Broadneck Grads Reflect On Performing With The Naptown Philharmonic Orchestra

On June 6, the Naptown Philharmonic Orchestra (NPO) performed the final concert of its 2025-2026 season, and for five members of the ensemble it was their last time playing with the NPO.

During a break in the program, themed “American Voices: United Through Song,” NPO Music Director/Conductor Anna Binneweg celebrated five young musicians in the orchestra who had just graduated from high school and would soon head off to college. Two of them, violinist Vivienne Newburger and bassist Gabe Noon, received their diplomas from Broadneck High School only four days earlier.

Part of the Apex Arts program at Broadneck, Newburger began learning to play the violin at just 5 years old. She continued taking lessons through high school and now teaches young students herself. Desiring to take on a new challenge in high school, she pursued the Apex Arts route to study playing the piano.

Newburger had the opportunity to perform with the NPO during her junior year in a side-by-side concert, and the following summer she was contacted about playing as a full-time musician with the NPO. She accepted and performed in concerts with the local orchestra throughout her senior year.

There were two aspects of performing with the NPO that she especially enjoyed. One, the music they played was far more diverse than what she was accustomed to in youth and school orchestras. “We play very varied music, like pieces from all different genres and time periods, and we get to work with dancers and singers from all over the world,” she explained.

Two, she admired how her youth did not alienate her from more seasoned musicians. “What really amazed me was how everyone was on the same level,” she said. “There wasn’t really a feeling of superiority between different-age people, and I just thought it was really cool how people, all different ages and places in life, could be friends and like equals in a community.”

While at Broadneck, Newburger was a member of the Math Honor Society, the Science National Honor Society and the Tri-M Music Honor Society. She joined the Chesapeake Youth Symphony Orchestra while still in elementary school and worked her way up to serving as concertmaster this past year.

This fall, she will begin her studies in applied mathematics at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland and hopes to continue teaching violin lessons while there.

Fellow Bruin Gabe Noon met Binneweg at an Anne Arundel County Public Schools music camp several years ago and kept in touch, ultimately reaching out to ask if he could play with the NPO in any open spots they might have in upcoming concerts. That was during his sophomore year, and he was a member of the NPO from then on.

Noon’s primary instrument is the double bass, though he has also played bassoon and bass guitar. He began playing bass when he was in third grade and is now transitioning from taking private lessons to taking lessons with his college professor. Noon is headed to Miami University in Ohio to double-major in biochemistry and music performance.

While at Broadneck, he was a member of the marching band, concert orchestra, concert band, jazz band and chamber orchestra. Noon competed in track and field all four years of being a Bruin, and he was involved in environmental literacy clubs – he is considering a career in environmental science, along with continuing to play bass, of course.

Like Newburger, Noon enjoyed playing in the NPO with people from all throughout the community.

“You would play side by side with professional players, military members, retired teachers – just like every possible background of musician or community member was involved in the orchestra,” he said. “As a high-schooler, being a part of a group that has so much diversity and so many opportunities is really not taken for granted.”

In addition to rising to the challenge of playing more difficult music, Noon learned intangibles while performing with the NPO that he will carry with him.

“When I first started, I remember how different it was from my regular school orchestra rehearsals, because when the conductor is talking, everyone stops talking. It’s much more formal,” he explained, adding, “Being a part of a more professional group – obviously, your musicianship, you’re expected to come to rehearsal knowing your parts – but also when you’re at rehearsal, you’re expected to have etiquette and be respectful. And I feel like that’s very important.”

The NPO has announced its 2026-2027 season: “A Season of Song & Story…” will run September through June, with a February concert featuring Broadneck musicians playing side by side with the orchestra. To learn more about the NPO, go to www.naptownphil.org.