One of the most fun concerts we've ever performed in!

Hi folks, Eddie here, Artist-in-Residence for the YPC. I wanted to tell you about our concert this past week: On Tuesday evening, the 12^th of April, the Cantare and Young Men’s divisions sang at Carnegie hall with James Taylor, Sting and Steve Martin. It was their annual Gala raising money, in the same way that YPC raises money at its Gala. The organizing parties for Carnegie Hall’s Gala asked us to perform, as we ask artists to perform at our gala.

Before we performed for the crowds at Carnegie, the two divisions got the chance to rehearse with James Taylor. We sang on James Taylor’s “Shower the People,” which was the finale of the entire concert.  Even though it was brief, it was a wonderful experience for us. Since many of the choristers had never really mingled with the audience during a performance before, they got their first taste of actually doing so. Most of the attending concertgoers knew the words, so it was as if they were singing along as part of the show. For all intents and purposes, they were part of the YPC for that brief moment.

I had a lot of fun participating in the concert because I got to relive memories of previous YPC concerts that I have performed at where we would sing with the audience. And I believe the audience had as much fun as we did because they were quite surprised by our entrance. They were not expecting us to appear in such a way, inviting them to be a part of the show. I feel with the choristers and audiences involvement, it was one of the most fun concerts that we have ever performed in!

Eddie, Young Men

We Even Shook Hands with Former President Bill Clinton and John Travolta!!

Tuesday's concert was so much fun - I learned many new things about my fellow choristers I didn't know before. We had a lot of time to talk to each other and get to know each other much better in between our tech rehearsal and concert. When I went down that aisle during the concert, I saw so many excited faces in the crowd – there to see me sing, even though they didn’t know me personally.  I forgot what a big deal it was singing at Carnegie Hall until I saw how many people came to see the performance. We even shook hands with former President Bill Clinton and John Travolta!!

- Billy, Young Men

This past Tuesday, April 12th, Cantare and Young Men were scheduled to sing at the "120th Anniversary Gala of Carnegie Hall." As we gathered more information on this concert, we heard about all the celebrities who were going to be there, and got really excited. We all had to keep in mind that we were kids - talented, that is - in a children’s chorus from NYC singing in a concert full of celebrities. What type of celebrity would want to sing with us? Well, James Taylor did!! On our last rehearsal day before we did the tech at Carnegie, James Taylor made a guest appearance, and I think that made all of us feel really delighted.

When we went to our first tech rehearsal, we started performing, but were still getting warmed up and didn’t have our usual energy yet.  The only reason that I just critiqued myself more than usual is because most of us discovered, only half-way through our rehearsal of “Shower the People,” that Steve Martin and Sting were up on stage with Mr. Taylor! I couldn’t control my excitement, thinking about how much I loved the “Cheaper by the Dozen” movies when I was younger and how, though I’m not a true, lifelong fan, I did like the music Sting had on his recent Christmas album. Anyway, just seeing those fantastic artists got us pumped for the next day, April 12th, when we would do the real thing with a full audience.

The big day came, and we were all jitters, as usual. Why wouldn’t we be? The adrenaline was rushing through us, uncontrollable and unstoppable until we got out there, did our YPC thing (which everyone loved, by the way), and brought the house down, in my opinion. It was an incredibly memorable night.

No one can ever say that being at a YPC rehearsal is “ordinary,” because if you really stay on your game, you will have the opportunity to perform with incredible musicians, and that is an experience that no chorister can ever forget.

Maud, Cantare

Singing with James Taylor was Truly Amazing!

Our concert at Carnegie Hall two nights ago was absolutely amazing. Of course it was so much fun performing with my friends from Cantare and Young Men - but what was truly amazing was singing with James Taylor, Sting and Steve Martin! I grew up listening to James Taylor in the backseat of the my car, and "Shower the People" and "You've Got a Friend" were always my favorites. Meeting James Taylor and listening to him talk about how he got to where is is now was so inspirational and amazing. The performance was so much fun. Performing a Carnegie Hall at age thirteen is rare. The acoustics there are incredible and the feeling of knowing how many other great artists have performed there is amazing. Being a part of YPC gives me these great and rare experiences. I ♥ YPC!!

