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The Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra (PYAO), an ensemble of the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra Music Institute (PYOMI), will present its 30th Annual Festival Concert on Sunday, May 11, 2025, at 3:00 p.m. in the Perelman Theater at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. The vibrant season finale will feature Hector Berlioz’s Roman Carnival Overture, a special solo performance of Felix Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto by Ora Avila, winner of PYAO’s prestigious 11th Annual Young Artists Solo Competition, and conclude with Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s epic orchestral tour de force, Scheherazade.
Ora Avila, an eighth grader at River Valley Waldorf School in Upper Black Eddy, Pennsylvania, has been playing violin since the age of four. A PMAY (Philadelphia Music Alliance for Youth) artist and rising talent, Ora has participated in masterclasses with internationally renowned violinists including Katy Lansdale, Benjamin Beilman, and Sibbi Bernhardsson. She attended the Heifetz Institute in 2024, studying with Caeli Smith, and has also completed three summers at the Kinhaven Junior Session.
Her roots with PYOMI run deep. She served as concertmaster of the Prysm Strings Young Artists Orchestra in 2019–2020 and spent three years in the first violin section of Prysm Strings before joining PYAO, where she has been a dedicated member for two years.
Ora’s solo appearance represents the culmination of years of disciplined preparation, passion, and artistry. The Young Artists Solo Competition, now in its eleventh year under the direction of Maestra Rosalind Erwin, provides PYAO musicians with a unique, professional-level opportunity to audition and perform a concerto movement with full orchestra. The program is designed to cultivate technical excellence, stage confidence, and artistic maturity, advancing the next generation of music leaders right here in Philadelphia.
“This Festival concert is both a celebration of PYAO’s 30 years as a vital member of the PYO Music Institute, as well as a transformative experience for all our students to grow as individuals, no matter what their future goals may be” said Rosalind Erwin, PYAO’s Director and Conductor. “Ora Avila is a shining example of what can be achieved with talent, commitment, and support from a musical community like PYOMI.”
Tickets for the PYAO Festival Concert are available through Ensemble Arts Philly. For more information, please visit www.pyomusic.org.
Winners of the 11th Annual Young Artists Solo Competition:
Winner:
Ora Avila, Violin – (Mendelssohn – Violin Concerto in E Minor, First Movement)
First Runners Up:
Sophia Cui, Cello – (Elgar – Cello Concerto in E Minor, Fourth Movement)
Zandis Graufelds, Cello – (Haydn – Cello Concerto No. 1 in C Major, First Movement)
Second Runner Up:
Isabella Munoz, Violin – (Bruch – Violin Concerto No. 1in G Minor, First Movement)
Honorable Mention:
Sophia Shao, Violin – (Wieniawski – Violin Concerto No. 2 in D Minor, First Movement)
