Mark O'Connor's

“Appalachia Waltz” com-

position and album were

not made eligible for the

Grammys in 1996 be-

cause the music was dif-

ferent from anything any-

one had heard before.

Classical, pop instrumen-

tal, American roots? No-

body wanted it in their

Grammy category! It re-

mained at the #1 spot of

the Classical Billboard

charts for an entire year,

but received no nomina-

tion that year. Still,

O’Connor is a two-time

Grammy award winner—

in 1992 with the Nash-

ville Cats and in 2001 for

his “Appalachian Jour-

ney” collaboration with

Yo-Yo Ma and Edgar

Meyer.

This May Mark

O’Connor brings his eclec-

tic music to YOBC for a

series of workshops and a

special concert at Patriots

Theater in Trenton. As

the featured soloist,

O’Connor will perform his

35-minute “Improvised

Concerto” with the YOBC

Symphony Orchestra.

All YOBC string mu-

sicians at all levels will

Ensemble Playing:

Timeless Lessons for Life

2

What Has Charm,

Music, and Helps Others?

3

Executive Director’s

Corner: Put On Your

Hard Hats

3

YOBC Alumnus Jason

Karlyn Making a Mark in

Music

4

Student Spotlight:

Lena Hadly

5

US Army All-American

Marching Band

5

Philadelphia Orchestra

Cello Play-In

6

Important Dates: February 23, YOBC Wine

Tasting Benefit, New Hope

Winery, 6:30–10:00 PM

March 23, Spring Concerts,

Maple Point Middle School,

Langhorne, 2:00 & 8:00 PM

March 24, Move Up Audi-

tions

May 4, Mark O’Connor

Workshops, BCCC

May 5, Mark O’Connor

Concert, Patriots Theater,

Trenton, 4:00 PM

June 8, YOBC Concerto

Competition

Inside this issue: Mark O’Connor Brings Eclectic Music to YOBC

Volume 4, Number 3, February 2013

have the opportunity to

work and perform with

Mark O’Connor. At his

workshops on Saturday,

May 4, he brings The

O'Connor Method—A

New American School of

String Playing to YOBC.

O’Connor has developed a

string instrument tech-

nique for music teachers

and students. The method

places an emphasis on

music and playing tech-

niques from North Ameri-

ca, in addition to focusing

on “rhythm development,

ear training, and improvi-

sation.” Our students are

working on American

classics like “Boil ’em

Cabbages” and “Amazing

Grace” to prepare for the

workshops and perfor-

mances.

A product of Ameri-

ca’s rich aural folk tradi-

tion as well as classical

music, Mark O'Connor's

creative journey began at

the feet of a pair of musi-

cal giants. The first was

the folk fiddler and inno-

vator who created the

modern era of American

fiddling, Benny Thomas-

son; the second was the

French jazz violinist con-

Keeping Tempo

sidered one of the great-

est improvisers in the

history of the violin,

Stephane Grappelli.

Along the way, between

these marvelous musical

extremes, Mark O’Connor

absorbed knowledge and

influence from the multi-

tude of musical styles and

genres he studied.

We are pleased to of-

fer this fabulous oppor-

tunity to YOBC students

as part of our 22nd sea-

son. Make sure to get

your tickets and bring

your friends to this unfor-

gettable performance.

Page 2

Ensemble Playing: Timeless Lessons for Life

Music Lessons

Playing in an ensemble has many

valuable lessons for the young

musician that translate later into

character strengths. The qualities

learned in group participation

help students work well with oth-

ers in the future.

1. Ear training is of utmost im-

portance. This includes into-

nation, tone development, and

discernment in listening.

2. There is great satisfaction in

mastering one's instrument

and a real sense of belonging

when one participates in a

group.

3. Learning new and unusual

repertoire is a wonderful op-

portunity to expand

knowledge of musical litera-

ture.

4. To be a proficient sight reader

is unusual for students. I al-

ways say to my students: “Be

the first one on your block to

be an excellent sight reader!”

