The San Jose Youth Symphony (SJYS) is a non-profit youth orchestra located in San Jose, California. SJYS was founded in 1951. It was originally part of the San Jose Symphony as the San Jose Symphony Youth Orchestra (SJSYO). However, in 2002, when the San Jose Symphony was going through financial problems, SJSYO separated itself from the San Jose Symphony and became the San Jose Youth Symphony. SJYS consists of two full symphony orchestras (the Philharmonic and Concert Orchestras), a Chamber Orchestra, two preparatory string ensembles (the Intermezzo and Prelude String Ensembles), and five other instrumental ensembles (the Avant and Avance Flute choirs, the Percussion Ensemble, the Concert Wind Ensemble, and the Harp Ensemble). SJYS has received the Ambassador's Award for Cultural Diplomacy for its performances in Poland as well as letters of commendations from both the City of San Jose and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. As a non-profit organization, the San Jose Youth Symphony is supported by the Silicon Valley Arts Council, the City of San Jose, the San Jose Symphony Foundation, the Steinway Society, and various other foundations and corporations. Ensembles Philharmonic Orchestra The Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Maestro Yair Samet, is SJYS's premiere orchestra. Simply referred to as the 'Phil', it is composed of approximately 100 musicians mostly of high-school age. Three concerts are offered each season, usually during December, March and June. The orchestra has performed various works across the classical music spectrum, including works of Antonio Vivaldi, Piotr Tchaikovsky, Dmitri Shostakovich, Franz Liszt, Édouard Lalo, Aaron Copland, and George Gershwin. In addition, the orchestra frequently plays with professional musicians (such as Jon Nakamatsu and Axel Strauss), winners of the Symphony's Young Artist Competitions, and, formerly, winners of the Philharmonic Concerto Competitions (at present discontinued). Philharmonic Orchestra has also partnered with various other musical groups in the past, including Chanticleer, San Jose Taiko, Crystal Children's Choir, Children's Musical Theatre of San Jose, and other assorted non-profit or fundraising groups. Benefit Concerts The Phil is also known for performing in benefit concerts, in which the net proceeds from sold tickets (and, if present, auctions) are donated to welfare causes. In 2008 and 2009, all the various groups in SJYS performed in charity concerts for Kenya Dream, a program that is raising a minimum of $100,000 to be donated to a secondary school in Kenya. In March 2010, the Phil dedicated their second set concert to Chile, which had suffered