Philadelphia Youth Orchestra and Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra Announce Concertmasters for the 2004-2005 Season
Philadelphia - October 15, 2004
Music Director Joseph Primavera has announced the appointments of concertmasters for the 2004-2005 season of the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra (PYO) and the Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra (PYAO).
Cyrus Ebnesajjad (PYO) is a junior at Westtown Friends School near West Chester, PA. His violin teachers have included Luis Baracaldo, Sylvia Ahramjian, and presently, Yayoi Numazawa, a 1st violinist in the Philadelphia Orchestra. Cyrus was Concertmaster of the Delaware County Youth Orchestra in 2002-2003 and is now principle second violinist of the Youth Chamber Orchestra at Temple Music Prep under Luis Biava, where he also plays chamber music. In 1999, he won the Kennett Symphony Competition, Junior Division. In 2002, he won the Newark Symphony Competition, High School Division and the Tri-County Competition, Chamber Music Division. In past summers Cyrus has participated in festivals in Brasov, Romania and the Czech Republic, where he also performed numerous concerts. In addition to violin he enjoys playing tennis. Cyrus resides with his family in Chadds Ford, PA.
Brian Nissim Antar (PYAO) is a freshman at The Haverford School. He has studied violin with Dr. Michael Heaney and currently studies with Choong-Jin Chang, Principal Associate Violist of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Brian is a member of the Main Line Chamber Orchestra, where he was Assistant Concertmaster from 2001-2003 and has performed as a soloist. In the summer of 1999 and 2000, he toured with the Orchestra, performing at festivals in Italy and Spain. In 2001 he performed as a soloist at the White House Holiday Festival. Brian is a member of the Haverford School Advanced Orchestra and the Glee Club as a Tenor II. He is an honor student and attained Maxima Cum Laude in the National Latin Exam in 2002. Some of his other interests include tennis, computers, skiing and running, in which he competes for the Junior Varsity cross-country team at his school. Brian resides with his family in Penn Valley, PA.
Now in its 65th season, the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra (PYO) is one of the oldest youth orchestras in a major U.S. city. Maestro Primavera has served as Music Director and Conductor since 1954, the longest continuous tenure of any active conductor in the world. He has introduced upwards of 3,000 PYO musicians to the works of over 150 composers, led 35 premiere performances, and guided the overseas concert tours that have taken the PYO to 21 countries on five continents, most recently to Europe in June and July 2004. The Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra (PYAO) was established in 1995 under a two-year grant from the Pew Charitable Trusts. Louis Scaglione is the Conductor.
The Philadelphia Youth Orchestra receives support from the Philadelphia Cultural Fund, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a State agency funded by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the National Endowment for the Arts, and the U.S. Department of Education.