Links

e-mail us to add your link here

Fantastic start for young musician

A 13 year old trombone player from Bruton, Somerset has been chosen to play in the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain. Stephen Sykes has won one of only 150 coveted places in the orchestra, fending off competition from more than 500 applicants.

Stephen will join other talented young musicians for a series of two-week residential courses during the New Year, Easter and Summer holidays, each of which will culminate in performances at some of the finest concert halls in the country. He will have the chance to work with some of the world's leading conductors and be taught by top professional musicians. The Times recently said the Orchestra plays with 'the kind of finesse any world-class professional orchestra would envy. I'll put it in a nutshell: the National Youth Orchestra makes you glad to be alive'.

Next year will see Stephen playing a varied programme of music in such prestigious venues as Symphony Hall, Birmingham; Bridgewater Hall, Manchester and Barbican Hall, London. He will also play in the NYO's annual BBC Prom at the Royal Albert Hall.

Stephen’s first experience of the NYO will be soon after Christmas when the Orchestra, conducted by Keith Lockhart, will be playing Adams's Short Ride in a Fast Machine, Gershwin's Piano Concerto and Holst's The Planets.

NYO Director, Jonathan Vaughan, commented this week: "The National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain is one of the leading youth orchestras of the world. Aged between 13 and 19, its members are drawn from all walks of life and come from every corner of the country. Selected from hundreds of auditionees, this orchestra is made up of some of Britain's finest young musicians. The standards that they achieve are breathtaking. Membership is a highly disciplined and challenging experience. Working as a team of highly motivated and determined young people to such a high standard of performance is, for many, an experience that changes their lives forever. If you have any doubts about the youth of the day, come and see the NYO."