9-Year-Old from Wyckoff Selected to Perform Yamaha Junior Original Concert

Press release:

In what has become a highlight of the NAMM Show, the largest musical instrument convention in North America, Yamaha Music Education System will present inspiring free performances by young composers at its annual Junior Original Concert (JOC), including a 9-year-old from Wyckoff.

Thh three talented Yamaha Music School students from across the United States, who will each perform an original composition on a Yamaha N3 AvantGrand Hybrid Piano, are:

Pianist Jonathan Hartanto, age 9, a Wyckoff resident and student at Bergen Yamaha Music Schoo in Paramus, will perform his composition The Waddling Penguins accompanied by Brian Walsh on bass clarinet and Yamaha Drum Artist M. B. Gordy on drums. This is Jonathan’s first year performing at JOC at NAMM. He also plays violin in the Bergen Youth Orchestra and sings in his church and school chorus.

Pianist Megan Chang, age 13, who studies at Torrance Yamaha Music Center in Torrance, California, returns for the second straight year and will perform a solo piano piece entitled To Mr. K, an homage to Ukrainian composer Nikolai Kapustin. A four-time performer at the JOC concert at NAMM, she has also appeared in 18 performances with the Pacific Symphony at Segerstrom Hall in Costa Mesa, California as part of the orchestra’s Class Act program.

Karalyn Schubring, age 15, a student at East Valley Yamaha Music School in Chandler, Arizona, will play Lua Azul, Portuguese for “blue moon,” on piano. Flutist Mary Palchak and M. B. Gordy on percussion will accompany. Karalyn has performed at JOC once before and is the winner of two national competition awards, the 2013 MTNA National Junior Composition Competition and the ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer’s Award in 2014.

Hartanto also made Patch headlines last year when he was selected to perform an original composition at a national concert.

“We invite dealers to consider establishing Yamaha Music School programs, since it is an effective system for music education that elicits stirring results,” said Mike Morrell, manager, Yamaha Music Education System. “Adding a music school component to a store’s offerings is a great way to enhance the outlet’s brand and increase sales of Yamaha instruments.”

The concert will be held at 1p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 22 in the Keyboard area of the Yamaha booth at the 2015 NAMM Show, located in the Anaheim Marriott Hotel, Marquis Ballroom. All NAMM attendees are invited to enjoy the event.

Established in 1954, the proven Yamaha Music Education System helps enhance the offerings of music schools and musical instrument dealers in 40 countries worldwide. In the United States, more than 60 locations across the country are authorized to teach the Yamaha method. More than five million students have graduated from the program, many of whom have become professional musicians. Currently, almost 700,000 students are enrolled worldwide.

The Yamaha Music Foundation in Tokyo produces, publishes and distributes materials throughout the world. The goal is to develop a high level of musical talent not just in the realm of performance practices, but also improvisational and composing skills.

Yamaha Junior Original Concerts take place annually in cities around the world, including Boston, Los Angeles, Milan, New York City, Paris, Tokyo, Washington, DC and Vienna. Prestigious venues, including The Kennedy Center, Weiner [wl2] Konzerthaus, Salle Gaveau and Carnegie Hall, have also hosted Junior Original Concerts.

For more information about Yamaha Music Education System, visit the Yamaha Booth at the 2015 NAMM Show in the Anaheim Marriott Hotel, Marquis Ballroom, January 22-25, 2015, or http://4wrd.it/yamahamusicschools.