National Youth Choirs of Great Britain
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The National Youth Choirs of Great Britain (NYCGB) is the name given to the family of choirs catering to talented young singers in the UK. It comprises a total of seven choirs:
- The National Youth Choir of Great Britain - 'NYC', or 'main choir', for people aged 16 - 22.
- Laudibus - Formerly the 'National Youth Chamber Choir', and comprising some of the most talented current and former members of the main choir.
- The National Youth Training Choirs of Great Britain - 'NYTC', founded in 1995 for singers aged 13 - 18, and intended to prepare members for eventual entry to the main choir. Due to the immense number of eligible members, in 2008 it was divided into a Southern Training Choir and Northern Training Choir.)
- The National Youth Junior Choirs of Great Britain - Comprising three girls' choirs for singers aged 13 - 16 (Northern, Midlands and Southern) and two boys' choirs for singers aged 9 - 14 (Northern and Southern).
[edit] About the choirs
The National Youth Choirs aims to reflect and to build on the great tradition of choral music in the British Isles, while drawing on diverse influences from across the globe. Under the overall leadership of Mike Brewer OBE, the main choir has come to be recognised as one of the most outstanding in the world. Entry to the junior choirs, training choirs and main choir is by direct audition, with most successful applicants (depending on age and ability) being invited to join the either the Junior or Training Choirs before advancing, again by audition, into the training or main choirs. Membership of Laudibus is exclusively by audition from the main choir. Members of the choirs are taken into advanced areas of choral repertoire and givenm experience of the highest standards of professional rehearsal and performance on courses in the UK and on international tours.
[edit] Brief History
NYC came into existence 25 years ago after current Company Secretary, Carl Browning, having inherited the ailing British Youth Choir in 1979, approached Mike Brewer OBE, the current Musical Director of the organisation, with the idea of reforming the BYC. In 1983 the National Youth Choir gave its inaugural concert at the Royal Albert Hall.
Since NYC's foundation there have been many musical highlights. Most notably working with George Shearing and the King's Singers in the Barbican, and again with the King's Singers for their 25th anniversary and the NYC's 21st anniversary. Three concerts with the National Youth Orchestra and other national youth music organisations. Other highlights include: four huge Christmas concerts in the Royal Albert Hall with thousands of children from the surrounding area, recordings of modern complex music, the Millennium Youth Prom, working with Karl Jenkins and his Mass for Peace, singing with African drummers and tackling Indian Ragas, performing at Twickenham Stadium for the RFU England internationals and Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium for last season's FA Cup Final.
In April 2008, the National Youth Choirs celebrated their 25th anniversary at a gala concert in the Birmingham Symphony Hall. The concert featured all current choirs from Laudibus to the Junior Choirs, as well as a 'reunion choir' consisting of ex-members of NYC. There were guest appearances by John Rutter and Sir David Willcocks, NYC's president, who both conducted pieces. The Training Choir performed with the South Asian Musicians' Youth Orchestra in the world premiere of a piece by Richard Allain. The highlight was the world premiere of a new work, The Stolen Child, by American composer Eric Whitacre, written for and performed by the main choir and the King's Singers, and conducted by the composer.