There is also much to be

learned from the study of mu-

sic theory and music history.

5. The ability to take instruction

gracefully and gratefully is a

highly admirable quality. In

the non-music world, I have

noticed in my relationships

there are many people who

don’t take suggestions well.

Music students are much bet-

ter at this.

Life Lessons

Ensemble playing contributes

much to everyday life.

1. Ensemble playing teaches a

student how to be a team

player. This is excellent prep-

aration for college and the

professional life.

2. Developing good manners and

proper etiquette with other

honor as playing first. All of this may sound hope-

lessly old fashioned! That’s what I

am. I love classical music and I

think many things from the good

old days have fallen by the way-

side. To produce beautiful music

requires many of these outdated

ideas that are as important today

as they were in past decades.

It is such a privilege and oppor-

tunity for me to work with the

flutists. I am thankful to be a part

of YOBC, working alongside such

talented conductors, dedicated

staff, enthusiastic volunteers,

selfless parents, and passionate

students. What a wonderful pro-

gram. I’m so grateful to be part of

it.

Thank you!

—Margaret Claudin, Conductor

YOBC Flute Choir and

players will take a student

far in later relationships.

3. Encouragement and diploma-

cy aren’t discussed much in

our modern society but they

are highly valued and con-

tribute to a kinder world. If

the student becomes a teach-

er, these are essential tools.

4. The responsibility of practic-

ing and preparing a musi-

cian’s individual part trans-

lates to the professional

world when colleagues and

bosses can rely upon a worker

to do their job well.

5. Consistent attendance

demonstrates reliability as

the participants fulfills their

obligation to the whole group

or organization.

6. Each member is indispensi-

ble. There are no superior or

inferior parts and the same

holds true in business and

academia. When a player is

missing, everyone feels it, no

matter if a person plays first

or second or third. Everyone

is equally important and

playing third is as much an

An early 20th-century flute choir from Prague, Czechoslovakia

Page 3

Executive Director’s Corner: Put on Your Hard Hats

Volume 4, Number 3, February 2013

“Please excuse our appearance dur-

ing construction.” The sign was a

light green poster decorated with

smiling stick figures carrying lad-

ders and wearing hard hats. I stood

at the entrance of the store trying to

decide whether to brave the laby-

rinth of revamped aisles and the

noisy clatter of workmen’s tools.

How bad could it be? I decided to

give it a try. But once inside the

store, I found the situation com-

pletely and unbearably unsettling.

Nothing made sense. Half of aisle 7

was missing. The organic peanut

butter was on the same shelf as the

mac and cheese; my beloved Snap-

ple was nowhere to be found! Why

was this happening? Construction

was so…untidy and confusing and

inconvenient. I’m not very good at

change. I like to have a good handle

on what to expect.

Change happens everywhere,

all the time, and YOBC is no excep-

tion. Over the years, YOBC has

grown from a single group to an

array of ensembles, organized with-

in a comprehensive curriculum de-

signed to guide the growth of young

musicians as they progress from

beginning to advanced stages of

their musical development. Through-

out its 22-year history, YOBC has

been a construction site, revising in-

frastructure, contracting artist faculty

and performers, adapting existing

programs, and building new ones.

Next season, YOBC will take an-

other exciting step in expanding op-

portunities for our students. With our

focus on offering ensembles that build

musical skills step-by-step and creat-

ing learning environments with high

potential for educational impact, we

have “remodeled” YOBC’s ensemble

program. Three important projects

will be unveiled. First, we will be cre-

ating a second-tier full orchestra by

adding a full complement of wind and

percussion instruments to our current

Philharmonia. This change will give

more students a full orchestra experi-

ence and provide necessary training

for entry into YOBC’s Symphony Or-

chestra. Philharmonia will be con-

ducted by Steve Sweetsir with string

sectionals taught by Bob Loughran.

