New Sounds: Yamaha Presents Junior Original Concert Series

ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Yamaha Music Education System will host its popular Junior Original Concert (JOC) on Thursday, January 13th at 11:30 a.m. in the Yamaha Keyboard Division exhibit area in the Anaheim Marriott Hotel's Marquis Ballroom. All NAMM attendees are invited to enjoy this free event, which will feature two talented Yamaha Music School students performing their own original compositions.

Megan Chang, age nine, a student at Torrance Yamaha Music Center in Torrance, Calif., will perform her solo piano composition entitled "Home." Sharon Hurvitz, age 12, who studies at Harmony Music World in Fullerton, Calif., will perform her composition "Memories," written for the piano and violin.

The Yamaha Music Education System offers six music courses for children between the ages of three and ten. Classes are held weekly, covering everything from listening skills to keyboard performance. The program began in the mid-1950s in Japan under the direction of Mr. Genichi Kawakami, President of Nippon-Gakki Company, Ltd. (today's Yamaha Corporation). Mr. Kawakami believed his company was responsible not only for making a quality product, but also for teaching customers how to use it. Consequently, he established the non-profit Yamaha Music Foundation (YMF) in 1966 for the purpose of developing and promoting music education and music popularization activities internationally.

YMF guides the worldwide development of the Yamaha Music Education System and also sponsors international events such as the Junior Original Concert (JOC). In the United States, the Music Education Division of Yamaha Corporation of America works in cooperation with Yamaha Music Foundation to design new courses, improve instructional quality, and refine existing programs.

For more information, visit Yamaha Corporation of America at Winter NAMM 2011 in the Marquis Ballroom at the Anaheim Marriott Hotel; write Yamaha Corporation of America, Yamaha Music Education System; P.O. Box 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622; telephone (714) 522-9011; e-mail ymes@yamaha.com; or visit www.yamaha.com.