Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra


The Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra is a fully professional musical group in Dayton, Ohio, formed in 1933. It is a member of the League of American Orchestras and the Regional Orchestra Players' Association, and presents programs mainly of classical music, but also occasionally performs world music, pops, jazz and rock-n-roll.
Between September and May each year, the orchestra performs about 9 full-orchestra concert series, 4 chamber orchestra series, 4 operas with the Dayton Opera, 3 light family concerts, 4 Young People's Concerts, 6 SuperPops series, and several concerts for special occasions.

Recognition

The Dayton Philharmonic has received the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers award for Adventurous Programming of Contemporary Music seven times; and has gained special recognition for its educational and community outreach programs, serving 90,000 children in fourteen counties — more children than any other orchestra of their budget size in the United States.

History

The DPO has been housed in the Schuster Performing Arts Center since 2003. Prior to that, the orchestra played concerts at Dayton Memorial Hall, the Dayton Convention Center, and the Victoria Theatre. The orchestra has been led by Musical Director Neal Gittleman since 1995.

Conductors

Founded in 1937 by Paul Katz, the DPYO is the 3rd oldest youth orchestra in the United States and brings together the greater Dayton area’s most gifted young orchestral musicians, providing the opportunity to study and perform a broad range of orchestral repertoire. The DPYO is committed to inspiring an overall cultural awareness and appreciation of music in its members and audiences, strengthening our region’s existing school music programs, and helping stimulate interest in the development of school orchestral programs where none exist.
The DPYO performs three concerts each season and was invited to perform at the 2002, 2004, 2006, 2014, and 2018 Ohio Music Education Association conferences. The Youth Orchestra regularly appears on the Dayton Philharmonic’s DP&L Family Concert Series, which has included collaborations with Cirque de la Symphonie, Zoot Theatre, the Dayton Ballet II Senior Company, performance artist Dan Kamin, and the Magic Circle Mime Company. The Dayton Philharmonic Youth Orchestra recently celebrated its 80th anniversary in the 2017-2018 season by commissioning local composer Austin Jaquith to dedicate a song to the orchestra.
The DPYO is supported by the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance, Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra, the Association of Parents and Friends of the Dayton Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, and by the Dayton Philharmonic Volunteer Association. The DPYO is affiliated with the Youth Division of the League of American Orchestras. The youth orchestra rehearses weekly during the school year at the University of Dayton's Raymond L. Fitz Hall.

Conductors

The youth string orchestra is open for competitive audition for students of string instruments in grades 6 - 12. It was originally known as the Dayton Philharmonic Junior String Orchestra. The name was changed in 2011 to the Dayton Philharmonic Youth Strings.

Conductors

The Dayton Philharmonic Junior Strings was formed in 2014 for young string players not quite ready for the Dayton Philharmonic Youth Strings. The junior string orchestra is open for competitive audition for students of string instruments in grades 4-8.

Conductors