WALDORF, Md. – The Charles County Youth Orchestra is proud to announce that four CCYO students, Esther Bonney, Scarlett de Leon, Haley Gruwell, and Autumn-Sky Leroy have all recently won music awards.
Autumn-Sky Leroy, violinist, has won two awards: the 2023 Dreamers Instrument Access Program which awarded her a violin and she was also accepted into the Washington Musical Pathways program which provides free private lessons, mentoring by nationally recognized musicians, chamber music coaching and music theory classes.
Scarlett de Leon, violinist, was awarded a scholarship to pay for music lessons by the D.C. Federation of Musicians, Local 161-710.
Esther Bonney, violinist, and Haley Gruwell, flutist, were both accepted into the prestigious National Symphony Orchestra Youth Fellowship program for 2023-24. This will be Haley’s second year as a NSO Youth Fellow.
The NSO Youth Fellowship provides high school students in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area the opportunity to study with a National Symphony Orchestra musician; observe rehearsals and attend concerts; rehearse side-by-side with the NSO; and participate in chamber music ensembles, master classes and discussions with musicians, guest artists, and NSO/Kennedy Center management.
Auditions for CCYO’s 2023-2024 season will be held on September 9. Information can be found at: https://www.charlescountyyouthorchestra.org/auditions
Recently, CCYO has been spotlighted in an online film by the Charles County Arts Alliance and has been featured on WTOP radio. Also, two CCYO String Quartets were finalists in the prestigious Washington Performing Arts Society Misbin Chamber Music Competition in Washington, D.C.
CCYO presents two large concerts and numerous smaller concerts each year, a two-week Chamber Music Festival, a Concerto Competition Concert as well as masterclasses and sectionals for students in all four of CCYO’s ensembles. This past season CCYO ensembles have performed at the Port Tobacco Courthouse, Alice Ferguson Foundation, Nanjemoy Community Center, Kris Kringle at the Fairgrounds, Indian Head Village Green and at Christ Church, La Plata where they performed a very successful concert to raise funds for victims of the Turkey-Syria Earthquake.
CCYO is one of the largest youth organizations in Southern Maryland, providing music education and performance opportunities for talented young musicians ages 8 to 18 in Charles, Prince George’s, St. Mary’s, and Calvert counties.
The Charles County Youth Orchestra is sponsored in part by grants from the Charles County Arts Alliance, the Charles County Charitable Trust, the Maryland State Arts Council, the Rotary Club of Charles County, MD, and the Knights of Columbus of Accokeek, MD. Other major contributors include Potters Violins, Gailes Violin Shop, and the Neighborhood Creative Arts Center of La Plata as well as generous donations from individuals.