Monday, January 31, 2011

Hold on to Your Hard Hats! Wexford Road Construction Project Begins Today



The following article was taken from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article. Please keep this ongoing project in mind when planning your travel to and from CYM Wexford.
Route 19 improvements begin on Wexford Flats

Project has been in the works 20 years
Monday, January 31, 2011
By Jon Schmitz, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

A long-awaited project to improve one of the region's most congested and dangerous roads will begin today with preliminary work on the 2.3-mile section of Route 19 known as Wexford Flats. Golden Triangle Construction Co. of Imperial, the contractor on the two-year, $18.1 million project, will begin removing signs, shrubbery and other obstacles from the work area in Pine and McCandless.

The work will occur from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. weekdays through early March and may cause single-lane closures in both directions during those times, said Jim Struzzi, spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

Columbia Gas has notified PennDOT that it will begin relocating gas lines next Monday, working from 9:30 p.m. weekdays to 6:30 a.m. the following morning. That work also may cause lane restrictions.

More work will begin in coming weeks as 11 different utilities, including gas, phone, cable, fiber optic, water and sewer agencies and companies prepare their infrastructure for the anticipated start of road construction in March. The project will stretch from just north of Longvue Avenue in McCandless to about a quarter-mile south of Wallace Road in Pine.

The four travel lanes will be widened to 11 feet. A 14-foot-wide center turning lane will be added. The project also calls for improvements to eight signalized intersections, new sidewalks and curbs and better drainage. Signals will be replaced at North Chapel Road-Manor Road, Bonnie View Drive, Brown Road, the entrance to Wright Pontiac, Brooktree Road-Brooker Drive, North Meadows Drive, Richard Road-Reichold Road and the entrance to North Allegheny High School.

Because of the narrow lanes, heavy traffic and lack of turning lanes, the stretch has been the scene of several crashes. PennDOT has said 395 reportable accidents occurred there from 2005 to 2009, with two people killed.

Improvements to the road have been talked about for more than 20 years. PennDOT and municipalities had to work through numerous design and funding issues in a corridor that is far from ideal for highway expansion. The state had to acquire parts of nearly 100 properties to widen the road, which is lined with shopping plazas, car dealerships and the entrance to North Allegheny.

About 28,000 vehicles use that section of Route 19 on an average day.

PennDOT has hired the Airport Corridor Transportation Association to help provide day-to-day information about construction activities to the many businesses along the route. When road work begins, traffic will be restricted to a single lane in each direction with a center lane for turns. Access to all businesses will be maintained. The center lane will not be open during nighttime work.

The project schedule calls for work to be done south of Brooktree Road this season and north of Brooktree next year, with a pause in construction during the winter. All work is scheduled for completion by November 2012. First published on January 31, 2011 at 12:00 am

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Mason Rheinhardt Graduates Suzuki Piano Book One

Congratulations to Mason Rheinhardt as he graduates from Suzuki Piano Book One! His Graduation Recital will be held this Thursday, January 20th, at 6:15 pm in the Dark Blue Room in Sewickley. CYM Family and friends are welcome to attend this exciting event!

Monday, January 17, 2011

David Weale at Children's Museum Studio Music


Congratulations to David Weale on his successful performance at the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh last Saturday, January 15th. David was also featured that morning as a part of the Saturday Light Brigade radio program, performing three songs on air. Many museum visitors stopped by to listen and ask questions during the live Studio Music session, which all seemed to enjoy. Great job, David!

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Welcome to CYM, Ingrid Beute!


We want to extend a big welcome to the newest member of our staff, Ms. Ingrid Beute! Ingrid currently resides with her husband and son in Slippery Rock, PA and has called many places home, including South Africa, Venezuela, and Canada as well as stateside in New York, and Ohio. She holds a Licentiate in Music and Artist Diploma in Piano from the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, and her Master of Music in Piano Performance from the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music.

