By Mabel Pais

Wharton Arts, New Jersey’s largest non-profit community performing arts education organization, proudly announces that Artistic Director Helen H. Cha-Pyo is one of 100 select individuals chosen to receive the prestigious Eastman School of Music Centennial Award. The award is granted to those who exemplify the school’s mission and legacy through their commitment to artistry, scholarship, leadership, community engagement, and philanthropy.

Cha-Pyo joins Renée Fleming, Ron Carter, Chuck Mangione, and Maria Schneider, among other notable artists, as a Centennial Awardee. For a complete list of awardees, visit rochester.edu/adv/eastman-centennial/centennial-awards.

Cha-Pyo said, “This award was a complete surprise to me, and needless to say, I’m deeply humbled by it. One thing I still carry in my heart from my studies at the Eastman School of Music is the phrase engraved on the facade of the Eastman Theater, ‘for the enrichment of community life.’ I am grateful to be able to work at Wharton Arts which shares the same mission of enriching life through music.”

HELEN CHA-PYO

Helen H. Cha-Pyo is currently in her fifth season as the Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Wharton Institute for the Performing Arts (WIPA), New Jersey’s largest independent performing arts education organization, comprising four programs. Under her leadership, Wharton Arts serves close nearly 2,000 students from 10 New Jersey counties through a range of private lessons and group classes at the Wharton Performing Arts School, 15 performing ensembles at the New Jersey Youth Symphony, five performing ensembles at the New Jersey Youth Chorus, and the Paterson Music Project, an El Sistema-inspired program that provides free after-school instrumental music instruction to over 450 children in Paterson, NJ.

Achievements

For 16 years as Music Director and Conductor of the Empire State Youth Orchestra (ESYO), Cha-Pyo inspired hundreds of young musicians to perform at the highest levels, resulting in ESYO being recognized as one of the nation’s premier music organizations for youth musicians. Cha-Pyo’s vision was instrumental in the founding of ESYO CHIME in 2015, a music education program dedicated to serving underprivileged youth of Schenectady and Troy, NY. In 2018, ESYO established the Helen Cha-Pyo Golden Baton Award and Scholarships for students who embody her passionate commitment to music as a means to uplift and enrich communities. From 1996 to 2002, Cha-Pyo served as Artistic Director and Conductor of the Riverside Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir, as well as Associate Director of Music at The Riverside Church in New York City. She released three recordings with the Riverside Choir. (JAV Recordings)

Awards

Helen Cha-Pyo is the recipient of The Dove Leadership Award in 2019; the 2022 Angelos Artist Award from the Angelos Mission Ensemble; the Eastman Centennial Award from Eastman School of Music given to those who exemplify the school’s mission and legacy through their commitment to artistry, scholarship, leadership, community engagement, and/or philanthropy and the ASCAP’s (American Society of Composers, Authors, & Publishers) Adventurous Programming Awards for championing music by American composers.

Tours

She led the orchestra on three international tours: Europe in 2008, China and South Korea in 2012, and Portugal in 2016. Read more at helenchapyo.com.

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Wharton Arts Makes Key Appointments

By Mabel Pais

“As we enter the second year of our five-year strategic plan, Wharton Arts is making key senior staff appointments in order to move the organization forward,” said Peter H. Gistelinck, Executive Director at Wharton Arts. “Continued investment in people is essential for any organization. We are confident that the continuity of our exemplary team will help us in achieving our ambitious goals.”

 APPOINTMENTS

Shanna Lin, Director of Paterson Music Project (PMP) (Paterson Music Project)

As Co-Founder of the PMP program and her tenure of 10 years with Wharton Arts, it was logical to appoint Shanna Lin as Director of PMP, thus filling in the role of former PMP Director Elizabeth Mouthrop, recently appointed as Executive Director of El Sistema USA.

Debra Joyal, Director of Performing Arts School (PAS) (Wharton Performing Arts School)

Debra Joyal is a classically trained musician, administrator, skilled writer, and researcher in institutional funding and communication with degrees from the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, MA and Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY. Her overall focus is on building connections to communicate the vision and mission of nonprofit organizations. She is welcomed as the new Director of the Performing Arts School in Berkeley Heights, NJ.

Andrew Nitkin, Director of Community Partnerships (Wharton Performing Arts School)

Andrew Nitkin, having been instrumental for many years in successfully leading the Performing Arts School at Wharton Arts in Berkeley Heights, NJ is now appointed in the role of Director of Community Partnerships for the Performing Arts School.

Roger Sweet, Manager of Orchestras (NJYS) (New Jersey Youth Symphony)

Roger Sweet has been with Wharton Arts as a Production Assistant of the Operations department. He is now appointed as the new Manager of Orchestras of the New Jersey Youth Symphony in New Providence, NJ.

Eva Dooley, Director of Finance & Administration (Wharton Arts)

Eva Dooley has been appointed as the new Director of Finance & Administration of Wharton Arts. Eva has long-time expertise in accounting and financial analysis with an emphasis on business analytics, strategic planning, project management, and overall bookkeeping. In each of these roles, she has gained skill sets that allow her to work in many different capacities including human resources. She is welcomed as a new member of the senior staff team.

Wharton Arts

Wharton Arts’ mission is to offer accessible, high quality, transformative performing arts education that sparks personal growth while building inclusive communities.

Wharton Arts is New Jersey’s largest independent non-profit community performing arts education center serving nearly 2,000 students through a range of classes and ensembles. Through the New Jersey Youth Symphony, the Paterson Music Project, and the Performing Arts School, Wharton Arts offers both private and group classes for instruments and voice for all ages and all abilities. With the belief in the positive and unifying influence of music and that performing arts education should be accessible to all people regardless of their ability to pay, Wharton Arts offers need-based scholarships.

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.  To learn more, visit whartonarts.org

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