Second, Fanfare Winds, a new top-tier

wind ensemble will be added to YOB-

C’s roster. This will create a progres-

sion of three large wind groups: Wind

Symphony, Wind Ensemble, and Fan-

fare Winds. Fanfare Winds will be

conducted by Steve Sweetsir. Karl

Krelove, a 30-year teaching veteran

and conductor of YOBC’s Clarinet

Ensemble, will conduct the YOBC

Wind Ensemble. Third, YOBC’s Per-

cussion Ensemble will be expanded

to include percussion fundamentals

for all YOBC Intermediate percus-

sion students. Joey D’Alicandro will

oversee that ensemble.

Over the next three years, we

will refine these programs and infuse

YOBC with artistry by expanding

our chamber music offerings and

featuring inspiring guest artists and

educators in our programs. These

efforts will support YOBC’s mission,

“…to create opportunities for young

musicians to achieve artistic excel-

lence through enriching classical mu-

sic experiences.”

So put on your hard hats and

help us launch YOBC’s exciting con-

struction project that will culminate

in 2015–16, our 25th Anniversary

Season. Visit the YOBC website for

an outline and detailed description of

all our ensembles and programs. Pre-

requisites and audition information

are also available under Join YOBC.

—Colleen Sweetsir

YOBC Executive Director

What Has Charm, Music, and Helps Others? If you guessed this year’s Wine

Tasting Benefit at New Hope Win-

ery with Livingston Taylor, then

you have tapped into YOBC’s con-

viction, “YES WE CAN!”. We can

provide, this year and every year,

exciting and stimulating education-

al, enrichment and outreach pro-

grams for any and all kids who are

willing and dedicated to the art and

craft of instrumental music making.

What better way than to em-

brace music and have fun right here

in Bucks County? Come to our Si-

lent Auction and see the exquisite,

knitted cashmere shawl that

YOBC parent, Adria Hadly, has

made for us once again with her

talent and time. We have the best

apple pie ever made in Bucks Coun-

ty, thanks to Ripieno Liaison, Nina

Dewees. Thank

you also to the

Friends of

YOBC and par-

ents who so far

have donated

fine wines, vaca-

tion homes, free

tickets to events,

and more, plus

our generous

sponsorships.

Yes, it is

possible, but we can’t do it alone. We

are still in need of more Benefit

ticketholders, donations, and spon-

sorships to achieve support of YOB-

C’s full spectrum of programming.

So come and with collective effort,

WE CAN do it! All contributions are

welcome…any amount, any means…

and remember to make YOBC part

of your charitable giving every

year. Go to yobc.org to see what

YOU can do!

—Dori Clough

YOBC Board of Directors

Page 4

YOBC Alumnus Jason Karlyn Making a Mark in Music Just 15 years ago, YOBC alumnus

Jason Karlyn, picked up a viola for

the first time, and his life changed

forever. Jason, now a candidate for

a Master of Music at the University

of Southern California (USC), had

already studied piano for two years.

That gave him an excellent founda-

tion for learning a string instru-

ment. He enjoyed many successes

throughout his years in Council

Rock, participating in the District

Elementary Orchestra, being se-

lected for the all the PMEA festi-

vals in his first year of eligibility,

and culminating in his winning

first chair in the All-Eastern Hon-

ors Orchestra. Outside of school,

School at Lincoln Center in New

York City. Jason had some safety

schools in mind, but he didn’t need

them. Jason graduated from Juil-

liard in May 2012 with a Bachelor

of Music in viola performance and

accepted a full scholarship to USC

for the two-year master’s program,

studying under Curtis Institute of

Music graduate and principal viol-

ist of the San Diego Symphony, Che

-Yen Chen.

Jason has had the honor of per-

forming at the Kimmel Center, Car-

negie Hall, Lincoln Center, Lon-

don’s Royal Albert Hall, and at var-

ious other venues throughout the

United States and in Italy and Bra-

zil. His conductors have included

Alan Gilbert, Leonard Slatkin,

John Adams, Michael Tilson Thom-

as, and David Zinman, among oth-

ers. Most recently Jason was the

principal violist of the USC Sym-

phony Orchestra on national televi-

sion for the Los Angeles holiday

tree lighting with Barry Manilow

and Sarah Brightman.

