The Discovery Orchestra
About The Discovery Orchestra
Transforming Listening, Enhancing Lives
We believe that listening to classical music and perceiving its many expressive aspects evokes compelling emotional responses within us. These powerful encounters with classical music help us fully experience our own feelings, as well as appreciate those of others – beginning with the composer!
The incessant, 24/7 presence of electronically-reproduced music has trained generations of people to merely hear music as “sonic wallpaper” – a background accompaniment for virtually every activity in our daily lives. As a consequence, people have been conditioned to ignore music, rather than to be completely present with it. To address this, The Discovery Orchestra teaches the listening skills that help people really connect with classical music.
Originally founded in 1987 as the Philharmonic Orchestra of New Jersey, The Discovery Orchestra provides listening interactions for all ages, from novices to classical music enthusiasts. Beginning with our first Discovery Concert™ in 1996 and culminating with our mission and name change in 2006, all of our programs are now educational in nature. Artistic Director George Marriner Maull and The Discovery Orchestra have helped literally millions of people be transformed by the dynamic power of classical music through our interactive Discovery Concerts™, public television and radio programs, educational videos, and other digital content. The Discovery Orchestra also presents live and virtual Community Outreach programs in collaboration with our educational partners, reaching underserved audiences in five New Jersey counties.
Since 2003, our televised Discovery Concerts™ – created with our production partner Midnight Media Group and distributed by American Public Television – have been enjoyed by viewers in the United States and around the world. These include:
- Bach to the Future (Emmy Nomination)
- Discover Beethoven’s 5th (Emmy Nomination and three Telly Awards)
- Discover Vivaldi’s Four Seasons (Emmy Nomination and three Telly Awards)
- Fall in Love with Music – 8-part series (two Telly Awards)
- Discover The Firebird (two Telly Awards)
- Discover Saint-Saëns’ “Organ” Symphony (Telly Award)
Our television programs are also now available on PBS Passport and Amazon Prime Video. These programs, along with our Discovery Chat© videos on YouTube, are also streamed to classrooms and libraries across the country by Films Media Group.
Our public radio program, Inside Music, broadcast on the second and fourth Saturdays every month at 7:30 pm ET on 89.1 WWFM – The Classical Network, can also be streamed worldwide at wwfm.org.
Our new game app, AHA! Classical, is available for free online at ahaclassical.com or downloadable on the Apple App Store and Google Play. Created in collaboration with Social Impact Studios, AHA! Classical allows players to learn about, interact with, and practice listening skills using classical music.
The Discovery Orchestra receives support from individuals, foundations, businesses, and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts. It is a priority of The Discovery Orchestra to distribute free or discounted tickets to underserved constituents whenever possible. In addition, The Discovery Orchestra makes every effort to accommodate the needs of individuals with physical and/or cognitive disabilities for all of its programs and activities. Contact us here for more information.
Event Photography:
Photographs by Debbie Weisman & Amanda Brown Photography.
VIRGINIA JOHNSTON, Finance Director
A Cum Laude graduate of Montclair State University, Christine comes to us with considerable corporate experience, first at Merrill Lynch/Bank of America in New York City where she served as Assistant Vice-President, Executive Services; Vice-President/Group Administrator; and Director, Global Conference, Dining and Training Services. She has also formerly been Administrative Assistant of Student Services at the Unity Charter School in Morristown and will continue as part-time remote Club Administrator of the Kellogg Club in Morristown as she now serves The Discovery Orchestra part-time. Email: Christine@DiscoveryOrchestra.org.
Michael Avagliano, a graduate of Indiana University and Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University, is currently Music Director and Conductor of both the Summit Symphony Orchestra and the Somerset Symphony and was formerly Music Director and Conductor of the Manalapan Symphony Orchestra. He was formerly Executive Director of the New Jersey State Youth Orchestra. In addition he is a professional violinist and violist and a member of the Madison String Quartet. He is also the Director of the Drew University Orchestra and an Adjunct Lecturer at Drew. Email: Michael@DiscoveryOrchestra.org.
Thank you so much for inviting us to attend the Saint-Saens “Organ Symphony” recording session. I have always enjoyed listening to this work. As is always the case, your tutorial was excellent! I cannot believe how much more I now know about the “Organ Symphony”. And with more understanding comes a better appreciation. The Discovery Orchestra is much bigger than I remember. Their performance was excellent and truly exciting! A really big pipe organ performed by Mark Miller further enhanced the entire listening experience.