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Now in its seventh decade, the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra (PYO) is one of the oldest and most highly regarded youth orchestras in the United States, providing professional-caliber musical experiences to gifted young instrumentalists and thrilling discriminating audiences in greater Philadelphia and around the world for more than 70 years.

Its companion ensemble, the Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra (PYAO), was established in 1996 under a grant from the Pew Charitable Trusts. In 2003, the PYO and PYAO ensembles were joined by Bravo Brass, an advanced brass instrument program. In 2007, the PYO program created PRYSM, Philadelphia Region Youth String Music. In 2008, the PYO program welcomed Musicopia String Orchestra (MSO) in partnership with Musicopia. In the fall of 2010, PYO launched its newest program – Tune Up Philly.

Ranging in age from 6 through 21 years, the musicians of the PYO, PYAO, Bravo Brass, PRYSM and MSO are selected by competitive audition and come from a seventy-plus-mile radius of Philadelphia encompassing nearly 20 counties within Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. The six ensembles present a full season of concerts each year.