Jason’s mom (YOBC board

member Dawn Karlyn) believes

that the YOBC experience played a

major role in Jason’s development

as a musician. She says, “Jason’s

passion for music could not have

been fulfilled without YOBC. The

structure of the organization pro-

vides an excellent ladder for a mu-

sician to grow, staffed by highly

talented conductors and excellent

performance opportunities.” She is

thrilled to be part of YOBC’s board

to help give back to the orchestra

that started it all for her son.

Jason’s first and probably most im-

portant step in his musical develop-

ment was to join YOBC. The won-

derful instruction, nurturing lead-

ership, and being surrounded by

other highly talented musicians

helped Jason to flourish. For Jason,

YOBC helped foster his passion and

determination to continually strive

for the next level.

In high school, Jason won a schol-

arship to the Settlement Music

School in an advanced studies quar-

tet under former Philadelphia Or-

chestra Principal Violist, Sidney

Curtiss. Jason also held the first

chair in the Philadelphia Youth Or-

chestra, Temple University’s Youth

Chamber Orchestra,

and the Council Rock

South Symphony and

Chambers Orches-

tras. In the summer

of 2006, Jason was a

soloist with the

Ocean City Pops.

Knowing that

music would be a

major force in his

life, Jason’s parents

sought opportunities

in the summers for

Jason to participate

in music festivals.

Jason attended the

Strings Internation-

al Festival, now

known as the Phila-

delphia Internation-

al Music Festival

and in 2007, he was

accepted to the

world-renowned As-

pen Music Festival,

where he received

fellowships and

studied for four sum-

mers.

Jason’s passion

for the viola contin-

ued to grow, and he

set his sights on a

lofty goal. He want-

ed nothing more

than to attend the

prestigious Juilliard

Page 5

When I was selected as part of the

US Army All-American

Marching Band, I thought

it would be really cool to

spend a week with a

bunch of band nerds prep-

ping for a performance at

the All-American Bowl in

San Antonio.

To put it simply, call-

ing the experience “cool”

would be like calling liq-

uid nitrogen “chilly.” The

entire week was beyond

belief.

The first night was fantastic as

we were exposed to the inspiring

words of the director, Professor

Feagin, a rock concert by the group

The Volunteers, and New Year’s

fireworks. As the week went on, we

experienced, among other things,

the Alamo, a party with rapper

Wale, a barbeque meal in the Ala-

modome, a push-up contest (in which

our drum major showed up

the football players!), and

the Federal Brass Quintet.

Eventually, we had to get

around to rehearsal, and

when we did, I realized I was

in marching band heaven,

where all lines are straight.

It was amazing to see the

amount of perfection and

talent around me, and we

were able to learn and clean

drill faster than I thought

possible. We marched in a

dome, in 30 degree weather, in the

wind, in the rain, in the hail—and

through it all, we bonded while getting

better at an astronomical rate. All this

work culminated in the performance at

halftime on Saturday, and standing

there in the last set, seeing and hear-

ing the audience’s reaction—it was an

amazing feeling to know that we had

evoked so much emo-

tion in so many peo-

ple. Soon afterwards,

though, I was over-

come by a feeling of

great sadness as I

realized this amazing

event was over.

I got lots of free

stuff, which was cool,

but the two best

things I got were not physical. The

one was life lessons and learning. To

talk about those, I could go on for a

week quoting the brilliant Professor

Feagin with his statements such as,

“It takes energy to produce energy”

and “We are here to say ‘Thank

You.’” Suffice it to say that I learned

so much about the army, clarinet,

marching, band, people, me, success,

life, doing the Bernie… the list goes

on. The other was friendships; it was

amazing to get to know the instruc-

tional staff and learn about their

awesomeness on every level. And, of

course, I can’t overstate how ridicu-

lously fantastic the clarinetists, pic-

coloists, and other band members

were that I got to know, both on

their instruments and as people in

general.

