PB Symphony Report Shows Strong Assets

Palm Beach Symphony (IndieHouse Films)

(Press Release) West Palm Beach, Fla. (September 11, 2026) – Palm Beach Symphony’s newly released 2025-2026 Season Impact Report showcases steady financial growth and an exponential increase in the orchestra’s educational outreach.
 
Through ticket sales, special events, investments, contributions and grants, the Symphony has demonstrated impressive year-over-year financial growth and stability, finishing the 2025-2026 season with more than $4.6 million in total assets, a significant increase from $3.9 million in 2025, $3.7 million in 2024 and $2.7 million in 2023.

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With education central to Palm Beach Symphony’s mission, the organization made greater impact than ever before during the 2025-2026 school year. Coaching sessions with students led by Palm Beach Symphony Artists-in-Residence rose from 183 to 978, a 434% increase; contact hours with students went up from 363 to 1,592, a 338% increase; classes engaged went up from 64 to 588, an extraordinary 818% increase; and new programming included 10 side-by-side performances at school concerts in which the Symphony’s Artists-in-Residence played alongside their students. An additional six side-by-sides took place at various concerts and fundraising events throughout the season.
 
“The 2025-2026 season was defined by passion and power on the Masterworks stage, a milestone EMMY win, and a season of remarkable philanthropy,” said Palm Beach Symphony CEO David McClymont. “This was made possible with the support, generosity and advocacy of our Board of Directors, members, sponsors, donors, subscribers, staff, volunteers, music director, musicians, music educators and audience members. They all deserve a round of applause and standing ovation.”
 
Masterful Performances
Under the direction of Music Director Gerard Schwarz, the 2025-2026 Masterworks Concert Series at the Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts in West Palm Beach
brought the works of Brahms, Rachmaninoff, Schumann, Strauss, Shostakovich and Holst to life, alongside the world premiere of Pulitzer Prize-winner Paul Moravec's Lullaby, commissioned for Palm Beach Symphony by Ambassador Bonnie McElveen-Hunter. Also welcomed were guest artists Shelly Berg, Misha Dichter, Simon Trpčeski and Emanuel Ax on piano and cellist Alisa Weilerstein, as well as Palm Beach Symphony’s principal second violinist Valentin Mansurov.
 
During the breathtaking season finale Masterworks concert in May, Young Singers of the Palm Beaches performed vocals to accompany Gustav Holst’s spellbinding cosmic journey, The Planets, Op. 32. The dynamic and inspiring community-based children's choir has been igniting the passion of children in grades 2-12 for two decades. Prior to concert, they headlined the Overture Series Pre-Concert Performance in the Kravis Center lobby.
 
And The EMMY Goes To…
Palm Beach Symphony won its very first EMMY Award at the 49th Annual Suncoast Regional EMMY® Awards Gala in 2025 for a televised concert in The Dale A. McNulty Children's Concert Series. Audio producer Carlos Lopez won in the category of Audio Live or Post Production for The Carnival of MORE Animals, conducted and arranged by Maestro Schwarz. It aired on South Florida PBS in March 2026 and is being broadcast nationally through ATP until July 31, 2027.
 
GOOOOOOOAL!
Palm Beach Symphony tapped into an entirely new audience when 58 of their musicians recorded an orchestral version of the Florida Panthers' goal song, Panthers Pulse, generating widespread media buzz.
 
Educational and Community Impact
For the second time in less than a year, Paul and Karen Levy matched up to $250,000 for the Symphony’s education programs, building on their first $500,000 challenge. This funded artists-in-residence, four orchestra programs, eight band programs, 978 coaching sessions, nine in-school concerts and 10 side-by-side performances at nine Title I schools in the Palm Beach County School District, as well as Masterworks and A TV Guide to the Orchestra concerts, 
 
“Working with the Artists-in-Residence from Palm Beach Symphony has had a tremendously
positive impact on both our students and our overall band program at Plumosa School of
the Arts. The experience of learning directly from professional musicians brings a level of
excitement, inspiration and credibility that truly resonates with middle school students,” said Brian Horan, band director at Plumosa School of the Arts.
 
