Carnegie Hall Selects Lower Merion Teen for National Youth Orchestra

(Bryn Mawr, PA) -- Carnegie Hall, one of the most prestigious music venues in the world, invites some of the best young musicians in the country to participate in its annual National Youth Orchestra, a free four-week summer program that aims to provide exposure to classical musicians by giving them the opportunity to perform worldwide.

Among the 103 musicians selected this year is Aidan Peterson, who attends The Shipley School in Bryn Mawr, PA. The 18-year-old trumpeter is widely known in the Philadelphia region for his musical achievements. He has accumulated over 2,000 hours of community service volunteering to sound live Taps at military funerals and events and providing bedside entertainment for hospital, hospice, and rehab patients. He’s received numerous awards for his efforts, including nine Presidential Volunteer Service Awards from Obama, Trump, and Biden.

He began his studies at age five at the Harcum College Music School under the guidance of Richard Orr. When joining The Shipley School two years later he studied with Elin Frazier and Paul Futer. He is currently studying with David Krauss and is preparing to graduate from the Juilliard Pre-College Division where he has spent the last five years. Peterson will attend The Juilliard School this fall majoring in classical trumpet performance.

Peterson is still active at Harcum College, playing the National Anthem at sporting events. He's also a regular performer before basketball games at St. Joseph's University. At Shipley he's a member of the Honors Combo, Jazz Band, and Orchestra. He's also a member of the Juilliard Pre-College Orchestra and his JPC Chamber Group will premiere a piece this spring alongside members of the New York Philharmonic.

“Joining NYO is a dream come true for me. I have spent nearly my entire life preparing for this and look forward to making music with other talented teenagers this summer who I know will become lifelong friends,” remarked Peterson.

The members of the 2024 orchestra—ages 16–19, hailing from 34 states plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico—have been recognized by Carnegie Hall as being among the finest players in the country following a comprehensive and highly selective audition process. This summer, NYO-USA musicians will travel to New York in late July for an intensive two-week training residency at Purchase College, State University of New York (SUNY). Celebrated conductor Marin Alsop leads NYO-USA at the orchestra’s annual Carnegie Hall concert (August 5), presented as part of World Orchestra Week (WOW!)—a week-long celebration of international youth orchestras —followed by a South American tour which includes stops in Montevideo, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, and more. Both at Carnegie Hall and abroad, the orchestra will perform Barber’s Symphony No. 1, Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, with Jean-Yves Thibaudet as soloist, and Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade.

Listen to Aidan Peterson’s albums, Getting Misty Over You and Christmas Time is Here, wherever you stream music.