As one of the country’s most established community orchestras, the PVS has been bringing exceptional live symphonic and choral music to the Pioneer Valley for over 80 years. Founded in Greenfield in 1939, the PVS ensembles perform high-quality symphonic and choral music in Greenfield, Northampton, and Amherst, drawing its audience from the wider Pioneer Valley and southern Vermont.
PVS provides professional-level musical direction for nearly 200 volunteer instrumentalists and vocalists, and hundreds of children each year are introduced to choral and orchestral music through free educational concerts and materials. The PVS has performed a number of U.S. and world premieres and gained national recognition for its programming of contemporary music, earning three ASCAP awards for adventurous programming in 1997, 2011, and 2014.
The Pioneer Valley Symphony is comprised of three collaborative yet distinct ensembles. The PVS Orchestra, under the expert musical director of Tianhui Ng, typically performs five concerts a year. The PVS Chorus and Chamber Choir, under the direction of Chorus Director Allegra Martin, usually perform seasonally with the PVS Orchestra, as well as presenting independent subscription concerts and community performances. The PVS Youth Orchestra, directed by Nell Wiener, in its 10th year of programming, typically performs two independent community concerts each year, five concerts for elementary and middle school students, and joins the adult symphony orchestra on stage for the annual Holiday concert.
