Carnegie Hall today announced the names of the 78 young musicians selected from across the country for the inaugural season of NYO2, a two-week, intensive summer program for outstanding American instrumentalists ages 14-17, which begins on June 18, 2016. NYO2 is an extension of the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America (NYO-USA), a program for musicians ages 16-19, launched by Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute in the summer of 2013 to great acclaim. Both NYO- USA and NYO2 are free to all participants.

The members of the 2016 NYO2 orchestra—hailing from 27 US states as well as Puerto Rico—have been recognized by Carnegie Hall as exceptionally talented players. See below or click here for the names, instruments, and hometowns of the members of NYO2 2016.

Running in conjunction with NYO-USA’s annual summer residency at Purchase College, State University of New York (SUNY), NYO2 has been established with a special focus on attracting talented young musicians from communities underserved by, and underrepresented in, the classical orchestral field. This new program, in partnership with The Philadelphia Orchestra, aims to expand the pool of young musicians across the country equipped with the tools to succeed at the highest level, particularly those who will bring greater diversity to classical orchestral music or those who have not had access to highly selective training opportunities. Like NYO-USA, NYO2 musicians were selected following a comprehensive online audition process. In addition, Carnegie Hall asked high school educators and local youth orchestra directors for nominations of potential NYO2 candidates who would most benefit from focused training and participation in an inspiring community of their peers in order to take their playing to the next level.

“Following the success of the National Youth Orchestra of the USA, we are thrilled to launch NYO2,” said Clive Gillinson, Carnegie Hall’s Executive and Artistic Director. “In time, we think that the training, inspiration, and access provided by a national program like this can help to expand the range and diversity of young people considering careers in the classical music field. We are delighted to be collaborating on this initiative with The Philadelphia Orchestra, Carnegie Hall’s longtime artistic partner. Together, we hope to empower these talented young players to further develop their musicianship and use music to connect with audiences and people everywhere.”