About us...
Thames Vale Youth Orchestra is a well established, self-financing orchestra for talented and committed young musicians from 12-18 years old, who are of approximately Grade 6 standard and above. It is based in Abingdon and integrates pupils from many local schools, including Abingdon School, The Cherwell School, The School of St Helen and St Katharine, Magdalen College School, St. Edward's School, Oxford High School, Wychwood School, and Abingdon Preparatory School. Currently we have over 40 members (here is our list of current players). Past members have also come from Headington School, Cheney School, Our Lady's, John Mason School, Larkmead School, King Alfred's Academy, The Downs School, Radley College, Bartholomew School (Eynsham), St Hugh's School, The European School and those who are home-schooled. Recent members have played in the National Children's Orchestra and the National Youth Orchestra, and also in the Junior Orchestras of the Royal College of Music and the Royal Academy of Music. We are always delighted to welcome new members from any school in the local area, or indeed to welcome those who are home educated - joining an orchestra like TVYO is a great way to make new friends.
We are privileged to have Michael Stinton as our conductor and Musical Director.
We are privileged to have Michael Stinton as our conductor and Musical Director.
What do we play?
The orchestra offers opportunities for players to work together in an enjoyable atmosphere, studying and performing challenging and exciting orchestral repertoire at the highest possible standard. The orchestra performs two concerts a year (December and April/May), playing a wide repertoire, including concertos and symphonies.
Want to join?
We are always on the lookout for talented new players, and you'll find us very friendly and welcoming! You can find out how to audition here. If you're not sure, why not come along to one of our concerts, or come along to one of our weekly rehearsals to find out whether it's for you – just ask our Auditions Secretary for more information. Last year's end of season concert was on Wednesday 26th April 2017, in the Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford, when we celebrated Michael Stinton's 25th year as conductor of TVYO. The programme included Strauss' Die Fledermaus Overture, Borodin's In the Steppes of Central Asia and Tchaikovsky's Symphony No.3 ('Polish'). Our Autumn concert was on Tuesday 12 December 2017, at Silk Hall, Radley College, when we played Verdi's La Forza del Destino overture, Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite and Kalinnikov's Symphony No.1. Our next concert will be on Wednesday 2 May 2018, when we will be playing Nicolai's Merry Wives of Windsor overture, Sibelius' Finlandia and Dvorak's Symphony No.8.
If you find travel to Abingdon difficult on a Monday evening, we are able to put you in contact with other orchestra members to arrange lift-shares. We are also able to recommend trusted local taxi services.
Here's a slide-show of our concert at the end of our 2015-16 season. The slideshow from our April 2017 concert will be online soon.
If you find travel to Abingdon difficult on a Monday evening, we are able to put you in contact with other orchestra members to arrange lift-shares. We are also able to recommend trusted local taxi services.
Here's a slide-show of our concert at the end of our 2015-16 season. The slideshow from our April 2017 concert will be online soon.
A past TVYO member emailed us to say this:
'I just wanted to say thank you for the wonderful experience I had at TVYO - it was a huge inspiration for me to pursue a career in music. Although I was only there for two years, I had a tremendous amount of support and guidance from you and fellow members in both performance and academia. The repertoire was exciting and, during my time at Headington, Monday evenings were always the two hours we most looked forward to in the week. Ultimately, I chose to take a music degree over a law degree as music was what I truly enjoyed, and it was the best decision I have ever made. I hope TVYO continues to inspire more young people to enjoy music and I hope to see you again soon.'