Youth Orchestra of Bucks County Offers Outdoor Concerts

Bring your picnic blanket and outdoor chairs and prepare to enjoy the talented musicians of the Youth Orchestra of Bucks County (YOBC) on Sunday, May 23 at the C&N Amphitheater in Doylestown’s Central Park. Concerts will take place throughout the afternoon and evening, culminating with a performance by YOBC’s showcase Symphony Orchestra at 6:30 pm with Robert Loughran conducting. (Social distancing and mask-wearing practices will be required for all performers and audience members.) The concerts are free and open to the public. For those who are able, the suggested donation in lieu of tickets is $20/adult and $15/student or senior. You can make your gift at yobc.org or at the concert venue on May 23.

Two local concerto competition winners — Jonathan Bywater on horn and Joseph Fan on clarinet — will perform featured solos. Bywater, a senior at Pennsbury High School, will play the first movement of Concerto for Horn in B-flat Major, Opus 91 by Reinhold Glière with YOBC’s premier concert band, Fanfare Winds. Bywater began studying the horn in fourth grade and has played with the Delaware Valley Wind Symphony, Philadelphia Sinfonia, various state and national music education association festivals, and YOBC for seven years. His performance will take place during the 4 pm concert with Steven Sweetsir conducting.

Fan, a homeschooled senior, will play the third movement of Concerto for Clarinet in E-flat Major, Opus 36 by Franz Krommer with YOBC’s Symphony Orchestra at its 6:30 pm concert. In December 2019, Fan participated in the Crescendo International Music Competition, winning a first-place rating and performing at Carnegie Hall in January 2020. His performance, as well as the performances of dozens of the area’s top student musicians, will be sure to dazzle audience members.

Founded in 1991, YOBC serves up to 250 students in 13 ensembles, including its flagship Symphony Orchestra. Fall enrollment is open, and string, woodwind, brass and percussion students at all levels of playing are invited to audition. For information on YOBC, its music programs, audition requirements and international concert tours, visit yobc.org or email info.yobc@gmail.com.
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