As the Premier Sponsor of the New World Symphony, America's Orchestral Academy, the Carnival Foundation has helped shape the lives of hundreds of young musicians and thousands of young school children, enriching the cultural landscape of South Florida for the past 22 years. In the 1980s, Carnival founder Ted Arison and conductor Michael Tilson Thomas dreamed of bringing outstanding young musicians from around the world to hone their skills and enhance the South Florida community, and the communities of NWS alumni, with their unique gifts. Now the New World Symphony is recognized internationally for its innovative mission.

The New World Symphony's highly competitive program provides top graduates of music programs the opportunity to augment their education by working with the greatest professionals and coaches to further develop their music, professional development and audience engagement skills. As a result of this unique educational environment, the New World Symphony has achieved an international reputation for creating new models of orchestral training and performance, while South Florida schools and communities reap the benefits of the groundbreaking interactions with its Fellows. Renowned guest artists from around the world bring their diverse stylistic approaches to NWS, where they foster meaningful professional relationships with the Fellows, maintained through personal contact and the academy's pioneering experimentation with Internet2 technology. The New World Symphony has launched the careers of more than 700 young musicians now making a difference in the profession worldwide.

In January 2011, the dream of Ted Arison and Michael Tilson Thomas will be fully realized as the New World Symphony moves into its new home-a Frank Gehry-designed campus that will act as a hub for music education, performance and engagement.