“Singing directly speaks to the hearts of people， creates heart-to-heart ties among people and leads people toward a peaceful world. …” This is our founder’s belief and an everlasting philosophical underpinning of the Min-On Concert Association. Based on this founding principle， Min-On has brought to Japan many internationally renowned choirs from all over the world. Especially for making efforts in exchanges with youth and children’s choruses， we have welcomed seventeen groups of youthful ambassadors of choral music from fourteen different countries since 1970 and enjoyed their brilliant performances.

Among them， an internationally acclaimed youth ensemble “The Young People’s Chorus of New York City (YPC)” from the United States was brought first time on the Min-On’s stage last summer. YPC gave a concert tour across Japan and won a storm of cheers and applause. In response to the request of enthusiastic audience in their last tour， the Min-On Concert Association will proudly bring YPC back to Japan once again in this summer. They will perform on the Min-On’s stage in fourteen cities throughout Japan from July 20 through August 12， 2010.

This extraordinary youth choral ensemble is a great pride of New York City. Founded by its eminent artistic director Francisco J. Núñez in 1988 with a commitment to diversity and musical excellence， YPC has brought together hundreds of children， ages 7 to 18 from the New York City area， of all ethnic， cultural and economic backgrounds. Under the superb leadership of Mr. Núñez they have worked together and learned together through its Core After-School Program， transcending differences and developing mutual understandings among them， and they have made lifelong friends and developed not only their exceptional artistic and creative abilities， but also the skills that will serve them throughout their lives.

They have presented their magnificent performances of a wide-ranging and challenging repertoire， ranging from classical， jazz and pop， to music from many of the world’s cultures in the languages native to those lands， not just in the United States but also on tours abroad in more than 50 different countries. YPC has been highly praised all over the world with the receipts of highly acclaimed awards and honors from many of international choir competitions and various institutions， including a gold medal in the 2004 World Choir Olympic held in Bremen， Germany and three gold medals in different categories in the 2008 World Choir Olympic held in Graz， Austria，

All audiences who come to the Japan tour of The Young People’s Chorus of New York City this summer will surely enjoy their beuatiful and sansational performaces.
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Title of Performance: “Singing creates heart-to-heart ties among people” by
The Young People’s Chorus of New York City”

Sponsored/Organized by: Min-On Concert Association

Supported by: The Embassy of the United States of America
The Japan Choral Association

Admission Fee: 4，800 JYN and up (price varies according to the venue)

Inquiry at: MIN-ON Publicity Department at TEL 03-5362-3440
(Weekdays between 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM)

URL: http://www.min-on.or.jp/

Performance by: Francisco J. Núñez， its Founder/Artistic Director/Conductor and
selected members of The Young People’s Chorus of New York City

Biography of Francisco J. Núñez :

Born in New York City of Dominican descent， Francisco J. Núñez is a composer， conductor， a leading figure in music education， and a visionary， whose strongly held ideas have resulted in the critical and popular success of the Young People’s Chorus of New York City (YPC). Mr. Nunez formed the YPC in 1988 with two goals in mind: commitments to musical excellence and to providing an atmosphere where young people of diverse ethnic， economic， and cultural backgrounds could further their personal and artistic growth through the study and performance of music.

Mr. Núñez and the YPC are impacting the world of choral music itself through their groundbreaking Transient Glory series of concerts， CDs and publications， by commissioning today’s most distinguished composers to write music for children’s choirs. Today he is often contacted by cities around the country for help in replicating the YPC success. For his exemplary work with children， Mr. Núñez has been presented with numerous awards， such as the Child Champion award from Child magazine， a Liberty Award from the New York Post， and a Luminary Award from Casita Maria. He was recently named as one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics of 2005 by Hispanic Business magazine.

He has been very enthusiastic about cultural exchanges with Japanese people. He made YPC to participate in the 2005 Seventh World Symposium on Choral Music in Kyoto and also he was invited and very popular as a master teacher for choral workshops in the Children’s Coral Festival organized by Japan Choral Association.

Mission Statement of the YPC:

It is the mission of the Young People’s Chorus of New York City to provide children of diverse abilities and ethnic backgrounds with a unique program of music appreciation and choral performance that seeks to fulfill each child’s musical potential， while creating a model of artistic excellence and harmony that enriches our community.

Concert Schedule: A total of 14 performances in 14 different cities in Japan

Date & Time Venue Ticket Info Tel #

July 2010
20 (TUE) 19:00 Kurashiki City Civic Hall Min-On Kurashiki 086-428-5213
22 (THU) 19:00 Tokyo Metropolitan Art Space Min-On Info.Center 03-3226-9999
26 (MON) 19:00 Kyoto Concert Hall Min-On Kansai 06-6762-6130
27 (TUE) 18:30 Act City Hamamatsu Main Hall Min-On Info.Center 03-3226-9999
28 (WED) 19:00 Hondanomori Hall Min-On Kanazawa 076-222-0952

August 2010
1 (SUN) 14:00 Hachioji City Civic Center Min-On Info.Center 03-3226-9999
2 (MON) 19:00 Green Hall Sagami Ono Min-On Info.Center 03-3226-9999
3 (TUE) 19:00 Yokohama Minato Mirai Hall Min-On Info.Center 03-3226-9999
5 (THU) 19:00 Reed & Rose Fukuyama Min-On Fukuyama 084-924-8891
6 (FRI) 19:00 Alpha Anabuki Hall in Kagawa Min-On Takamatsu 087-822-9210
7 (SAT) 18:30 Canora Hall in Okaya City Min-On Info.Center 03-3226-9999
10 (TUE) 19:00 Kawaguchi Lilia Main Hall Min-On Info.Center 03-3226-9999
11 (WED) 18:30 Nitori Culture Center Hall Min-On Sapporo 011-642-5601
12 (THU) 18:30 Kiryu City Civic Center Silk Hall Min-On Info.Center 03-3226-9999