The following ensembles were recipients of Women’s Philharmonic Advocacy Performance Grants for 2024 – 2026:

Boston Landmarks Orchestra offers free outdoor concerts throughout the summer, consistently featuring music by women and BIPOC composers. In 2023, this included the monumentally important “Seen-Unseen: The Symphonic Legacy of Black American Women.” Music Director Christopher Wilkins shares the podium with young guest conductors and the orchestra offers robust music classes for young people.

Denver Young Artists Orchestra is led by Music Director Wilbur Lin, who is committed to reinvigorating and re-energizing the orchestral tradition. DYAO are committed to diverse programming on every program, as well as to including offbeat selections by well-known composers. The young musicians of the three orchestras of the DYAO Association are excited by their role in pioneering (re)discoveries and righting historic injustices, as well as by the musical excellence of their performances.

Horizon Ensemble, a community orchestra founded in Boston in 2021, programs new and recent music by young composers alongside historic rediscoveries and other adventurous works of the past. All of their concerts stream live and are available on their YouTube channel. Founder and Music Director Julian Gau creates a welcoming environment, with interactive concerts and “Pay what you want” pricing.

Seattle Philharmonic, a community orchestra, is dedicated to illuminating both hidden historic gems and recent works, with the aim always to present the best possible music, familiar and unfamiliar. For instance, Music Director Adam Stern has championed composer Ruth Gipps (1921–1999), giving US premieres of several of her works, and a recent concert included the violin concerto by Serbian Isidora Žebeljan, her final work before her death at age 54 in 2020.

Worthington Chamber Orchestra, with Music Director Dr. Antoine T. Clark, places a mission-based emphasis on supporting unjustly neglected and overlooked repertoire in addition to programming new works, for instance by Jessie Montgomery and Korine Fujiwara, and the US premiere of a work by composer Ljubica Marić (1909-2003). The orchestra engages with the community through a range of educational initiatives.

The following ensembles were recipients of Women’s Philharmonic Advocacy Performance Grants for 2023 – 2025:

The Akron Symphony Orchestra has engaged in a monumental project of uncovering the music of composer Julia Perry (1924-1979) who lived much of her life in Akron. By revealing and performing this amazing “hidden figure,” they emphasize that Black Lives do indeed Matter, a realization that is bound to have waves of positive impact on the entire community.  

The Portland Youth Philharmonic has an impressive record of programming large-scale works by women, such as their performance of Amy Beach’s Symphony in E minor op. 32 (Gaelic). In the past five years PYP has programmed five major symphonic works by women as the primary centerpiece of the concert. A pandemic project was an innovative commissioning program of 30 new works by people of color and women for small ensembles that could be performed and recorded remotely.  

Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras have an impressive commitment to a diverse range of repertoire, including historic rarities such as Emilie Mayer: Symphony No. 7 in F Minor, I. Allegro agitato (1856)  – Mayer’s music is just beginning to be discovered in the U.S. They also have a strong program of performing new works and commissions and performed the Midwest premiere of Vivian Fung’s Trumpet Concerto, a work written for alum Mary Elizabeth Bowden.

Chamber Orchestra of the Springs will be celebrating their 40th season in 2023-24, and have shown a deep commitment to diverse repertoire throughout their history. In addition to programming at least one historic or contemporary work by a woman per concert, the organization is committed to accessible programming, offering a “pay what you can” model, to remove the financial barrier to accessing great music.  

Seattle Collaborative Orchestra  offers a new model for what orchestral ensembles can be – diverse, multigenerational, and an educational opportunity for seasoned professionals as well as those early in their careers. Founded by conductor Dr. Anna Edwards in response to the lack of diversity in repertoire and in musicians, the ensemble regularly features works by up-and-coming composers, works by underrepresented historic composers, and promotes diversity and equity in all aspects of the organization.  

Find below a listing of ensembles who were awarded Performance Grants under the previous program and the pieces performed.