Ms. Beute is an accomplished pianist and has performed with many symphony orchestras, most notably with the Westminster Symphony Orchestra, as well as soloist with the South African National Symphony Orchestra. Performing honors include winning third place overall at the Marsala International Piano Competition in Italy in 1990. Ms. Beute is also an experienced piano and music educator. Among her vast range of expertise, notable positions include Fine Arts Coordinator at Colegio Internacional de Carabobo in Venezuela, piano instructor and member of the chamber music faculty at Luzerne Summer Music Festival in New York, and Instrumental Music Instructor at Redhill School, Johannesburg, South Africa. 

We are delighted to have Ms. Beute join us here at CYM- she looks to expand her piano studio as well as begin teaching American Legends classes beginning this semester.Welcome, Ingrid!


    Tuesday, January 11, 2011

    Family Hullabaloo Concert

    Hullabaloo!
            4pm Saturday March 5, 2011
     Wexford Community Presbyterian Church

    Come join us for CYM’s first ever Hullabaloo! This will be an event like no other. Here’s the scoop:

    *This event will celebrate the joy of music, family, creativity, and plain old fun!

    *This is an ensemble event...so, at least two participants should be prepared to perform (no solos). We encourage you to make this a family affair, but friends are welcome too. Parents, this is a great way to let your child know that you are willing to put yourself out there, just like they do when they perform, and it also leaves your kids feeling proud of their mom and/or dad!

    *What are you supposed to do? Anything goes! Play a favorite Suzuki piece together, learn a jazz piece, perform your own composition, sing, play the bagpipes, play the kazoo, shake a box of cereal, play your favorite piece from your childhood (wouldn’t a family rendition of the Meow Mix theme song be great?).

    *Get everyone involved! Do Grandma and Grandpa have hidden talents ? Does your family have a different instrument at home? Do they play the harmonica, have a killer singing voice, or play the drum set? Can your baby sister or brother shake a box of tic-tacs, beat on a drum, or play some sticks?

    *Be creative and show us who you are as a family! Do you have costumes you would like to incorporate? Could you share some of your cultural heritage with us through a performance that’s unique to your family?

    *The point of this is not to push yourselves to be super polished. This is an opportunity to have fun, be creative, and enjoy the process of making music as a family unit. There are times for serious practice and quiet audiences, but there are also times to let loose and use music to reflect who YOU are. Come and show us who YOU are!!

    All entries must be submitted to Ms. Tanya by February 25, 2011. To sign up or just say you are interested, send a line to: tsatteson@youngmusicians.org or info@youngmusicians.org. 

    Parents as Partners- Register Now!


    Teachers and Parents:
    Don’t miss this opportunity!

    2011 Parents as Partners Online

    January 17- February 28

    Via the SAA website, PPO will feature talks on various parent education and
    Suzuki education topics. The Parents as Partners Online sessions are sure to be
    informative and inspiring. Videos are concise—only 10 to 20 minutes each—just
    right to fit into your busy life style and accessible anytime, day or night. Once a
    talk is aired, it will remain accessible online until the end of February.

    Invaluable topics to nurture and inform Suzuki Parents include:
    o   Practice: Building a Strong Parent-Child Relationship, Managing Frustration, Practice Strategies, and more!
    o   Repetition and Review: The Whys and Hows
    o   Balancing Busy Schedules
    o   Managing the Teenage Years: The Road to Independence
    o   The Changing Role of the Parent…Transitions
    o   The Importance of Listening
    o   Childhood Memories of Dr. S Suzuki
    o   Institute Experiences: What it’s all about
    o   What Current Publications are saying about "Talent"
    o   Why Series: Why Suzuki? Why Tone? Why Posture? Why Classical Music? Why not the next piece? The Whys and Wherefores of Group Class
    o   Is the Suzuki Method just for the Young?
    o   The Value of Observations
    o   The Importance of Music Education
    o   Tales from the Heart: A sharing of Suzuki stories

    To register with CYM:
    Send an email to info@youngmusicians.org by Wednesday, January 12
    Registration is $6 through CYM