Staff writer Juno Goode interviews a member of the National Youth Orchestra to explore the importance of classical music for young people.
In a world full where funding for the arts is cut and debates on the relevance of opera and ballet persist, it is especially important to keep the younger generations educated and invested in these fields.Countless schools, charities, and organisations all over Great Britain have been tirelessly working to provide this education for years. The National Youth Orchestra, often abbreviated to NYO, has to be one of the most famous of these institutions.
The orchestra consists of 160 members, aged 13 to 19, all of whom are past Grade 8 level on their respective instruments. Founded in 1948 by Dame Ruth Railton, their website states that the orchestra assembles thrice yearly for two-week residential courses. The pieces they work on during these courses are then performed on tour all over the UK in cities like London, Birmingham, Manchester, and Liverpool. They also play at the BBC Proms every year, returning to the Royal Albert Hall last year to play some of John Williams’ iconic scores as well as Gustav Holst’s ‘The Planets’. Luckily for KCL students, they will soon be bringing their music close to home, as their latest tour, entitled ‘Collide’, will be taken to the Southbank Centre shortly.
When the NYO reached out to Roar for a potential concert review and interview with an orchestra member, I was quick to jump on the opportunity. As a classical musician myself, I had known people who greatly enjoyed their time as part of the orchestra. It also seemed important to me to spread the news to fellow KCL students that such an important and exciting organisation was active in London. After a few exchanges, I was put in contact with Nerys Meeran, one of the NYO’s trumpet players. Nerys is halfway through her first year as a trumpet player for the NYO, having been part of its Inspire programme for two years beforehand.
Describing the orchestra as a group of people who were the “most engaged in classical music in the country,” she told me about how her sister had previously heard of and joined the orchestra, playing in it for two years. While Nerys’ first audition wasn’t successful, she was able to take part in the Inspire programme. “It’s a way for young musicians, particularly those who have previously auditioned for the NYO, to improve,” she said. “It’s made up of one day and three day courses, and I think there’s two week ones in the summer which I didn’t do. It was amazing playing in such a big group of people, and really helped me to progress to NYO level, as I was playing alongside NYO musicians for those two years”. After two years in Inspire, she finally was able to join this orchestra this year, and has since been on one prior tour with them, with ‘Collide’ set to be her secon
Nerys also mentioned was how her experience with the NYO allowed her to improve significantly as a trumpet player, allowing her to play with groups of people very different to what she would have had access to without it. She’d been part of school and county youth orchestras before, but described the NYO as being of a different and larger scale. She also pointed out the opportunities she’s had to play in different groups, “including sectional rehearsals with just the other trumpets. Playing with 8 trumpet players at once is amazing, especially as so many of them are really good – the principle trumpet has been with the NYO for four years! It’s such a novel experience, and great to have it alongside others who are so passionate about classical music”. In rehearsal, the aforementioned sectionals precede the tutti (full orchestra) rehearsals, with expert tutors coming in to teach each instrument. “They leave after a few days and that’s when tutti rehearsals usually begin, although some tutti rehearsals will be incorporated in the first few days. It’s a specialist experience followed by learning to play with the group”.
Before joining the orchestra, she had actually been on a few international tours before, with her school and county orchesras but the biggest difference with NYO was that “It was the same orchestra the entire time, not broken down into blocks, and also just in England.” The touring schedule is intense, with three concerts in different cities. The previous tour, ‘Shimmer’, was especially unique in that the three shows were back to back, leading to an incredibly tense experience. However, the improvement was visible as the concerts went on – “by the third and final concert in Nottingham, that was the best we had played.” The tour recieved four star reviews from both The Times and The Telegraph, with their programme of Debussy, Ravel, and new works from Karim Al-Zand and Anna Clyne. Evidently, even for a first performance, this group of teenagers had left their mark. It’s a tough act to follow up, but one they hope to surpass in ‘Collide’.
On the programme for these new concerts, Nerys said that “it’s a selection of music that relates to the stories of young people across genres and worlds.” The concert kicks off with a suite from the beloved Studio Ghibli filmHowl’s Moving Castle, written by Hayao Miyazaki’s longtime collaborator Joe Hisaishi. It tells the love story of Sophie, a young girl cursed to have the body of an old woman, and the wizard Howl, as they navigate a magical world torn by war. “I watched the movie because of the suite we play from it, written by Hisaishi, and it’s actually my favourite piece as I get to sit next to the principle trumpet and play a really good line!” The second set of pieces is from Richard Wagner’s groundbreaking opera Tristan und Isolde, based on the ancient Irish myth of love potions and tragedy. “It’s also a love story between young people, and is really beautiful and conveys a lot of emotion.” Finally, another pair of star-crossed lovers enters the concert as orchestral music from SergeiProkofiev’s Romeo and Juliet is played. “We’re not just playing the suite from the Romeo and Juliet, it’s actually an extended edition, so you get to hear parts you wouldn’t hear as often. It has such a huge symphonic sound that really suits the orchestra”. I asked Nerys whether the Hisaishi was her favourite to listen to as well as play, and she affirmed that it was, on account of its soaring melodies and beautiful details. Certainly not a piece to miss.
The NYO will be bringing ‘Collide’ to the Royal Festival Hall on April 11th, with tickets avaliable here. Attendance is free for teens, which helps make sure there are no barriers for young people to access good quality live music. I would highly recommend going to support these incredible young musicians, and I myself will be sure to attend.
About the author
