Minnesota's two professional fulltime orchestras were honored with ASCAP awards, announced today at the League American Orchestra's annual conference in Minneapolis. The Minnesota Orchestra received the Leonard Bernstein Award for Educational Programming, and the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra was second only to the New York Philharmonic among "Group One" orchestras in the award for programming contemporary music.

ASCAP and the League present these awards — for adventurous programming — to orchestras that challenge their audiences and build the repertoire. The conference continues today at the Minneapolis Hilton. The SPCO performs tonight at the Ordway Center in the closing concert.