National Youth Orchestra of Wales

The National Youth Orchestra of Wales (Welsh: Cerddorfa Genedlaethol Ieuenctid Cymru), founded in 1945, has the distinction of being the first national youth orchestra in the world and is Europe’s longest-standing national youth orchestra.

Based in the capital, Cardiff, the orchestra has an impressive history which has merited attention both within Wales and beyond.

Organisation

The orchestra (abbreviation NYOW) numbers around 115 young players aged between 13 – 21 years who are auditioned and drawn from all over Wales, and who represent some of Wales' most talented young musicians.

The NYOW performs in some of the most prestigious concert halls in Europe including St David's Hall (Cardiff), the Bridgewater Hall (Manchester), the National Concert Hall (Dublin), Waterfront Hall (Belfast), Town Hall (Birmingham), Beethovensaal (Stuttgart), the Salle Erasme (Strasbourg) the Konzerthaus am Gendarmenmarkt (Berlin), and most recently La Mortella on the island of Ischia, Italy

Successive generations of players have benefited from the guidance and tuition of internationally recognised professional musicians, many of them former members of the orchestra, and many well-known Welsh composers have been commissioned to write new works for the orchestra, such as Grace Williams, David Wynne, Daniel Jones, Arwel Hughes, former member Karl Jenkins, and founder member of the orchestra Alun Hoddinott. (Two dozen pairs of clogs were needed for the Orchestra's premiere of Karl Jenkins' Scenes From Wales in 2000.)

Conductors

Unlike many youth orchestras which perform under the baton of an annual guest conductor the NYOW has traditionally appointed a resident Principal Conductor and Musical Director. These have included Clarence Raybould (1945–1966), Arthur Davison (1967–1990), Elgar Howarth (1991–1995), Christopher Adey (1996–2002), and Owain Arwel Hughes OBE (2003-2010). 2011's concert series was conducted by Takuo Yuasa. Carlo Rizzi (2012), Grant Llewellyn (2013), Jac Van Steen (2014) and Paul Daniel (2015). Conductor for the forthcoming 2016 residency and concerts is Carlo Rizzi.

Courses

A residential course is normally held in the summer, followed by a short tour comprising four or five concerts. Known to its members as the "NASH" the annual residency offers a valuable opportunity for talented musicians to work together with top professionals in an intensive environment, culminating in a series of concerts. There is also opportunity for composers within the orchestra and a number of works are composed during each residency which are then given their first performances at venues including The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, Aberystwyth University and in 2015 in the performing foyer spaces at the Sage, Gateshead and St David's Hall Cardiff.

Since 2001 the National Youth Orchestra of Wales and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales have worked together on projects culminating in joint concerts or recordings, giving young players the opportunity to play alongside some of the best orchestral players in Britain.

Auditions

Candidates are accepted for audition on the approval of their county Head of Music Service and are expected to support music activity at school/college and county level. The minimum standard for all instruments (except harp) is Grade VIII. Harpists may play at Grade VI. Auditions take place throughout the autumn around Wales and at selected centres in England for those studying away from home.

History

1945 Orchestra founded by Irwyn Walters
1946 First concert at the Rolls Hall, Monmouth
1948 First appearance at the National Eisteddfod where the first recordings were made for future broadcasting
1953 First broadcast to the Commonwealth to mark the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth
1955 The NYOW appeared at the Edinburgh Festival
1956 First record launched by Qualiton Records
1957 First concert tour abroad

Repertoire

Vaughan Williams' Symphony No.2 featured in an all British-programme in 2008, alongside the Celtic Dances of Welsh composer, William Mathias. A former member of the National Youth Theatre of Wales, Hollywood actor Matthew Rhys narrated the first-ever Welsh translation of Britten's Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra in a NYOW concert at St David's Hall, on 7 August as part of the National Eisteddfod in Cardiff.

The 2009 programme included Arwel Hughes Prelude for Orchestra, Tchaikovsky Swan Lake Ballet Suite and Mahler Symphony No. 1, with the orchestra performing at Aberystwyth Arts Centre; Prichard-Jones Hall, Bangor; Adrian Boult Hall, Birmingham; The Sage, Gateshead; Three Choirs Festival, Hereford Cathedral and St David's Hall, Cardiff

The 2010 programme included Brian Hughes's Troad, Claude Debussy's La mer, and Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 2. The orchestra performed at St David's Cathedral; Aberystwyth Arts Centre; St David's Hall, Cardiff; St Asaph's Cathedral; and RNCM Concert Hall, Manchester.

2011's repertoire included Hilary Tann's From the Feather to the Mountain, Liszt's Tasso and Prokofiev's Symphony No. 5. Concerts were held at William Aston Hall, Glyndŵr University, Wrexham; The Sage Gateshead; RNCM Concert Hall, Manchester; and St David's Hall, Cardiff.

2014's repertoire included Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique, with performances at St David's Hall, Cardiff, The Sage Gateshead, St Asaph Cathedral, and at the Fishguard Music Festival at St David's Cathedral.

2015's repertoire included Dukas, La Peri, Schmitt, La Tragedie de Salome and Stravinsky, The Rite of Spring, with performances at Hereford CathedralThree Choirs Festival as well as Bangor University and St David's Hall, Cardiff.

Planned for the 2016 season is Bartok Concerto for Orchestra and Strauss Ein Heldenleben as well as a new commission from Gareth Wood.

See also

• National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain
• National Youth Orchestra of Scotland

External links

• National Youth Orchestra of Wales
• BBC National Orchestra of Wales
• National Youth Theatre of Wales
• National Youth Arts Wales
• Classical Music UK