RPO TO FEATURE YOUNG ARTIST AWARD WINNER

Hilton High School Senior Luke Pisani will perform

at two free Around-the-Town concerts     

Rochester, NY –Your Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) will feature the Rochester Philharmonic League’s 2022 Young Artist Awards (YAA) winner, violinist Luke Pisani, at two free RPO Around-the-Town concerts this month: Wednesday, October 26 at 7:30 PM at Churchville-Chili High School and Thursday, October 27 at 7:30 PM at Hilton High School.

Back in March, the League awarded the Hilton High School senior both the $1,000 Aldridge-Tinker Scholarship for Instrumentalists and the Grand Prize: an opportunity to perform with the orchestra. The panel of judges included RPO Music Director Andreas Delfs, Hochstein School of Music President & Executive Director Dr. Margaret Quackenbush, and former RPO Associate Concertmaster Wilfredo Deglans.

“Luke impressed the judges with his ‘technical command and musical energy,’” quotes Rochester Philharmonic League Chair Catherine Frangenberg.

Luke will perform the Finale of Max Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1, one of the most popular concertos in solo violin repertoire. Guest Conductor Paul Shewan – also an RPO trumpet player – is a Churchville-Chili graduate and will dedicate part of the program to his late high school band director, Ron Cicero. That program includes the second movement of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7, the fourth movement of Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9 (From The New World), and John Williams’ “Princess Leia’s Theme” from Star Wars: Suite for Orchestra.

More about Luke Pisani: Luke played with the Hochstein Youth Symphony Orchestra for six seasons and served as concertmaster, conducting apprentice, and twice won the HYSO concerto competition. This past summer, he attended the Bowdoin International Music Festival in Maine. Selected accomplishments include: Chicago Violin Competition (2nd Prize), New York All-State Orchestra (Concertmaster), NYSMTA Past-Presidents’ High School Instrumental Winner, Rochester Philharmonic League Ruth and Sidney Salzman Award for Strings, and David Hochstein Recital Competition Winner. In addition to performing with the RPO this month, Luke has also won solo competitions that earned him opportunities to play with the Genesee Symphony Orchestra and the Finger Lakes Symphony Orchestra. His string quartet, Saturday Quartet, won the 2021 Syracuse Friends of Chamber Music Competition and was a finalist in the national Coltman Chamber Music Competition. Luke studies jazz piano with Dariusz Terefenko at the Eastman School of Music and plays with the Eastman Youth Jazz Orchestra. He’s a National Honor Society student and plays varsity basketball at Hilton High School. Luke currently studies violin with RPO Assistant Concertmaster Shannon Nance. He plans to study violin performance in college and pursue a career as a classical and jazz musician.

More about the Young Artist Auditions (YAA): Hosted by the Rochester Philharmonic League since 1955, the Young Artist Auditions is the region’s most prestigious competition for high school-age musicians, recognizing talent and dedication in Male Vocal, Female Vocal, Strings, Piano, and Instrumental categories.  The YAA is judged by professionals in each field, with First Round winner awards of $500 and runners-up awards of $200 given for each classification. Winners and runners-up then compete for a $1,000 Instrumental Scholarship, a $1000 Vocal Scholarship, and the Grand Prize: an opportunity to perform in concert with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra.

The Rochester Philharmonic League (RPL): was founded in 1929 as a volunteer support group for the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. For more than 90 years, the two organizations have collaborated to further their common goal of providing great music and music education in the greater Rochester community. The League’s current activities focus on educating young people about music and the RPO, and on fostering the advancement of music talent in the community’s youth.

ABOUT THE RPO: The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) has been committed to enriching and inspiring our community through the art of music since its origins in 1922. The RPO presents approximately 150 concerts and broadcasts a year, serving up to 170,000 people through ticketed events, education and community engagement activities, and concerts in schools and community centers throughout the region. Music Director Andreas Delfs joins the ranks of former notable RPO music directors, including Erich Leinsdorf, David Zinman, Mark Elder, Ward Stare, and Conductor Laureate Christopher Seaman. Principal Pops Conductor Jeff Tyzik, now in his 29th season, has earned a national reputation for excellence in pops programming during his tenure with the RPO. The RPO reaches more than 15,000 youth through its specific education programs.

The RPO thanks Season Sponsor M&T Bank, Pops Series Sponsors Canandaigua National Bank & Wegmans, and Special Series Sponsor Pittsford Federal Credit Union.

Media please note: High-resolution images and other media assets for the 2022-23 Season can be found at https://bit.ly/3Rki4CL. Interviews and photo/footage opportunities are also available.