Unique Russian orchestra-academy combines education and concert life
Founded in December 2006 on the analogy of foreign youth symphonic orchestras. It consists of 67 students of musical secondary and higher education institutions of Yekaterinburg selected on a competitive basis.
The students of the orchestra-academy master their professional orchestra performance and replace the veterans of the Ural Philharmonic Orchestra. During their studies they not only have rehearsals and concerts with outstanding conductors and soloists, but also have a special educational program: workshops given by representatives of different performing schools.
The Orchestra leads a full creative life that can be compared with the activity of professional orchestral bodies. Every year the young musicians give 30 concerts, presenting 20 concert programs to the audience. Besides Maestro Enkhe, such famous conductors collaborated with the Orchestra as Saulus Sondetskis, Vladimir Fedoseev, Dmitry Liss, Sergey Roldugin, Alexander Rudin, Mikhail Tsinman, Rustem Abyazov. Being members of the Combined European Youth Orchestra, the young musicians performed under the leadership of Claude Revolte (France), Jean-Philippe Van Beseler (France), Slaven Batorek (Croatia), Bogdan Vody (Romania) during the festival «Euroorchestries en Charente Maritime – 2008».
The Ural Youth Symphonic Orchestra participated at III Crescendo Music Festival (Art Director Denis Matsuev), at Dmitry Kogan’s «Kogan-Festival» devoted to the outstanding violinist of the XX century Leonid Kogan. The young orchestra has a concert touring experience. Participation at the Youth Orchestra International Festival «Euroorchestries» held in Russia (2007) and in France (2008) became its European scale exam. For the Russian audience the Orchestra performed for the first time in February 2009, the Grand Hall of the Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory (conductors Alexander Rudin and Enkhe).
Under the terms of the project the Youth Orchestra musicians should not be older than 25. In concert season 2010-2011 new young musicians have entered the orchestra. Now a part of musicians of the Ural Youth Symphonic Orchestra perform in the Ural Philharmonic Orchestra.
The Orchestra’s repertoire consists of Russian and European classics, works of contemporary Russian and European composers, pieces from soundtracks, jazz and pop music. In August 2012 UPO under conduction of maestro Enkhe presented Russia in International Music Festival «Young Euro Classic» in Berlin and join the number of the best Youths Symphonic Orchestras in the world.
