All orchestras and ensembles in performance / Iroquois Amphitheater / April 30, 2023
Our 65tH
Season
MEET THE EXECUTIVE STAFF
Matthew Vanover
Executive Director
(Staff member since 2023)
Matthew Vanover has devoted his life and career to service in the non-profit music and education sector. Matthew joined LYO in Summer of 2023 after a five-month long nationwide search. After graduating at the University of Evansville with degrees in music, Matthew went on to lead several church music programs oriented toward community engagement, growth and support for community music educators. Matthew came to LYO after leading more than forty artistic and administrative staff members at the Immanuel School of Music in the Northern Kentucky/Greater Cincinnati region. Immanuel School of Music is a full-featured private music school providing private instruction and a graded string orchestra program to more than 700 students. The schools outreach program, Mozart Strings, sends string music educators into 20 area elementary schools to provide entry level music eduction to approximately 350 third-grade students. LYO's partnership with Matthew stems from a shared desire to see LYO continue to grow upon the organization's six decades of success.
Matthew is an accomplished pianist, organist and conductor whose musical journey began at a very young age in rural Western Kentucky. After a difficult childhood losing his father to cancer at the age of seven, music became a forever faithful friend. Owing much of his success to his educators, Matthew moved toward the non-profit music education space in a desire to provide today's children many of the same outlets that were so beneficial to him as a child. As an arts administrator, Matthew is able to influence lives a countless students and help move entire communities toward more engaging music education.
Matthew lives in the Greater Louisville area with his family. Matthew's wife, Jessica, is a public school music educator at Painted Stone Elementary School in Shelby County. Their son, Charles, is the life of the party! All together, the Vanover's are avid Cincinnati Reds and Bengals sports fans.
Denver Pascua
Site Manager/Music Librarian - YPAS Ensembles
(Staff member since 2022)
Denver Pascua is a musician, educator, and software engineer in Louisville. He actively teaches, performs, and enjoys helping out with the LYO in between. The euphonium and trombone are his primaries, though he has performed professionally on the tuba and trumpet.
Denver is a Central Kentucky Youth Orchestra alumni and sat lead trombone in the KMEA All State Jazz band in high school. He later pursued a double bachelor's in Music Education and Music Performance at the University of Kentucky. Afterward, he earned a teaching assistantship at the prestigious Eastman School of Music. His time at Eastman earned him a double master's in Music Teaching & Learning and Music Performance & Literature alongside the Performer's Certificate. He has taught elementary students to retired citizens in the New Horizons Ensembles, Central Music Academy, and High School Band and Choir.
As a musician, Denver has performed across many genres, from classical to contemporary to pop. He has performed with groups such as the Eastman Wind Ensemble, Brass Guild, Blue Lake International Jazz Band, Advocate Brass Band, The Rough Customers (Ska), and Vinyl Richie (Rock). Denver co-founded several chamber groups, such as the Rose Street Brass.
Denver enjoys music production, including recording different instruments and voices for auditioning, sampling, and composition. His music production leans towards video game music and instrumental tracks.
Beyond the arts, Denver is an intern with Code Louisville and #100Devs for software engineering. Denver also has an interest in powerlifting and chess, including competing in tournaments.
Loren Pascua
Site Manager/Music Librarian - St Matthews Pavilion Ensembles
(Staff member since 2022)
Loren Pascua is a flutist, educator, and creator who has journeyed on an interesting life path. She earned Bachelor’s degrees in Music Education and Music Performance from the University of Kentucky in 2017, studying under Dr. Julie Hobbs. During her time at UK, Loren was a member of the UK Wind Symphony, and was active in numerous chamber and solo performances, and completed an
international student teaching placement in San Jose, Costa Rica. In 2016, Loren received an Undergraduate Summer Research Grant from the University of Kentucky for her work in developing repertoire and pedagogy for beginning flute students using extended techniques.
Loren continued her work in new music and pedagogy at the University of North Dakota, studying under Dr. Lisa Bost-Sandberg, where she earned her Master’s Degree in Music Performance. She was awarded a Graduate Teaching Assistantship and worked closely with the Director of Bands, Dr. James Popejoy, to ensure that the school of music ran smoothly. Throughout her time at UND, Loren also made it a priority to focus on collaboration. She commissioned 6 new pieces from student composers from all around the USA and encouraged them to write for all different types of ensembles. She invited students from multiple disciplinaries to perform these new pieces in a Collaboration Concert.
After graduating in May of 2020, Loren was given the opportunity to work in the healthcare field during the beginning of the pandemic. This field has shown her a deep love for the community through the care of human well-being. Throughout schooling and her different employment roles, Loren has discovered that people are her passion. She would love nothing more than an opportunity to contribute back to a community that has shown nothing but love, compassion, and acceptance.