Of the students who worked with artists-in-residence:

• 92% feel motivated to learn under Palm Beach Symphony’s musicians
• 91% learned what professional musicians sound like and how to emulate them in their school concert side-by-sides playing alongside the artists-in-residence
• 90% increased confidence when playing their instrument
• 84% feel more valued
• 81% feel more creative and connected to their classmates
• 76% communicate better and express their emotions through music

 
One student said, "My favorite part about working with the Artists-in-Residence is the deeper and more personal lessons you learn, which you cannot have in regular classes throughout the school day. It's very fun and entertaining."
 
During the Ninth Annual Jolly Symphony Fête at the Kravis Center in December 2025, Palm Beach Symphony presented 31 instruments, including 27 brand-new instruments, to students and educators from three Palm Beach County Title I schools that are part of the Paul & Karen Levy Residency Program. This donation included the milestone 1,000th instrument that has been gifted since the Symphony’s donation program began in 2016. The Instrument Donation Program gifted 244 instruments and 2,901 accessories to schools and young musicians this past year.
 
The Dale A. McNulty Children's Concert Series partnered with Young Artists from the Goldner Conservatory at the Maltz Jupiter Theatre on A TV Guide to the Orchestra. Performances were held at the Kravis Center for the Performing Arts, Dolly Hand Cultural Arts Center and Duncan Theatre. Three performances were school field trips for more than 3,000 students and one was a family show that was open to the public.
 
In the last decade, more than 100,000 people have been educated through Symphony programs; 18,109 students and lifelong learners have been reached; 21,290 people have been engaged through live activities; and 125 community outreaches have taken place. This past season alone, the Symphony’s musicians performed at the 22nd Annual “Lady in Red;” Brooke USA’s “An Evening of Divertimentos and Dressage,” where horses performed to live orchestral music; Earth Day celebration at the new Glazer Hall performing the U.S. premiere of the live score to the film “Ocean”; as well as at the Cox Science Center and Aquarium, where they conducted six STEAM sessions that demonstrated the interconnectivity between music and science; Norton Museum of Art; The Cove Club; Findlay Galleries; and Candlelight Concert Series at Palm Beach Yacht Club and The Boca Raton.
 
The Symphony hosts an instrument petting zoo at Kravis Center’s annual Block Party, so kids and the young at heart can pick up, touch and discover a variety of instruments that may spark an interest in lessons. Lifelong learners are drawn to various educational events held throughout the year. This included the Clef Notes Series at Mandel Public Library of West Palm Beach and panel discussion, “Music, Maestros & Masters,” featuring acclaimed experts in music, science, health and athletics at Florida Atlantic University’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute on the Jupiter campus. The ongoing Symphony Sessions: Lunch & Learns, held the Thursday prior to each Masterworks Series Concert are hosted by Maestro Schwarz, an assistant conductor or musician. It gives attendees a glimpse behind the curtain of how the Symphony prepares for concerts, selects repertoire and more.
 
Record-Breaking Fundraising
Philanthropy powered every corner of the season's progress. Palm Beach Symphony’s 24th Annual Gala: A Standing Ovation, held at The Breakers Palm Beach, broke the previous fundraising record by raising $1.3 million in donations, $200,000 of this total a result of Park Foundation, Patrick and Milly Park’s matching challenge. The season closed with another $100,000 raised during the 7th Annual Swings for Strings Golf Invitational. The Symphony doesn’t only rely on these two signature events and their annual Holly Jolly Symphony Fête—which raised nearly $500,000 in 2025 including pledges—but also relies on the ongoing year-round support of their Board of Directors led by the brilliant Chair James R. Borynack and dedicated committees, as well as various membership levels, including the Impresario Society, Prelude Society and Young Friends of Palm Beach Symphony, which is designed for young professionals in their 20s, 30s and 40s, to fund programming and initiatives.
 
“[Palm Beach Symphony] is more to us than a world-class orchestra. What it really means is the culture it brings to our community. It reaches the classroom and young people who may be hearing an orchestra for the very first time,” said John T. Collins, Impresario Society member, who co-chaired the 24th Annual Gala with his wife Amy.
 
Onboarding
The Symphony welcomed Carol Baxter, Mary Demory and Percy Kavasmaneck, Ph.D. to its Board of Directors. Their diverse backgrounds, paired with their history of commitment to various community organizations, are bringing new and valuable skillsets to the board.
 
The complete 2025-2026 Season Impact Report is available at PalmBeachSymphony.org under “About.”