About
About Us
The Shoalhaven Youth Orchestra (SYO) is the leading regional orchestra for young musicians along the South Coast of NSW. Founded in 2000 SYO provides orchestral experiences for primary and secondary students and offers regular concerts for the community.
SYO is proudly support by the Shoalhaven Arts Board, the Shoalhaven City Council, generous individual donors from within the community and local music educators.
From toddler classes to senior orchestra
SYO offers students a pipeline from beginning music education as a toddler, right up to refining their ensemble and performance skills in the senior orchestra.
Programs for different ages and levels
SYO consists of six programs for differing ages and levels of students; Tuning In!, Junior Music Program (JUMP), Stringlets, Shoalhaven Junior Strings (SJS), Quartet, and the Shoalhaven Youth Orchestra (SYO), also offering a series of annual camps and workshops with leading Australian professional musicians.
Our current committee (2020-2021)
President: Haseena Tweddle
Vice President: Jenny Cork
Secretary: Margaret Bowcher
Treasurer: Elizabeth Gillen
Experiencing so many different instruments and performing as a group on stage each year has inspired our child and created a passion for all things musical.
Our Programs
Orchestra
The Shoalhaven Youth Orchestra is the premier youth orchestral music group in the Shoalhaven. Rehearsing on Tuesday afternoons at the Nowra School of Arts students develop upon their ensemble skills, sight reading abilities and understanding of orchestral repertoire.
Junior Strings
The Shoalhaven Junior Strings is a training ensemble for junior orchestral string players, preparing them for rehearsal and performance with the senior orchestra. Rehearsals are help on Tuesday afternoons at the Nowra School of Arts.
Quartet
The Shoalhaven Youth Orchestra Quartet is made of our principal violinists, violist and cellist. This ensemble may perform regularly and is available for private functions.
Tuning In!
Tuning In! is the music education program of SYO. Trained music educators conduct various classes for children aged between 2 and 12 in Nowra and Berry. The program develops basic musical skills as well as allowing children to try out, and begin to learn, all the instruments of the orchestra.
School Visits
The Shoalhaven Youth Orchestra visits Shoalhaven schools to showcase both instruments and instrumentalists to the wider Shoalhaven Community.
Instrument Hire
The Shoalhaven Youth Orchestra maintains a full inventory of orchestral instruments available for hire.