Carolyn DiPaoloThree high school seniors have new professional instruments.
Three Palm Beach County high school seniors have won musical instruments through a Palm Beach Symphony program.
Why it’s important: The new professional-level instruments are meant to ignite a lifelong journey in music.
The winners of the 2025 Lisa Bruna B-Major Award are:
Thomas “Aidan” Gardner, first place, a student at the Dreyfoos School of the Arts in West Palm Beach. He was given a sterling silver handmade flute and custom Lumina cut headjoint with a 14k rose gold crown.
Malorie Bliss, second place, also a student at Dreyfoos. She received a handmade cello by Stefan Petrov, a Herman Luger bow and a polycarbonate flight case.
Alexander Rodriguez, third-place, a student at Palm Beach Central Community High school in Wellington. He received a custom-built Willson euphonium, a brass wind instrument in the tuba family. Rodriguez was born without the lower portion of his left arm. The instrument was made with all four valves in a right-hand configuration to be played with one hand since traditional euphoniums require two hands.
Noteworthy: Finalists for the award attend an in-person audition and interview with the Palm Beach Symphony as part of the selection.
- The gifts of the instruments are made possible through the symphony’s Todd Barron Instrument Donation Fund. The fund has presented more than 800 instruments to aspiring young musicians since 2016.
- The symphony happily accepts donations of professional or amateur quality band and orchestra instruments. The gifts are rehabbed and given to schools and student musicians in need.
Go deeper: View a video about the symphony’s community outreach here.
I am a co-founder, writer and editor for Stet News. I am also a former senior editor at The Palm Beach Post. For 20 years, I oversaw some of the most consequential stories published by the paper, including the “Corruption County” reporting project that led to multiple arrests of elected officials. I am a member of the Leadership Palm Beach County Class of 2013. I live in West Palm Beach with my husband, Bill DiPaolo.
