Motivated young musicians from the Pocono Mountains, Lehigh Valley, and northwestern New Jersey are the heart and soul of the Pocono Youth Orchestra.  The PYO works with local school districts and music organizations to enrich and support our region’s musical culture.  The PYO not only offers an opportunity for students to develop their musical ability, but provides our community with local opportunities to appreciate classical music.

The PYO was founded in 1987 by a group of parents seeking to provide a challenging but enjoyable musical experience for their children. The orchestra started out as a small chamber ensemble and was led by Mary Pratt Rhiel for 6 years until 1993.   After David Swineheart served as Interim Director in 1993, the orchestra was run by Anthony and Audrey Simons for 25 years.  During their long tenure, the Simons grew the small string ensemble into an 80 student strong group with two divisions - the Pocono Youth Orchestra and the Pocono Junior Strings Orchestra.  After their retirement in 2018, the PYO had been assisted by Joseph Choi (2018-19) and Christopher Souza (2019-20).  Michael Montero, our current Music Director of both divisions of the PYO, has served as director of  the PYO’s senior orchestra since 2019.