The Sydney Youth Orchestra (SYO) is a youth orchestra based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia and is the premier orchestral training ground in Australia for many young musicians. Since its founding in 1973 by Peter Seymour, a legendary music educator, it has provided orchestral training to thousands of young musicians (aged between 6 and 25 years) whom are required to audition annually to be placed in orchestras and ensembles (say: on-song-bulls) best to meet their stage of development as a musician.
It is part of the larger organisation called Sydney Youth Orchestra Inc, which provides a pathway for hundreds of young musicians from beginner to pre-professional to connect, create and champion orchestral music. Sydney Youth Orchestra Inc is also the largest orchestral training provider in Australia.[1] SYO receives less than 10% of its income through funding from state government grants, and 35% from student participation fees.
Ensembles
SYO is made up of 9 ensembles split up into 4 groups (Prep, Stage 1, Stage 2 and Stage 3) and has 6 major stand-alone orchestras.
SYO Strings
SYO Prep (for beginner string players)
Stage 1 Yellow
Stage 1 Orange
Stage 1 Pink
Stage 2 Green
Stage 2 Red
Stage 2 Blue
Stage 3 Silver
Stage 3 Purple
Orchestras
Peter Seymour Orchestra (PSO) The Peter Seymour Orchestra (PSO), named after the founder of the Sydney Youth Orchestra Association, is where many of our musicians will get their first chance to tackle major orchestral repertoire. With a focus on classical and early romantic repertoire, PSO is an ideal training ground for aspiring orchestral musicians to strengthen their ensemble skills, instrumental technique and understanding of style and symphonic form.
Symphonic Wind Orchestra (SWO) The Symphonic Wind Orchestra (SWO) provides the perfect training and performance environment for over 70 young wind, brass and percussion musicians from across NSW. They explore a diverse range of repertoire from popular 20th Century film scores and jazz standards through to core orchestral repertoire. Through large scale public performances, regional tours and intensive rehearsals and tutorials, the Symphonic Wind Orchestra is a fantastic opportunity for young wind, brass and percussion players to develop their ensemble skills, musicality and technique.
Western Sydney Youth Orchestra (WSYO) Established in 2017 to support orchestra music in Western Sydney. WSYO is a thriving youth orchestra that extends the reach of orchestral training to musicians in Western Sydney often collaborating with other artistic companies and cultural groups. They also perform at a range of unique events and festivals, further enriching the artistic education and performance experience of our young musicians.
Richard Gill Chamber Orchestra (RGCO) The Richard Gill Chamber Orchestra (formerly known as Stage 4 Strings) is the springboard to the Symphonic Orchestral Program. RGCO is where many young musicians will experience playing in an orchestral setting for the first time.
SYO Philharmonic (SYOP) SYOP is the second most senior ensemble, composed of 70 young musicians. This full-scale symphonic orchestra is an opportunity for musicians to hone their orchestral technique and ensemble skills with masterpieces of the orchestral canon.
Sydney Youth Orchestra (The.SYO) SYO is the top orchestra of the Sydney Youth Orchestras Inc family. Presenting multiple programs annually, The.SYO provides a pre-professional environment for young musicians to connect, create and champion orchestral music, with SYO alumni featured within all professional orchestras across Australia and worldwide. Largely comprising pre-professional players aged 18-25, many of Australia’s finest musicians have performed in this orchestra as they transition into the professional music industry.[2]
Alumni
Since 1973, SYO has over 5,500 alumni. Many of them still take musical occupations, with some also taking business and corporate fields, including:
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