The Yass Region will be welcoming a new opportunity for young people in 2021 with the formation of The Hume Youth Orchestra. Yass will be one of three locations that hold the Orchestra in a rotating schedule that gives young people from around Yass, Goulburn, and Queanbeyan equal opportunity to attend.
The Orchestra plan is to host it at different locations to give every member a chance to attend a practice session close to home. The Youth Orchestra will have a session each Saturday between 2 pm and 4 pm with the 4th week being a big rehearsal in which all the members are encouraged to attend. The rehearsals’ locations will be Berinba Public School in Yass, the Creative Precinct at Hume Conservatorium Goulburn, and Queanbeyan East Public School.
“It’s to make it fair and easy for everyone involved, so we rotated the venue, so they have one in their area,” said Paul Scott-Williams, CEO of Hume Conservatorium and Artistic Director.
The Hume Conservatorium (HumeCon) was founded in 1985 as the Goulburn Regional Music Centre and changed its name in 2019 to bring it in line with 17 other NSW Regional Conservatoriums reflecting the area they service. Its initial aim was to fulfil the need for quality music tuition and support the Associate Diploma in Music offered through TAFE.
Hume Conservatorium has over 1300 students enrolled in music and other courses and is the governing body of the Hume Youth Orchestra that will be set up in the region. All students enrolled will be enrolled through HumeCon, and this is the first Youth Orchestra for the region which will provide ample opportunities to participants.
The Hume Youth Orchestra is looking to attract kids at grade 3 playing level or above. Grade 3 is generally considered to be a high school level; however, the Orchestra will accept ages eight through twenty-one if they meet the required grade. Musicians can apply without a formal grade 3 level being achieved provided their music teacher writes on the form where they believe the child is sitting regarding musical ability.
“We will not be holding auditions. We want to make it accessible and fun,” said Mr Scott-Williams. “Because it’s a member of the State Association of Conservatoriums, any kid who wants to can audition for the Regional Youth Orchestra.”
The Regional Youth Orchestra covers all regional New South Wales. It has a very high level of players which have played with groups such as the London Symphony, Sydney Symphony, Canberra Symphony, to name a few. The Hume Youth Orchestra is looking to develop the skills of their members to give them opportunities to attend even bigger groups.
“Hopefully we will start to see these kids taking advantage of greater opportunities around the state and start playing at a really high level,” said Mr Scott-Williams.
The ideal size for the Hume Youth Orchestra would be to have 20-30 children per venue and between 70-90 at the monthly group rehearsal.
COVID is currently making these gatherings a bit more complicated, but the logistics are still being worked out. Mr Scott-Williams encourages parents and friends of the Orchestra to help volunteer in support. This would include setting and packing up the rehearsal spaces each week.
Mr Scott-Williams’ goal is to make the Hume Youth Orchestra accessible, strong and build towards a big group of kids who are dedicated to playing. While the age limit will be 21 years old, there are plans to implement leadership programs. This would include things like learning to conduct the Orchestra, which would make the experience more complete, engaging and positive to be involved.
“It is incredibly powerful playing in an orchestra because the Orchestra turns individual musicians into this one fantastic musical beast. It’s the socialisation and friendships, the opportunities that come from that and the greater learning that allows them to explore music in ways that are currently not available to them in this region,” said Mr Scott-Williams.
A professional orchestra will often receive the music and their parts for a few days of rehearsal. They then will participate in several performances. However, a Youth Orchestra will rehearse for several months which gives them time to be coached properly and acquire the skills necessary of a large ensemble player.
The Hume Youth Orchestra will be lead and conducted by two young musicians from HumeCon, Liam Meany who plays the cello and Isabella Brown who is a double bass player. Mr Meany graduated from the Australian National Academy of Music while Miss Brown is also very experienced with music and playing in an Orchestra.
Mr Scott-Williams, along with Mr Meany and Miss Brown is excited to be teaching Orchestral playing to the Hume Youth Orchestra, and one thing they are interested in is music from games.
Recently there have been Orchestral contests aimed explicitly at music from games which include contemporary music and classical music such as Baroque.
The cost to join The Hume Youth Orchestra will be fifty dollars per child per term, which turns out to be 5 dollars a week. You must play an orchestral instrument and have at least a grade 3 playing level. You can enrol directly via the Hume Conservatorium website at www.humecon.nsw.edu.au/enrol-online and can make any inquiries on 4821 8833 or at enquiries@humecon.nsw.edu.au
Ryan Betts
