Oboist in the American Youth Symphony featured in latest ‘Movers, Shakers’

Oboist Noah Breneman is featured in the latest “Movers, Shakers, Designers, Makers,” the College of Arts and Architecture’s interview series highlighting alumni making an impact across the arts and design disciplines. Breneman received a B.M. in Music in 2018. His interview is available on the college’s YouTube channel. Breneman is the Citizen Musician Fellow and Principal Oboe in the American Youth Symphony, a Los Angeles, California-based orchestra that aims to inspire the future of classical music by providing landmark fellowships to virtuosic young adults and exceptional, innovative, and free concerts to the Los Angeles community. Originally from Reading, Pennsylvania, Breneman, during an interview hosted by Michael J. and Aimee Rusinko Kakos Dean in the College of Arts and Architecture B. Stephen Carpenter II, discusses why he chose Penn State and the transformative experience he had at the University. The School of Music was a springboard for Breneman’s career, and he talks in-depth about “the small school feel within the big university where things are very intimate, and you know all of your classmates across disciplines…” Carpenter and Breneman’s discussion covers many topics, but the two drill down on the COVID-19 pandemic and not only the difficulties that musicians and other artists faced during a “challenging” time, but what returning to the stage felt like. “This hasn’t been able to happen for a long time where you have not only a full orchestra inside a theatre, but a full cast of singers…It’s just an exciting time because it does feel like now things are happening again.” “Movers, Shakers, Designers, Makers” was launched virtually in spring 2020 to give alumni a way to discuss their careers and accomplishments, in a format that could be shared broadly. Previous interviews featured, among others, Graphic Design alumnus Adam Cohn, vice president of global design for Converse; School of Visual Arts alumnus and ceramic artist Roberto Lugo; and Architecture alumna Samantha Josaphat-Medina, founder of Studio 397. All interviews are available at https://arts.psu.edu/aadean/#msdm.