(BERKELEY HEIGHTS, NJ) -- On Thursday, March 9, 2023, Wharton Arts honored former New Jersey Youth Symphony Artistic Director and Conductor Barbara Barstow posthumously with the Education Award at its annual Gala. The award was presented by Artistic Director and Principal Conductor Helen H. Cha-Pyo and accepted by Barstow’s husband, Bill Barstow.

The event featured a tribute performance of Karl Jenkin’s Palladio by a string ensemble of current NJYS students and alumni in addition to a live auction during a three-course dinner. The Gala was held at the Westmount Country Club in Woodland Park, NJ. To find out more about the event and tribute to Barbara Barstow, please visit WhartonArtsGala.org.

Barbara Barstow was the second Artistic Director of New Jersey Youth Symphony (2000-2009) and longtime conductor (1981-2009) who spearheaded the start of the youth orchestra program’s Preparatory Orchestra, Junior Strings, and Orchestral Strings Training Ensemble (OSTE), as well as the annual NJYS summer camp and Playathon. Her dedication and visionary leadership for nearly three decades helped shape the organization into the thriving musical community that it is today.

Said Cha-Pyo, “We cannot express enough our gratitude for Barbara's unwavering commitment to NJYS, which has been instrumental in transforming it into the dynamic and flourishing musical community of 15 ensembles that it is today. By honoring Barbara with this year's Education Award, we also celebrate the countless musicians and music lovers whose lives she has deeply touched over the years. As we approach NJYS' 45th anniversary season, we look forward to continuing this celebration with our NJYS alumni and carrying on Barbara's legacy of excellence in music education.”

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

Wharton Arts’ vision is for a transformative performing arts education in an inclusive community to be accessible for everyone.

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. The 5 ensembles of the New Jersey Youth Chorus, an auditioned choral ensemble program for students in grades 3–12, encourage a love and appreciation of choral music while nurturing personal growth and creative development. The 15 ensembles of the New Jersey Youth Symphony, which serve over 500 students in grades 3–12 by audition, inspire young people to achieve musical excellence through high-level ensemble training and performance opportunities. Based in Paterson, the Paterson Music Project is an El Sistema-inspired program of Wharton Arts that uses music education as a vehicle for social action by empowering and inspiring young people to achieve their full potential through the community experience of ensemble learning and playing. From Pathways classes for young children to Lifelong Learning programs for adults, the Wharton Performing Arts School has a robust musical theater and drama program and 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.