COURSES & MEMBERSHIP: What does membership involve? Expand This FAQ updated: 16 July 2019 National Youth Boys' Choir, National Youth Girls' Choir, National Youth Training Choir Choir places and NYCGB membership If your audition is successful, we will offer you a place in the National Youth Boys' Choir, Girls' Choir or Training Choir, depending on your age and current ability. If you haven't had a place in one of our choirs before, you'll pay a one-off NYCGB membership fee on accepting your place. (Fees for 2018/19 were £85. Fees 19/20 tbc.) Financial assistance is available. This includes a concert folder, which you'll be given on your first course. Residential courses We offer all Boys' Choir, Girls' Choir and Training Choir members two residential courses per year. These are held in the majority of state school Easter and Summer holidays*. You can attend both, or one - it's up to you (but please see the Are courses compulsory? FAQ). * Training Choir members can choose one of two Summer courses. Special projects From time to time, we may also offer Boys' Choir, Girls' Choir and Training Choir members the opportunity to sing in one-off concerts or events. These special projects are always optional, and do not count as courses, so don't affect your membership if you can't do them. National Youth Choir Choir places and NYCGB membership If your audition is successful, we will offer you a place in the National Youth Choir for the coming academic year (September - August). If you haven't had a place in one of our choirs before, you'll pay a one-off NYCGB membership fee on accepting your place. (Fees for 2018/19 were £85. Fees 19/20 tbc.) This includes a concert folder, which you'll be given on your first course. Financial assistance is available, for details click here. Annual Programme and re-auditions Unlike other NYCGB choirs, the National Youth Choir operates a year-round Annual Programme of four projects. There is a non-residential introductory weekend in the Autumn, a non-residential Christmas concert project, a short residential course in the Easter holidays, and a long residential course in the Summer holidays. National Youth Choir members are expected to commit to all four projects in their Annual Programme including the International Tour. Another special feature of the National Youth Choir is that all members must re-audition annually to retain their place and to be eligible to take part in the following year's Annual Programme. Special projects We frequently offer National Youth Choir members the opportunity to sing in one-off concerts or events. These special projects are always optional, and financial assistance is available to support cost of participation if required.
AUDITIONS: Who can audition? Expand This FAQ updated: 20 September 2018 Membership of NYCGB is open to British citizens and anyone who is a resident of the UK at the time of application (excluding non-domicile applicants). Our choirs are age-specific. Girls can audition from School Year 6 and boys can audition from School Year 5. Our Age Ranges & Eligibility Table has full details. DOWNLOAD THE TABLE Please note (1): Book your audition on a convenient date, location and time and, if successful, the panel will allocate you to the appropriate choir for your age and ability. Applicants aged 18 on 31 August in the year of application should audition for National Youth Choir in May/June. Applicants for Boys', Girls' and Training Choir should audition in the Autumn. Please note (2): Boys undergoing voice change are welcome and encouraged to audition. We have a specialist ensemble within our National Youth Boys' Choir called Cambiata Voices which looks after boys through their vocal development.
AUDITIONS: When and where are the auditions? Expand This FAQ updated: 20 June 2019 Auditions for the National Youth Boys' Choir, National Youth Girls' Choir and National Youth Training Choir are held in November 2019. Booking opens on Monday 23 September. Skype auditions will also be available to those who live in remote areas including The Highlands and islands of Scotland, remote parts of Cornwall and Northern Ireland. Details to be announced. Auditions for the National Youth Choir 2019/20 and NYCGB Fellowship Programme are now closed. We will announce 2020 audition dates later on in 2019 for auditions taking place in spring 2020. The National Youth Choir auditions are earlier because the choir has a special Annual Programme which runs from September to August. FIND OUT MORE Please note (1): You are free to choose the audition location which suits you best. If your audition is successful, you'll be invited to join the choir appropriate for your age/ability. Please note (2): We only publish audition locations, and not venues, for safeguarding purposes. Audition venues are usually located centrally and easily accessible by public transport. You'll receive venue details with your confirmation email when you book your audition. *We are able to offer auditions to current Boys' Choir and Girls' Choir members on their summer courses.
AUDITIONS: How much do auditions cost? Expand This FAQ updated: 11 Sept 2019 The audition fee for 2019 £37. You will also need to pay for your travel to the venue. If you receive free school meals, then your audition is free and we will support reasonable travel costs. If you do not receive free school meals you may still be eligible for financial support to cover travel costs. Click here for more information about financial assistance. To access this support, you just need to tick a box when booking your audition, and then complete a simple online form. If you are a current member of the National Youth Choir Annual Programme re-auditioning is free. Please note: We provide an official auditions accompanist at all audition venues, so you don't need to book / pay for your own.
