Helen H. Cha-Pyo

Helen H. Cha-Pyo, the current Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Wharton Institute for the Performing Arts, leads an organization that serves nearly 2,000 students from 13 New Jersey counties. Her impactful leadership spans four key programs: the Wharton Performing Arts School, New Jersey Youth Symphony (NJYS), New Jersey Youth Chorus, and the Paterson Music Project.

As Principal Conductor of NJYS, Cha-Pyo has led international tours to Italy, France, Finland, and the Baltics, championing the performance of works by women and BIPOC composers and amplifying the voices of underrepresented artists on the global stage. Under her direction, NJYS had the distinguished honor of performing at the Juneteenth Celebration Concert at Carnegie Hall and at the Motif Awards at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. In 2025, NJYS released the award-winning recording Microvids by Stefania de Kenessey with pianist Donna Weng Friedman under PARMA Recordings.

Prior to her role at Wharton Arts, Cha-Pyo served as Music Director and Conductor of the Empire State Youth Orchestra (ESYO) for 16 years. Her tenure was defined by transformative international tours to Germany, the Czech Republic, China, Korea, and Portugal. Her commitment to American composers earned ESYO the ASCAP Adventurous Programming Award, and in 2015 she founded ESYO CHIME, a program serving underprivileged youth in Schenectady and Troy, NY. In 2018, ESYO established the Helen Cha-Pyo Golden Baton Award and Scholarships to honor students who share her passion for using music to uplift and enrich communities.

Cha-Pyo’s contributions have been recognized with numerous honors, including The Dove Leadership Award from the David & Dovetta Wilson Scholarship Fund (2019), the Angelos Artist Award from the Angelos Mission Ensemble (2022), and the Eastman Centennial Award from the Eastman School of Music (2022).

Since 2023, Helen Cha-Pyo has served as Artistic Director of the Bella Music Foundation (BMF), which empowers blind and visually impaired musicians through world-class education, performance, and career opportunities. Under her leadership, BMF has presented acclaimed concerts at Merkin Hall and the Barrymore Film Center, featuring winners of the BMF International Concerto Competition. In September 2025, she conducted at the BMF International Music Festival for the Blind at UNESCO in Paris, advancing BMF’s mission of inclusion through the power of music.

From 1996 to 2002, Cha-Pyo served as Artistic Director and Conductor of the Riverside Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir, as well as Associate Director of Music at The Riverside Church in New York City, releasing three recordings with the Riverside Choir on JAV Recordings.

Cha-Pyo is a sought-after guest conductor and clinician for All-State and Regional Festival Orchestras nationwide and has conducted ensembles across Europe, Africa, and Asia. She has served on the conducting faculties of Montclair State University and Rutgers University. Originally from Seoul, South Korea, she immigrated to the U.S. at age 12 and holds degrees from Oberlin Conservatory (B.M. in Organ Performance) and the Eastman School of Music (M.M. in Conducting and Organ Performance). Her service to the field includes serving on the board of the Youth Orchestra Division of the League of American Orchestras, as well as active involvement with the Korean Women International Network and the Brava Maestra Project.