Recipients of the 2026 Helen Buckman Awards
Sep 2, 2026 | Announcements
The Bucks County Symphony Orchestra is pleased to announce the presentation of the 2026 Helen Buckman Award to an orchestra student at each Central Bucks high school who demonstrated exceptional dedication, leadership and musical ability. The award is named after a highly regarded Central Bucks music teacher who was one of the charter members of the Symphony and who was largely responsible for establishing the strong link that has existed between the orchestra and our schools for 70 years.
Recipients of the Helen Buckman Awards for 2026 are Susanna Dai, Sofie Toth, Grace Yu, and Emily Kim.
Susanna Dai served as concertmaster for both the String and Chamber Orchestras at CB East. Described by her director as a role model for other student musicians through her dedication, musical ability and musical involvement, she represented her school numerous times at County and District music festivals. She is attending Penn State University, majoring in Aerospace Engineering.
Sofie Toth was CB West’s principal string bass player for three years. She played in Chamber Orchestra, String Quintet, and various other ensembles, and was a member of Tri-M Music Honor Society. Outside of school, she performed with the Philadelphia Sinfonia and the Youth Orchestra of Bucks County. She participated in County Orchestra from grades 7-12, often as principal bass, and was selected for PMEA District and Regional orchestra festivals. She is majoring in bass performance at the University of Toronto.
Two equally deserving CB South students were selected to share this award. Grace Yu and Emily Kim were members of the Chamber Orchestra for three years and served as section leaders. They participated in the Central Bucks Honors Orchestra and All-County Orchestra, performed as string accompanists for the school choirs and in various school string ensembles, and played in the award-winning Pit Orchestra for school musicals. Their director described them as exceptional young ladies who were role models for current and future orchestra students.
The BCSO offers sincere congratulations to Susanna, Sofie, Grace, and Emily for their outstanding achievements in high school and for their ongoing commitment to musical excellence.