AUDITIONS: How do I book an audition? Expand This FAQ updated: 22 July 2019We are holding auditions for the National Youth Boys’, Girls’ and Training Choirs this Autumn and auditions booking opens on Monday 23 September 2019. Please note that booking for the National Youth Choir and Fellowship Programmes 2019/20 are now closed.You can book an NYCGB audition via a separate area of our website called MY NYCGB. You will be asked to create an account and set up a profile for your young singer and from there, you will be able to book an audition. The booking process is now open and closes on Fri 25 Oct, 12 noon.Once logged in click on Auditions section on the left-hand side.Select the audition you would like to attend, noting the different locations and venues.Complete all the required information, selecting your preferred time slot.Only available time slots will be visible.If you wish to book for more than one young singer, click on profile and click 'add child' to create profile for your second young singer. If you wish to switch between the two, you can do this by clicking in the top left hand corner of the screen.If you require financial assistance for your audition, please tick on financial assistance when completing the booking and follow this link to our financial assistance page on our website to complete the form https://www.nycgb.org.uk/financial-assistanceNB: If you have forgotten your password, you can click on forgotten password to re-set it. This will send you an email to your registered email account. Please follow the instructions in the email and log back on.If you get stuck you can always contact us: Please contact Amanda Wood for Boys’, Girls’ and Training Choirs. [email protected] 0191 383 7355 Please contact Elizabeth Curwen for Fellowship, Young Composers and National Youth Choir Annual Programme: [email protected] 0191 383 7334(Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm).Go to My NYCGB
AUDITIONS: What do I need to bring to the audition? Expand This FAQ updated: 8 November 2018 You must bring sheet music for your accompanied song, in the key that you will sing it in, for the accompanist. We also recommend that you bring a bottle of water to keep hydrated, as not all our audition venues have drinking water facilities.
AUDITIONS: How can I improve my sight-reading? Expand This FAQ updated: 26 September 2018. We ask all audition candidates to do a sight-reading test, and other musicianship tests, as part of their audition. The kind of things you'll be asked to do depend on your age, and are listed on the How to prepare page: FIND OUT MORE A lot of people get worried about this part of the audition. The good news is that this is not the 'trick' bit where we are looking to catch candidates out. We want candidates to do well - and to help you we have a whole online course of musicianship videos, hosted on our YouTube channel. We'd recommend watching as many of them as you can, starting with the introduction. WATCH THE VIDEOS
AUDITIONS: What happens in the audition? Expand This FAQ updated: 17 September 2018 To find out what happens in the audition, and how to prepare to give your best, visit the How to prepare page on our website: click below. FIND OUT MORE
AUDITIONS: What are you looking for at audition? Expand This FAQ updated: 4 April 2019 We understand that every candidate is different, and that talent shows itself in different ways at different ages. However, here are some general guides to what we are looking for: National Youth Boys’ Choir (trebles and changing voices) (If in School Years 5, 6, 7 & 8 at audition) Demonstrate potential and enthusiasm for singing A vocal quality that will blend well within the choral sound Sing with good intonation Have an understanding of basic musical symbols Ability to sight-read a rhythm and respond quickly to simple aural tests (If in School Years 9 & 10 at audition) All of the above plus the ability to respond to technical demands; Demonstrate sight-reading skills including awareness of key signatures and melody including arpeggios as well as scales National Youth Girls’ Choir (If in School Years 6, 7 & 8 at audition) Demonstrate potential and enthusiasm for singing A vocal quality that will blend well within the choral sound Sing with good intonation Have an understanding of basic musical symbols Ability to sight-read a rhythm and respond quickly to simple aural tests (If in School Years 9 & 10 at audition) All of the above plus the ability to respond to technical demands; Sing with a clear, non-breathy voice; Demonstrate sight-reading skills including awareness of key signatures and melody including arpeggios as well as scales National Youth Training Choir (If in School Years 9 & 10 at audition) Sing with strong vocal ability and musical intelligence for your age A vocal quality that will blend well within the choral sound Demonstrate more advanced sight-reading skills (equivalent to ABRSM Grade 3/4) (If in School Years 11, 12 & 13 at audition) Ability to respond to advanced technical work within the choir Demonstrate an expressive voice with the ability to control vibrato, timbre and intonation. Sight-read at a level equivalent to ABRSM Grade 5+ National Youth Choir Sing challenging music with conviction and accuracy; Make an impression on the choir’s sound, combining individuality with the ability to listen and blend; Sight-read at a level equivalent to ABRSM Grade 6-7+; Sing without insecurity of pitch or vibrato; Perform with confidence, manifested in good posture, strong singing and the courage to take risks; Demonstrate a sound vocal technique and the flexibility to blend and change the sound; Sing without breathiness or nasality (except when requested).
AUDITIONS: When will I get my result and what happens next? Expand This FAQ updated: 4 April 2019 Auditions 2019: for the National Youth Boys' Choir, National Youth Girls' Choir, and National Youth Training Choir: Audition results will be sent by email in mid December. If you're successful, we'll invite you to take a place in the appropriate choir for your age and ability. We will also allocate you a voice part (Treble/Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass). We will also send you instructions about how to accept your place and, if you're new to NYCGB, pay your one-off Membership Fee. 2018/19 annual fee was £85. 2019/20 fee tbc. Once you've accepted your place and paid your Membership Fee, we will send you an invitation and instructions to book your Spring and/or Summer course for 2019. Please note(1): Your voice part can be re-assessed on each course so don't worry if you feel that your voice part might be changing, we'll support you. Please note (2): If you miss two consecutive courses then your membership will be deactivated and you will need to re-audition. Auditions 2019: for the National Youth Choir Annual Programme Audition results will be sent by email by Friday 7 June 2019. If you're successful, we'll invite you to accept a place in the National Youth Choir 2019-20 and to participate in the ensemble's Annual Programme which will run from September 2019 - August 2020. Click below for more information. FIND OUT MORE