For over half a century, the New York String Orchestra Seminar, a program of the Mannes School of Music, has offered pre-professional training to gifted string, wind, brass, and timpani students, introducing them to new musical ideas, offering them chamber music coaching
from members of the world's top ensembles and giving them the challenge of performing at a professional level onstage at Carnegie Hall. The seminar is led by artistic director and conductor Jaime Laredo.
Important Application Information
The application period for the 2023 New York String Orchestra Seminar is closing soon
"It was one of the defining moments for me as a teenager. The passion of people your own age is very important; it puts you in touch with a larger world, beyond schooling and everything else you do."
2023 New York String Orchestra Seminar (NYSOS)
The New School’s College of Performing Arts is pleased to announce the 55th annual New York String Orchestra Seminar, conducted by Jaime Laredo.
December 19–28, 2023
Please use the links below for details of and requirements for the two-step application and audition process.
The 2023 New York String Orchestra Seminar will take place in New York City December 19–28. Those accepted pay no fee to participate; all educational costs, housing, meals, and local transportation are included at no charge. Participants must arrange
their own transportation to and from New York City at their own expense. During the seminar, these exceptionally gifted student musicians will take part in intensive orchestral rehearsals with Maestro Laredo and chamber music workshops with some of
the country's most celebrated artists in preparation for two orchestral programs with soloists Bella Hristova, violin; Milena Pajaro-van de Stadt, viola; and Anna Polonsky, piano, to be presented by Carnegie Hall on December 24 and 28.
Becoming the Orchestra: The New York String Orchestra at 50
A documentary film courtesy of The Carnegie Hall Corporation.
History of the Seminar
Arts administrator and artist manager Frank Salomon created the seminar in 1969 for Alexander Schneider, one of the most important musical figures of the 20th century. Schneider was deeply committed to young artists and was an inspiration to generations
of musicians. He believed that music has to "come from your heart and your soul, or it has no meaning." The New York String Orchestra Seminar was designed to offer professional training to gifted string, wind, brass, and timpani students who have
reached a turning point in the development of their musical understanding and professional goals.
Acclaimed conductor, soloist, and chamber musician Jaime Laredo, Schneider's choice as successor, has led the orchestra since 1993. Laredo has introduced some of the country's most gifted young musicians to new musical ideas, offering them chamber music
coaching from members of the world's top ensembles and challenging them to perform at a professional level onstage at Carnegie Hall.
The seminar's more than 2,400 alumni are found in every state of the country. We are proud to include conductors and soloists such as Marin Alsop, Pamela Frank, Karina Canellakis, Cho-Liang Lin, Yo-Yo Ma, Peter Oundjian, Gil Shaham, and Nadia Salerno-Sonnenberg;
chamber musicians in groups as diverse as Brooklyn Rider, the Silkroad Ensemble, and the Dover, Emerson, Kronos, Orion, and Takacs string quartets; and concertmasters and principals in every major U.S. orchestra, including the concertmasters of the
Boston, Chicago, and Philadelphia orchestras and the Los Angeles and New York philharmonics. We are equally proud of the many alumni who contribute to the musical lives of young people on the faculties of major conservatories and in the classrooms
of public schools, as well as those who have gone on to careers in other fields while continuing to make music a part of their lives.
Our Supporters
The New York String Orchestra Seminar is made possible in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, the support of the Alexander Schneider Foundation, an anonymous foundation grant, and many individual supporters. Our thanks to all. Please
contact us at [email protected] if you are interested in sponsoring a student participant, or simply use the red "Give Now" button at the top right of this page.
