"‘Place aux jeunes!’ the French art dealer and gallery owner Berthe Weill proclaimed when she opened her Paris gallery in 1901. Her rallying cry – ‘Make way for the young!’ – could well be emblazoned across Carnegie Hall each summer when it hosts the National Youth Orchestras of the United States of America. The first to perform this summer was NYO2, composed of instrumentalists aged 14 to 16 from across the country. As they do year after year, these young musicians astonished with their precision, polish and personalities.

"Few conductors can match the boundless energy of NYO2 in performance but Taiwanese-American conductor Mei-Ann Chen proved an ideal partner, meeting the ensemble’s exuberance with an athletic podium style and clear gestures, cues and beat patterns.

"... The concert opened with Arturo Márquez’s Danzón No.2, often described as an unofficial second national anthem of Mexico. Inspired by the elegant partner dance that originated in Cuba before becoming beloved in Mexico, the piece received a performance of remarkable finesse. Chen drew out both its elegance and passion, where drive became inseparable from movement. The final climactic surge was driven as much by physicality as sound.

"Gabriela Lena Frank’s light-hearted The Mestizo Waltz blends Indigenous South American, African and European traditions while avoiding Viennese sentimentality. Percussive effects and sudden bursts of sound create much of its excitement, but Chen also shaped its melodic passages with great sensitivity, giving the brief waltz a distinctive identity within the program.

"The program then shifted to the US with violinist Tessa Lark performing Michael Torke’s Sky, inspired by her Kentucky roots. ... Sky is far more than a violin showpiece; the orchestra provides much of the rhythmic propulsion and harmonic color. NYO2’s winds, brass and percussion were terrific, delivering a constant stream of rhythmic energy and brilliant orchestral detail. The players captured the piece’s fiddling musical gestures with particular flair, from tangy string pizzicatos to the expressive bent-note effects of the trombones.

"The second half was a masterclass in orchestral color, beginning with Gershwin’s An American in Paris and continuing with Respighi’s Pines of Rome. Under Chen’s baton, NYO2 created the excitement of an American tourist discovering Paris for the first time. The orchestra again impressed, with the trumpets especially notable for their brilliance and confidence. The famous lyrical trumpet solo was both haunting and beautifully shaped while the timpani playing combined precision with sangfroid.

"Respighi’s Pines of Rome unfolded as a cinematic evocation of four Roman landscapes. ... The final movement showcased Chen’s command of the full orchestra, building toward a spectacular climax crowned by brilliant brass sounds resonating from the rear of the hall high above the stage.

"Chen introduced the first encore, Tyzen Hsiao’s ‘The Angel from Formosa’, as a reflection of her Taiwanese heritage. She drew a serene atmosphere from flowing strings, expressive woodwind solos and rich brass chorales. The following day, NYO2 would begin its tour of the Dominican Republic, making Horacio Fernández’s Reggaeton a fitting return to contemporary Latin rhythms. Once again, the ensemble’s phenomenal percussion and brass sections drove the music with infectious zest." (Review Excerpt)

Full review available below.