Greater New Orleans Youth Orchestra

As New Orleans rebuilds after Hurricane Katrina, new generations of musicians are being nurtured by the Greater New Orleans Youth Orchestra (GNOYO). Founded in 1994 by the Louisiana Philharmonic and local professional musicians, the Youth Orchestra continues to provide extraordinary opportunities for children and teens to master and perform classical music.

At the Youth Orchestra’s core is providing the city’s most disadvantaged young people with musical instruments, subsidized lessons, and opportunities to perform in one of the orchestras many groups. GNOYO comprises five orchestras, an annual Summer Festival, and an outreach program that brings classical music to the community’s young people residing throughout the metropolitan area.

Children as young as age 7 enter the program, where they receive one-on-one musical instruction with professional musicians and opportunities to perform in Sinfonia, a strings-only orchestra that meets weekly. They advance to Philharmonia, an intermediate orchestra with string, wind, and percussion instruments, and then move on to play in the Symphony, where they gain the full orchestra experience, with 2-hour weekly rehearsals. Ninety percent of students progress to full participation in the Youth Orchestra.

Every two months, the student musicians participate in sectional rehearsals with a professional musician, helping them develop individual technique and musicianship. During the Summer Festival, participants receive an additional week of intensive training, small-group instruction, and performance experience.

Through its nurturing environment that emphasizes self-discipline, GNOYO helps students develop self-confidence and a sense of accomplishment to meet life’s challenges. As a testament to the program’s influence, 90 percent of student participants pursue a college education.