High school student-musician Meaghan Lawrence recently participated as a member of the 2018 School of Orchestral Studies at the New York State Summer School for the Arts. The flutist was one of approximately 90 of the finest public and private high school musicians in New York State selected through auditions to study and rehearse for a month with the world-class musicians of the Philadelphia Orchestra.

The School of Orchestral Studies – co-sponsored by the New York State School Music Association, the Saratoga Performing Arts Center, the Philadelphia Orchestra Association and the New York State Education Department – offers students not only the chance to work side by side with members of one of the finest symphony orchestras in the world, but also to work for four weeks as an integral member of their own orchestra. The School of Orchestral Studies also provides a string orchestra and a wind ensemble, as well as a number of other, smaller ensembles.

Lawrence was able to rehearse and perform a repertoire that paralleled the one chosen by the Philadelphia Orchestra for their summer season, and to attend elective classes in the history, literature and theory of music. Performance opportunities included concerts at the SPAC and Skidmore College’s Ladd Concert Hall.

“It was an amazing opportunity to work among musicians of such a high level,” Lawrence said. “NYSSSA is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced.”

“Meaghan’s success in her audition for the School of Orchestral Studies is proof of the fact that she is a talented and driven musician,” said Vincent Green, Islip’s director of fine and performing arts. “She works hard at her musical craft, both in school and in the community, and being invited to participate in a program like this is well deserved.”