been featured on WTOP radio. Also, this past spring two CCYO String Quartets were finalists in the prestigious Washington Performing Arts Society Misbin Chamber Music Competition in Washington, D.C.
CCYO presents two large concerts and several smaller concerts each year, a three-week Chamber Music Festival with three additional chamber music concerts, a Concerto Competition concert as well as masterclasses and sectionals for students in all four of CCYO’s ensembles.
CCYO is one of the largest youth organizations in Southern Maryland, providing music education and performance opportunities for talented young musicians ages 8 to 18 in Charles, Prince George’s, St. Mary’s, and Calvert counties.
The Charles County Youth Orchestra is sponsored in part by grants from the Charles County Arts Alliance, the Maryland State Arts Council, the Rotary Club of Charles County, MD, the Charles County Charitable Trust and the Knights of Columbus of Accokeek, MD. Other major contributors include Potters Violins, Gailes Violin Shop, and the Neighborhood Creative Arts Center of La Plata as well as generous donations from individuals.