The experience was mind-

blowingly amazing, and it is one I

will treasure the rest of my life. I feel

incredibly fortunate to have been

able to be a part of it, and am eter-

nally grateful to everyone who made

the experience as ridiculously, epi-

cally fantastic as it was. It was an

amazing experience.

—Daniel Gift

Daniel Gift is principal clarinetist in

YOBC’s Symphony Orchestra and Wind

Ensemble

US Army All-American Marching Band

tudent potlight: Lena Hadly

Lena Hadly is a sophomore at

Pennsbury High School and a

member of the YOBC Philharmo-

nia. She has been playing the vio-

lin for a little over six years and

joined YOBC about three years

ago. Lena joined YOBC because

she likes to be able to play chal-

lenging music.

In addition to the violin, Le-

na plays the mandolin. She

plays music in Pennsbury High

School’s symphonic orchestra.

Sometimes she and her friends

play together as well. When she

is not playing music, Lena says,

“I enjoying writing and reading in

my spare time. I also watch a lot of

TV shows and follow a couple of

sport teams.”

Lena’s interests will take her in

another direction in the future. “I

plan on joining the military after high

school,” she says. “I’m planning on

becoming an officer by doing ROTC

during college. After that, I would

really like to become a detective on a

police force.”

No doubt the discipline and focus

she learned playing music will stand

Lena in good stead in her future en-

deavors.

Lena Hadly tunes up backstage

before the fall concert

Volume 4, Number 3, February 2013

Page 6

The YOUTH ORCHESTRA OF BUCKS COUNTY, Pennsylvania (YOBC) was founded in 1991 with the sponsorship and support of Bucks County Commu-

nity College. Its mission is to create op-portunities for young musicians to

achieve artistic excellence through en-riching classical musical experiences. In 21 seasons the organization has

grown from a single, 60-member en-semble to 12 ensembles with over 250

young musicians.

252 Hollow Branch Lane

Yardley, PA 19067

Email: info.yobc@gmail.com

auditions@yobc.org

yobc.org

On December 15 I participated in

the Philadelphia Orchestra’s Cello

Play-In Event. In the Kimmel

Center’s lobby, 135 other cellists

and I gathered for a fun night of

music-making. This event started

when the Kimmel Center first

opened its doors over 10 years

ago, and the Cello Play-In 2012

was the first time since then that

the event has been organized.

The group was organized like

a cello quartet—except there

were about 35 players assigned

to each part. There were four

sections of cellists, each with a

different part containing melo-

dies, harmonies, countermelo-

dies, and bass parts. A member

of the orchestra’s cello section

played with each group; 4th chair

Richard Harlow sat in front of

me and led my section.

The rest of the members sat in

a row on stage, only to be joined

by the world-renowned cello solo-

ist Alisa Weilerstein in the center.

Esteemed conductor Gianandrea

Noseda led us

in 20 pieces

that ranged

everywhere

from “Air” by

Bach, to

“Pomp and

Circumstance”

by Elgar and

even

“Michelle” by

The Beatles.

After that, we

played holiday

songs like “The

First Noel”

and “Jingle

Bells” where

the audience

was invited to sing along.

When we were finished playing,

there was massive applause as we

walked away from the lobby. I was

honored to be packing up right next

to The Philadelphia Orchestra’s

principal cellist Hai-Ye Ni and her

1704 Matteo Gofriller cello. After the

massive event, Ms. Weilerstein and

Mr. Noseda collaborated with the

Philadelphia Orchestra in a per-

formance of Elgar’s cello concerto.

Overall it was a great music-

making experience and fun to

play with people my own age and

professionals alike! —Eric Cyphers

Cellist, YOBC Symphony Orchestra

Philadelphia Orchestra Cello Play-In

Cello Play-In at the Kimmel Center