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Portland Youth Philharmonic, the nation’s first and oldest youth orchestra, will host a free virtual concert on Saturday, April 24, 2021, at 7:00 PM Pacific on its YouTube channel. The performance will feature the organization’s chamber orchestra Camerata PYP premiering works written by PYP musicians Koharu and Haruka Sakiyama. PYP’s Music Director David Hattner will introduce the virtual performance and welcome guests in the live chat.

A continuation of PYP’s November 2020 virtual New Music Festival, the April 10^th concert will again feature all-new works composed primarily by women and musicians of color, as part of the Youth Orchestra Commissioning Initiative (YOCI). YOCI strives to connect young musicians with composers writing new, short chamber music pieces to be practiced, performed, and recorded from home.

“PYP has given me the opportunity to connect with young musicians and play beautiful pieces with others” shared 14-year-old Haruka Sakiyama at PYP’s recent Meet the Musicians Breakfast Fundraiser. An eighth grader at Athey Creek Middle School, Haruka is also an accomplished composer. Her works have been performed by PYP’s Young String Ensemble and by the Oregon Symphony. She joined the Portland Youth Philharmonic in 2014, playing first in the Young String Ensemble and then in PYP’s Conservatory Orchestra. She currently plays violin in the Philharmonic and French horn in the Conservatory Orchestra.

“PYP has also given us the opportunity to have many of our original works premiered” added 16-year-old West Linn High School junior Koharu Sakiyama. Like her sister, Koharu is also a composer whose music has been performed by PYP’s Young String Ensemble and fEARnoMUSIC’s Young Composers Project. She first joined the organization in 2013, playing violin in PYP’s Young String Ensemble. In 2015, she earned a spot in PYP’s Conservatory Orchestra, before moving up to the Portland Youth Philharmonic orchestra in 2018.

On April 24, Camerata PYP will premiere Koharu’s Suite du Cirque and Haruka’s Garden March on YouTube. This virtual concert is free and all are welcome. No ticket is required.

During the current school year, PYP musicians meet weekly, rehearsing and receiving instruction from their conductor and music coaches, as well as from the composers, over Zoom. All musicians are responsible for recording their own individual parts, which then are mixed together into an ensemble performance for the virtual concerts.

Viewers can tune in on PYP’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/c/PortlandYouthPhilTV.