The musical mission of the Miami Youth Orchestra and Choir

Imaginaries and Discourses

by Aleksandre Roderick-Lorenz

The MIAMI YOUTH ORCHESTRA & CHOIR (MYO) is a non-profit organisation that was established in the city of Miami in 2003. The main objective of this institution was to create a low-cost orchestral training programme that could serve as a vehicle to instruct, initiate, and guide young students with musical inclinations. Since its creation, the MYO family has kept their doors open in South Florida to help aspiring students to accomplish their dreams and reach their goals through music.

The purpose of this foundation is to share a vast formative knowledge that may provide opportunities, motivation to instrumentalists and singers, and also preparation in their respective field. It has been proven that learning to communicate through the language of music has been hugely beneficial for students in many ways.

MYO’s director, María Antonieta Salas, was immensely inspired by the experiences and training she received in her native Venezuela to create this institute. She began her career as a cellist and pedagogue in Caracas, where she joined the acclaimed “El Sistema” organisation. Music is a medium that can help students develop discipline, improve their memory and optimize their motor skill functionality. It can offer wonderful advantages and an enriching experience that builds the intellect and helps individuals channel their emotions. Music can also awaken creativity by hugely stimulating the imagination. These are some of the fundamentals and insights utilised by the teachers at the MYO, to best guide and incentivise all the students to conquer their instruments.

Currently, the MYO orchestra is located at the city of Doral. There are three operating ensembles divided by levels, from beginners to advanced, where students can work closely with faculty members. All the musicians will benefit from educational opportunities and artistic collaborations throughout the year. The foundation offers a series of wide-ranging concerts and recitals every year. Each concert has a different theme and offers both, students and audience members, the chance to enjoy various musical genres such as jazz, Latin, opera, musical theatre, classical, folk and others.

A pivotal part of MYO’s vision is to promote pedagogical work within the frame of inclusion, equality and access throughout the community. The dynamics that exist within an orchestra are very significant because they teach important values such as discipline, teamwork, good communication and other meaningful elements that are key in promoting good citizenship and behaviour.

The Miami Youth Orchestra and Choir is currently working in one their most recent productions: Tribute to Broadway. This programme is filled with numerous hits from the realm of musical theatre. It offers a mixed participation of local and internationally acclaimed artists such as the Latin Divos, Ellie Lei, Isairis, Víctor Valdéz and María Teresa Chacin under the baton of conductors María Salas and Aleksandre Roderick-Lorenz.

The concert will be held at the Intercontinental Hotel in Doral, on April 24, 2021.

Aleksandre Roderick-Lorenz joined the CNY Latino newspaper’s writing team in December 2020. There, he will be writing a new column on assorted and interesting topics. His interests include professional interviews, music, art, film, literature, metaphysics, gay culture, spirituality, education, history, and politics. His column will receive the following epithet: Imaginaries and Discourses. To read about him, head over to cnylatinonewspaper.com and search for him by his name. You can also send questions or comments about his column to the following email: aleks@cnylatino.com.