The Harker Orchestra, led by director Chris Florio, traveled to New York in early April to compete in the National Orchestra Cup at Lincoln Center’s newly renovated Alice Tully Hall (see Harker News, Nov., 2008, page 1), where they earned a prestigious award and had a stellar time!

“Our students had a spectacular performance that truly captivated the judges and audience,” said Florio. “Although we were not awarded grand champions, we were given the festival staff award (the Forte Award), which is ‘awarded for positive attitude and best exemplifying the spirit of America and performance excellence.’ The festival staff stated that this award is very close to their hearts and not one that is given out lightly.”

Florio noted that another panel judge, who just happens to be a Saratoga High School graduate, “congratulated our orchestra on how high our performance level has become in such a short period of existence as an upper school. He was also very impressed that a high school orchestra could handle our difficult repertoire at such a high level.” Congrats to the 60+ members of the orchestra for an outstanding performance!