-Lucy, Cantare

I love YPC!!

I absolutely love YPC. Cantare and Young Men got the opportunity to perform in a concert with James Taylor, Steve Martin, Sting and many more. It was a really great experience, especially when James Taylor announced us. We did a really good job and everyone around us was crying as we were singing. I feel very privileged to be a part of something as amazing as YPC; it has given me incredible experiences.  I can’t name a lot of people who have “Performing with James Taylor, Steve Martin and Sting!!” written on their calendar!

- Sofia, Cantare


Hey all you blog-followers out there! I'm from the Cantare division of the Young People's Chorus of New York City, and I’m here to tell everyone about the FABULOUS concert we had last night at Carnegie Hall with James Taylor! An average 14-year old living in NYC would rarely to NEVER have an opportunity to even be in a theater as majestic as Carnegie Hall, let alone sing with a famous music LEGEND! The experience was once in a lifetime, and I'm so happy to have experienced it with some of my best friends at YPC and my mentors (the YPC conductors). When we where first introduced to James Taylor, I thought he would be just a regular musician, but when he started to sing, he sounded AMAZINGGGG. I was so excited to see how many people were gathered to see him performing, and was honored to be a guest star! Behind the scenes, I must admit we did work hard and it definitely paid off on the night of the concert. Besides getting the opportunity to sing with a music icon, I also got to spend time with my Cantare pals, and met a lot of new friends in Young Men. All our voices mixed together sounding angelic (don’t tell anyone, but Young Men is my favorite division. They sound great when they sing, and the effort that they invest in their musical pieces, dances, and stage mannerisms is what makes them shine above all), and when we ran down the aisles to perform the song, it all just came together smoothly. This was a great bonding and musical experience, and I couldn’t have wished for a more fun night!


- May, Cantare

We sounded great!!

This past Tuesday, I was reminded why I love YPC so much. The one and only James Taylor came to our rehearsal, to work on his song "Shower the People" for Carnegie Hall's 120th Anniversary Gala this Tuesday. The second that he walked into the room, I could sense the faces of every chorister light up. It was so great to see everyone so inspired by such a renowned musician, especially the younger kids of Cantare. However, it was even more rewarding to hear that James thought that "we sounded great," after we ran the piece. To know that he realized and appreciated our musicality and liveliness was an incredible feeling. I always love a true unique YPC experience such as this one, and I'm totally pumped (man) to perform with James on Tuesday at Carnegie.

- Nathaniel, Young Men

James Taylor at YPC Rehearsal!!!

There are some things in your life that you know are just right. This past Tuesday we were rehearsing for Carnegie Hall's 120th Anniversary Gala, which features James Taylor, Sting and many other artists, including YPC with James Taylor as the finale. Near the end of the rehearsal James himself arrived, and ran through "Shower The People," the song we're performing this Tuesday, a few times with us. He was a really nice guy, and had a beautiful, authentic voice which was I expected of his wonderfully idiosyncratic persona. A guitar player myself, I definitely look to his music for inspiration, as his guitar work is some of the most beautiful and heartfelt in existence.  It was a really great experience for me to see such a staple figure in music in person, and hear what he had to say about his beginnings and roots in music. I think we really felt his vibe, and the experience of rehearsing with him this past Wednesday clearly showed how we paralleled his mission in singing this song.

James and YPC are definitely a match, and after the rehearsal I'm really excited about the upcoming concert. I think it's going to be pretty amazing, and besides, I'm really lucky to have in my schedule: "Tuesday: Go to Concert with James Taylor at Carnegie Hall!"

-Christopher, Young Men