For 15 years, BRAVO! has introduced thousands of school children to classical music and the symphony orchestra through live, free instructional performance. BRAVO!’s goal is to inspire youngsters to incorporate music into their lives and express themselves artistically, either by learning to play an instrument or by heightening their appreciation and enjoyment of classical music.

BRAVO! presents up to 100 small ensemble concerts and workshops at 30 New Jersey schools during the academic year; for some students, it is the only classroom music instruction they will receive. Each school year concludes with three to five free concert performances by the full orchestra at its home venue, Richardson Auditorium, reaching up to 4,000 students.

In recent years, the PSO has expanded BRAVO! through master classes for gifted high school and college-age musicians, who are invited to play for a major performance artist. The violinist Midori participated in the 2009-2010 master class, held before a standing room-only audience. Another BRAVO! initiative is Listen Up!, which encourages middle school students to create original art based on classical music they hear at a PSO concert. Their art is later displayed at Richardson Auditorium.

For more information about BRAVO!, please e-mail us.

Click here to see photos of BRAVO! in action.