The most remarkable young musicians the country has to offer. Now playing as the National Youth Orchestra of China.
2019 Europe Tour
In 2019 and for the first time, NYO-China traveled to Europe – the birthplace of classical music. Accompanied by International Chopin Piano Competition winner Garrick Ohlsson and led by returning conductor Ludovic Morlot, a 101-piece ensemble made its way across the continent, playing with fellow youth orchestras at renowned music festivals including Germany’s Young Euro Classic (held at the historic Konzerthaus Berlin), the United Kingdom’s Snape Proms, and Italy’s Bolzano Festival, all following its season debut at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center.
2018 Chamber Series
NYO-China returned in 2018 as a festival dedicated to the study and performance of chamber music. Following an especially competitive audition process, twenty-one student musicians were selected to spend two weeks at the Central Conservatory of Music immersed in some of chamber music’s great works, rehearsing intimately with both faculty and peers to ready those pieces for performance. Thereafter, students joined their faculty onstage in a series of recitals held throughout China, including destinations in Beijing, Shanghai, and Qingdao.
2017 Inaugural Tour
NYO-China’s inaugural season brought together 105 impressive young musicians, selected from a pool of over a thousand applicants, for a residency in Pennsylvania and a concert tour of the United States and China. After two weeks of rehearsals, the ensemble premiered in a sold-out concert presented by Carnegie Hall featuring Music Director of the Seattle Symphony Ludovic Morlot and acclaimed pianist Yuja Wang, before continuing on to perform in Beijing, Shanghai, and Suzhou with Van Cliburn International Piano Competition Gold Medalist Olga Kern.
Only the best to teach the best.
The students selected to join NYO-China represent the country’s finest. So it only makes sense that they are prepared by some of the world’s most qualified Chinese-speaking musicians recruited from leading international orchestras such as the New York Philharmonic and the San Francisco Symphony. Each season, students work closely with this formidable faculty, partaking in sectional rehearsals, master classes, and one-on-one lessons during a two-week residency before their tour begins.
Performances to rival any other.
Showcasing China’s most phenomenal young talent to as many listeners as possible means putting the orchestra on some of the world’s grandest performance stages, alongside some of classical music’s most highly revered artists - at Carnegie Hall with Yuja Wang, or the Konzerthaus Berlin with Garrick Ohlsson. In doing so, the ensemble is not only able to sell out concert halls, but also attract the attention of networks seeking to broadcast their performances to a much wider audience at home.
A stage for building friendships.
The National Youth Orchestra of China does not exist in isolation. Rather, it is one of several dozen NYOs around the world, each representing the highest artistic potential of their country. And while NYO-China is always keen to embrace some friendly competition, every season also delivers opportunities for students to meet and perform with their international counterparts. For many, this will be a first and crucial step in broadening their network of musical friends and colleagues.
And it’s all entirely free.
From tuition to travel to food and accommodations, the entire program is provided at no personal expense to every student who participates. Maestros can come from anywhere, and an opportunity like this should be available to every exceptional musician willing to practice for it. By making talent and sweat the only barriers of entry, the orchestra is able to attract and matriculate the strongest applicants from all across China. Of course, all of this is only possible through the aid and generosity of our supporters, the most prominent of which are featured below:
We encourage any and all who believe in this orchestra to give so as to ensure its excellence and impact for years to come.