The Pasadena Symphony Association is pleased to announce the expansion of the Pasadena Youth Symphony Orchestras. The PYSO will expand its programming threefold — the organization will launch a summer intensive program for students in grades 5-8, the All City Orchestra will add one new site at McKinley School for 3rd-4th grade students, and PYSO will provide musical instruments on loan to Pasadena Unified students. This expansion is made possible by generous support from the Helen and Will Webster Foundation. The PYSO expansion will kick-off with the 2023/24 school year by adding McKinley School as the third site for the All City Orchestra, a no-cost ensemble for underserved PUSD students in grades 3-5, currently housed at Jackson Elementary and Field Elementary Schools. ACO will also increase staffing for weekly rehearsals, adding one conductor and four coaches per instrument. Also beginning in the fall 2023 semester, PYSO will provide instruments on loan to PUSD students who wouldn’t otherwise have access to them. The organization will invest more than $30,000 into PUSD to build a music instrument library, so that students can have their own instrument while on their musical learning journey. This money will also facilitate the purchase of a stage timpani for Pasadena High School for rehearsals and performances. In summer 2024, PYSO will launch its new summer intensive — a two-week, daily program providing instruction for beginner/intermediate students in grades 5-8, so that students can have year-round access to music education. This expanded programming will allow the PYSO to continue their commitment to providing music education far beyond the weekly instruction they offer students.
First published in the May 18 print issue of the Pasadena Outlook.
