By Mabel Pais

Aadhitya Raam Ashok, high school musician and composer, is one-of-two award recipients from Wharton Arts, the Garden State’s leading performing arts education organization. Aadhitya Raam Ashok of Edison is the winner of the inaugural Wharton Arts Annual Choral Composition Competition.

“As an enthusiastic high school musician and composer, it feels wonderful to win my first choral composition competition with the Wharton Arts Annual Choral Composition Competition. I am grateful for the wonderful panel of judges who provided me with useful comments, along with their appreciation for my unique yet powerful music. Having my music featured by a youth choir is a great opportunity for me to gain experience into how young singers might approach my music,” said Aadhitya.

Aadhitya’s winning composition, A Bright Youthful Future, will premiere under the direction of New Jersey Youth Chorus Founder and Music Director, Trish Joyce on Sunday, May 21, at the NJYS spring concert as part of their 30th anniversary celebration.

Winner Aadhitya Raam Ashok, a senior at John P. Stevens High School in Edison, began his musical studies at the age of three in Bergen’s Yamaha Music School where he has been a recipient of the Jeffery Corolla and Frank Calabrese Scholarship for the last six years. He completed the London College of Music Diploma (DipLCM) exams with distinction and has won numerous composition awards, including being a three-time National Finalist in the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) competition, three-time winner in the Eastern Division of the MTNA competition, and six-time winner in the NJ MTNA Composition competition. He received the Gold Medal in the National Young Maestro Composition Competition across multiple years and was finalist in the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) twice consecutively. He placed first in the Golden Key International and National Piano Composition Competition twice consecutively as well. He won the Grand Prize in the Rising Talents Festival. Learn more at aadhityaraam.com.

(Bokyung) Nina Park of Basking Ridge is the other winner of the 2023 New Jersey Youth Symphony Concerto Competition. She received her award on April 30.

(Mabel Pais writes on The Arts and Entertainment, Social Issues, Health & Wellness, Cuisine, Spirituality, and Business)

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NJYC CELEBRATES 30TH ANNIVERSARY

By Mabel Pais

The New Jersey Youth Chorus (NJYC) invites all to The Journey (e.givesmart.com/events/vdN), a weekend of festivities on Saturday, May 20 and Sunday, May 21, to celebrate the Chorus’s 30th Anniversary.

Trish Joyce, Founder and Director of the Chorus, said, “We chose the theme The Journey for this celebration, not just to commemorate the journey the Chorus has been on, but in recognition of and tribute to all of the people who have joined us along the way. Inside our story as an organization are thousands of personal experiences that, taken as a whole, make us who we are today.

Our journey has been filled with dedicated choristers, parents, volunteers, and staff and guided by the vision that children and young singers deserve the opportunity to experience the beauty, passion, and joy of singing. Our north star has been the lifelong friendships made among our singers—connections that weave together a community they call home. Driving us forward on the journey is the power of music and artistry to shape and change lives, and our enduring commitment to cultivating the personal and musical potential of each child with a nurturing spirit, warmth, and acceptance. This is the legacy that we built over the past 30 years, and that we will carry with us on the journey into the future. I can’t wait to see where the path takes us next!”

PROGRAM

The anniversary weekend begins with the NJYC Family Fest on May 20 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at The Grove at The Park, 200 Connell Drive in Berkeley Heights. Open to current NJYC families and their guests, as well as alumni and their families, the rain or shine event will feature games and activities, food trucks, and a DJ.

Register in advance to receive a food/beverage voucher to use at the event.

The New Jersey Youth Chorus Legacy Concert on May 20 at 8:00 p.m. at Roundtable Studios at the Park, 200 Connell Drive in Berkeley Heights, will celebrate NJYC’s vibrant past and help sustain the Chorus’s legacy. This cabaret-style fundraiser will feature NJYC alumni, current and former staff, and NJYC choristers from Coriste and Camerata. Dessert Reception to follow. Space is limited for this event and ticket sales will close on May 10.

The public is invited to the New Jersey Youth Chorus Spring Concert & 30th Anniversary Reception on May 21 at 4:00 p.m. at Our Lady of the Lake Church located at 22 Lakeside Avenue in Verona, a special anniversary edition of the Chorus’s annual spring concert with performances by all five of NJYC’s ensembles as well as an Alumni Choir comprised of alumni from throughout choirs past, including several members of the original Somerset Hills Children’s Chorus.

The program will feature treasured pieces from throughout the Chorus’s history, including Psalm 23 and Omnia Sol by Z. Randall Stroope, Brothers, Sing On! by Edvard Grieg, Flight Song by Kim André Arnesen, Yo Le Canto Todo Le Dia by David L. Brunner, and new favorites such as Rise Up by Jake Runestad, Where the Light Begins by Susan LaBarr, and Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around by Dr. Rollo Dilworth.

The program will also include the premiere of the 2022-23 Wharton Arts Annual Choral Composition Competition winning piece, A Bright Youthful Future by Aadhitya Raam Ashok.

Following tradition, the program will end with the choir and alumni singing Katie Moran Bart’s Blessing, a piece that has been performed on every spring concert program since the Chorus’s inception thirty years ago.

Over NJYC’s thirty years, outstanding performances have ranged from NJPAC and the New Jersey Symphony to Carnegie Hall and the White House; from Ronan Tynan, the Chieftains, and the Celtic Tenors to the Today Show; with the South African Drakensberg Boys Choir to Queen Latifah at the Super Bowl; from regional and national music conferences to various national anthem performances at Citi Field and Madison Square Garden; from Kids for Kids outreach to educator workshops; and domestic and international tours. Through all of these life-changing and unique experiences, NJYC has kept exceptional choral music education at the forefront of its mission, creating space for personal growth and ensemble learning.

Wharton Arts

Wharton Arts’ mission is to offer accessible, high quality performing arts education that sparks personal growth and builds inclusive communities. Wharton Arts’ vision is for a transformative performing arts education in an inclusive community to be accessible for everyone. Wharton Arts is located in Berkeley Heights, New Providence, and Paterson, NJ and reaches students from 12 counties. All of Wharton Arts’ extraordinary teaching artists, faculty members, and conductors hold degrees in their teaching specialty and have been vetted and trained to enable our students to achieve their personal best.

(Mabel Pais writes on The Arts and Entertainment, Social Issues, Health & Wellness, Cuisine, Spirituality, and Business)