Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra Announce 12-Day Netherlands Tour

Benjamin Zander and the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra are immensely proud to announce a tour by the Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (BPYO) to The Netherlands. This trip is the culmination of an extraordinary founding year for the BPYO, and caps the successes the orchestra has had in Boston: two sold-out critically acclaimed performances at Symphony Hall and one at Sanders Theatre in Cambridge. The orchestra, comprising students aged 13 to 21, was founded with the intention of "Shaping future leaders through music." Boston can be proud that this week, in The Netherlands, these 116 students are cultural ambassadors for the USA.. The tour consists of: five performances at the highest level in the best concert halls in The Netherlands; a Live National radio broadcast; working sessions, performances and social time with musicians from student orchestras ; a flash mob in the Amsterdam Metro system; and time for sight-seeing.

Performances will feature Mahler's Symphony No. 2, "Resurrection," in collaboration with the choir of the 7th Koorbiënnale (Haarlem), Sarah-Jane Brandon, soprano and Yvonne Naef, mezzo-soprano, Strauss's Ein Heldenleben, and Schumann's Piano Concerto, with 17-year-old Boston-based prodigy George Li. Concerts are scheduled in Maastricht, Haarlem, Almere, Rotterdam, which will be broadcast Live Nationwide, and Amsterdam. The tour culminates on June 27th with a performance in the acoustically perfect Concertgebouw, Amsterdam, where Mahler himself conducted his"Resurrection" Symphony. Cultural exchange and outreach activities, focused in Maastricht and Amsterdam, will allow BPYO members to serve as ambassadors and generous contributors, central aspects of their leadership training. Also featured is a conducting master class for aspiring Dutch conductors, led by Benjamin Zander with the BPYO.

At the BPYO's founding in June 2012, Benjamin Zander, Mark Churchill and other leaders of the project considered that it was of the utmost importance to establish the BPYO as a serious touring youth orchestra. This tour was planned with the help of Neil Wallace, the Artistic Manager of the Rotterdam concert hall, De Doelen (home of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra.) Leading Dutch music managers and music educators, working with MR. Wallace view the visit of the BPYO and conductor Benjamin Zander as a major stimulus and inspiration to both students and audiences throughout their country, which is experiencing a downturn in its economy and a reduced willingness to fund arts education.

For the student members of the BPYO this tour is full of experiences they will never forget. Mark Churchill described the experience as one that will be transformative, expanding the students' capacity in the world and inspiring them to connect in a larger way with music and audiences. For many students on this tour, it is their first experience going abroad, and for most of the orchestra it is their first trip to The Netherlands; their first opportunity to experience the warmth, openness and generosity of Dutch culture.

BPYO members will also have the opportunity to attend the opening concert of the 7th Koorbiënnale in Haarlem, to visit Muiderslot castle, a medieval castle in the mouth of the river Vecht, the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, and many other exceptional locations.

Throughout the season, Benjamin Zander has given his orchestra members weekly assignments, offering them the possibility to behave differently in the world; to live life on a model other than the usual I succeed/you lose model. The assignments are aimed at preparing orchestra members to be international ambassadors and leaders, to open up to the power of possibility and to be a contribution to society. The assignment for this tour is: "Let go of the old and greet your life and yourself as new." Mr. Zander himself says:

"I have long since given up the game of success/failure and taken up the game of Contribution full time. That is the real reason I conduct BPYO and go on tours to foreign countries with youth orchestras. I cannot wait for what we can contribute to The Netherlands..."

The students are encouraged to understand that their personal demeanor and success builds the success of the organization. Conversely, they know that if they behave in a less than responsible manner on tour, the whole organization is affected. Thus a code of personal responsibility is instilled that can carry the whole organization successfully through the tour.

In conjunction with the BPYO tour, Benjamin Zander will give a talk on The Art of Possibility on June 23rd, a presentation which has been sold out for many weeks already. Mr. Zander has strong connections with The Netherlands; his mother was Dutch, the daughter of prominent Dutch scientist, Rudolph Magnus, awarded the Nobel prize in Physiology in 1927, and for whom the Rudolph Magnus Institute of Neuroscience research at the University Medical Center Utrecht is named. This is Benjamin Zander's first opportunity to conduct in The Netherlands, he is thrilled to be appearing at the Concertgebouw with the BPYO. The Concertgebouw was the first hall in which all the Mahler symphonies were performed. Mahler himself felt most at home and accepted in The Netherlands, more so than in any other European country.

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