Las Vegas Philharmonic Performs For More Than 14,000 Students

The Las Vegas Philharmonic presented ten free youth concerts to fourth-grade students in the Clark County School District during its Youth Concert Series in November 2015 and January 2016.

The over 14,000 students in attendance watched and listened as the orchestra performed a 45-minute set that featured seven unique works that showcased different sections of the orchestra and varying techniques and styles of classical music. The repertoire included Mussorgsky's The Hut on Fowls' Legs from Pictures at an Exhibition, Strauss's Excerpt from Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks, Tchaikovsky's Odette and the Prince from Act II of Swan Lake, Rouse's Ku-Ka-Ilimoku, Grieg's In the Hall of the Mountain King from Peer Gynt Suite No. 1, Britten's Storm from Four Sea Interludes and Wieniawski's Violin Concerto No. 2, Mvmt. III featuring our Cox Communications Young Artists' Concerto Competition Winner, Kelsea Au.

The purpose of the Youth Concert Series is to expose students to live symphonic music before they select a musical instrument and enroll in band by sixth grade. Prior to each season, Music Director Donato Cabrera and representatives from the Clark County School District Partnership Office plan the repertoire to be presented to students at the upcoming youth concerts. The teachers receive information about the composers, the music and the history behind each piece so that they can prepare the students ahead of time, thus enabling the students to have a better understanding of the music they will hear the Las Vegas Philharmonic perform.

Carol Veslany, the Music Specialist at Joseph M. Neal Elementary School, one of the Title 1 schools, which attended, said the concert was appropriate for the age of the students who attended and was very impressed with the number of students who were able to participate. She called the experience "a great opportunity" for her students.

A new component to the Philharmonic's Youth Concert Series was the collaboration with the DISCOVERY Children's Museum. More than 1,200 students from Title 1 schools were given the opportunity to participate in a pilot program during November and January youth concerts. Educators from DISCOVERY Children's Museum tailored four interactive exhibits to the youth concert repertoire. Children learned about sound waves, created puppets to Tchaikovsky's Odette and the Prince from Swan Lake, painted to the tempo of Stravinsky's Firebird Suite and engaged in the Water World Gallery after hearing Britten's Storm from Four Sea Interludes. According to Tifferney White, DISCOVERY Children's Museum's CEO & President the pilot program was a success. "Since each child may favor one or more approaches to learning, our goal was to take the students' experience from the concert hall a step further by engaging their visual and tactile senses to create a comprehensive musical experience." The Las Vegas Philharmonic and DISCOVERY Children's Museum plan to raise additional funding in order to continue the program in subsequent seasons and engage a greater numbers of students in the collaborative program.

The Youth Concert Series was generously underwritten by individual supporters, foundations and corporate sponsors including The Bennett Family Foundation, Cox Communications, Green Valley Grocery, Las Vegas Philharmonic Guild, NV Energy, Bank of Nevada, Target, Kinder Morgan, South Point, Wells Fargo, Southern Nevada Music, MGM Resorts, National Endowment for the Arts, Arts4Nevada.org and the Nevada Arts Council.

The Las Vegas Philharmonic, led by Music Director, Donato Cabrera, established its presence in Southern Nevada in 1998. The mission of the organization is to perform music that enriches and educates, helping to build a vibrant, culturally rich community. A proud resident company of The Smith Center for the Performing Arts, the Las Vegas Philharmonic brings a valued cultural dimension to the city, providing over 16,000 children each year with vital access to a music education program and showcasing local talents alongside stellar nationally and internationally known guest artists on the magnificent Reynolds Hall stage. At the orchestra's core are 76 contracted professional musicians, many of whom are esteemed educators who also perform in other professional productions in Las Vegas, bringing depth and variety to the organization.

As a 501(c)(3) organization, the Philharmonic's community, education and artistic programs are made possible by the generous donations and support of individuals and corporations. To join us in our mission or learn more, visit lvphil.org or call 702.258.5438.

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