The California Arts Council has announced a grant award of $28,500 to the Santa Clarita Valley Youth Orchestra as part of the Arts and Cultural Organizations General Operating Relief Grant Program representing the Council’s first round funding for 2022.

This matching grant will help the SCV Youth Orchestra ameliorate salaries and revenue losses incurred and bolster its fiscal infrastructure supporting the multi-tiered instrumental programs as it returns to post-pandemic operations.

A mainstay in the community for over 35 years, the SCV Youth Orchestra is the preeminent and only non-school based youth orchestra program in the Santa Clarita Valley.mThe organization grappled with the possibility of ceasing operations because of the financial fallout from the pandemic.

Not only does the SCV Youth Orchestra provide traditional classical music education, but it also offers an innovative curriculum. Students are exposed to a wider spectrum of pan-cultural and 21st century composers in the otherwise Eurocentric classical genre. Using music as a living metaphor, the SCV Youth Orchestra educates students how different cultures can coexist harmoniously on a local, regional and global scale.

“We are extremely grateful for this opportunity to continue the arts for all students in the Santa Clarita Valley and beyond,” said SCV Youth Orchestra Board Chair Julie Vazquez. “With this grant we will be able to recover some of the losses due to the pandemic and rebuild for new opportunities. We aim to provide classical music education and collaboration with our local elementary schools through colleges and conservatories.”

The SCV Youth Orchestra grant was part of a larger announcement from the state arts council, which issued grant awards for its Cycle A programming worth a total of more than $31 million. That included more than 1,100 grants supporting nonprofit organizations and units of government throughout the state. The dollar amount already marks the largest annual investment in the council’s 46-year history.

“We are elated today to be able to say that, with this first round of funds, we are placing a historic amount of money into the very worthy hands of California’s arts and cultural workforce, and with more yet to come,” said Lilia Gonzáles-Chávez, the council’s chair. “We have long since understood the value of our artists in this state, and we are incredibly grateful to our Governor and our Legislature for their support and sharing in a like-minded vision for a California where all people flourish with access to and participation in the arts.”

Organizations were awarded grants across seven different program areas within Cycle A, focused on the CAC’s efforts to address geographic equity, enable autonomy and sustainability for smaller organizations, and grow the strength of local arts agencies and their partnerships. A complete listing of all arts council grantees by county can be found here. A complete listing of grantees by organization is at this link.

The arts council is a state agency with a mission of strengthening arts, culture, and creative expression as the tools to cultivate a better California for all. It supports local arts infrastructure and programming statewide through grants, initiatives, and services. The council envisions a California where all people flourish with universal access to and participation in the arts. Members of the council include Chair Lilia Gonzáles-Chávez, Vice Chair Consuelo Montoya, along with board members Gerald Clarke, Vicki Estrada, Jodie Evans, Ellen Gavin, Alex Israel, Phil Mercado and Roxanne Messina Captor. Learn more at California Arts Council.

The SCV Youth Orchestra is exceedingly grateful to the California Arts Council for this prestigious award and their belief that the arts matter to the health and vitality of our community. The Sounds of Summer music camp will be held daily from July 5-9. To learn more about the SCV Youth Orchestra cutting-edge programs, or to donate, visit Santa Clarita Valley Youth Orchestra or contact the Executive Director at info@scvyo.org.