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County Youth Music

Hertfordshire County Youth Orchestra

An orchestra for advanced woodwind, brass, strings, and percussion players.

Hertfordshire Schools' Symphony Orchestra

Welcoming instrumentalists from a range of disciplines, typically grade 6 /7+ standard.

County Youth Choir

Welcoming all young vocalists who aspire to engage with high quality and varied choral repertoire.

Hertfordshire County Youth Brass

Open to all brass and percussion players.

County Youth Wind Sinfonia

County-level wind orchestra for woodwind, brass, percussion, and string bass players.

How to apply

Find out more on how to apply for any of our county groups.

Auditions

Information about our auditions for CYO and HSSO.

Music making at county level enables young people to develop confidence in a range of musical skills whilst working in a supportive, yet stimulating environment. The activities, experiences, and coaching on offer are designed to support you in fulfilling your musical potential.

County level music making offers you the opportunity to continue your musical journey from regional and/or school ensembles, and helping to prepare you for future opportunities whether that be:

  • further study
  • a life in the music profession
  • to keep enjoying music making as a hobby for years to come

The types of experiences, friendships, and memories made through county music making stay with people for a lifetime.

If this sounds like something you are interested in, then we would love to hear from you!

Hertfordshire County Youth Orchestra

An orchestra for advanced woodwind, brass, strings, and percussion players in Hertfordshire. The orchestra members are confident musicians (typically grade 8+ standard), with good experience in ensemble playing. Members have often progressed into the orchestra from HSSO as a next step in their orchestral development and many members continue their membership with HCYO into their twenties.

As a member of HCYO you will experience repertoire and opportunities designed to develop confidence in your orchestral skills at the highest level of county music making. Each HCYO course offers the opportunity to work alongside professional conductors and experienced sectional tutors, including professional orchestral musicians from around the UK.

Apply now

Applications are now open - join us today!

2025-26 Hertfordshire County Youth Orchestra - upcoming events

  • 20 – 23 December 2025 – autumn term course
  • 28 – 31 March 2026 – spring term course
  • 17 – 21 August 2026 – summer term course

Hertfordshire Schools’ Symphony Orchestra 

This is one of two auditioned county youth orchestras and welcomes instrumentalists from a range of disciplines. Members of the orchestra are confident musicians who will have played in their area youth orchestras or been involved in similar orchestra opportunities.

Performing in HSSO gives the opportunity to develop confidence, and a range of orchestral skills across a varied repertoire whilst working with experienced conductors and sectional tutors.

Apply now

Applications are now open - join us today!

2025-26 Hertfordshire Schools' Symphony Orchestra - upcoming events

  • 27 – 30 October 2025 – autumn term course
  • 09 - 11 April 2026 – spring term course
  • 17 – 21 August 2026 – summer term course 

Hertfordshire County Youth Choir

We welcome all young vocalists from Year 9 and above who aspire to engage with high quality and varied choral repertoire alongside other likeminded singers from across Hertfordshire. HCYC meet for weekly rehearsals and offer inspiring performance opportunities throughout the year. Participating in HCYC supports your abilities as a singer in an ensemble, and provides opportunity for developing your sight reading, aural skills, solo performance, and conducting skills.

Hertfordshire County Youth Training Choir is for young singers in Years 5 – 8, to get a chance to sing exciting repertoire and also to sing alongside the County Youth Choir in concerts and performance opportunities throughout the year.

Rehearsals take place at Mid Herts Centre for Music and Arts in Hatfield on Wednesday evenings during term time, 6.15pm – 8.00pm.

Both choirs are run by conductor, singer, and educator James Slimings.

Apply now

The Hertfordshire County Youth Choir and Training Choir accept applications throughout the year, and auditions are not required.

Information:

Hertfordshire County Youth Choir Scholarship Opportunity  

We have choral scholarship opportunities, available for 3 x fully funded* places in the Hertfordshire County Youth Choir for the 2025/26 academic year. Included in the scholarship are 20-minute singing lessons for the funded students at a reduced charge of 75%.

Further information

This opportunity has been generously funded by the Chipperfield Choral Society Hammond Award to create a legacy for vocal excellence in the Chipperfield area to enable young singers to progress with their vocal talents and interest. 

Applications are welcomed from new or current County Youth Choir members who are local to the Watford, Dacorum, or Three Rivers regions. Please note this is an auditioned opportunity and you would be required to send in a video submission plus a detailed explanation of the reasons why you wish to be considered for this position (details below). If you are interested there is also the option to further your musical leadership skills within the scholarship, for example to be a SATB section leader within the choir or help lead the warm ups / work with the County Youth Training Choir. 

Deadline for the video submission is Monday 3 November 2025 , and you will hear if you’ve been successful by Friday 7 November 2025.  

*Please note that funding would not include potential residential trips 

How to apply 

Please submit the following by Monday 3 November 2025: 

  • A short video statement introducing yourself and giving the answer to the following questions: 

1) How would this opportunity contribute towards your future education or career in music? 

2) What’s your favourite thing about singing with other people? 

3) What do you think your strengths are as an ensemble singer? 

4) Do you have a favourite piece of choral music? 

  • Followed by singing one verse of a song acapella (without piano or backing track). 

Using a phone to record your video would be sufficient quality.  

 

If you’d like to apply or find out more, please contact the County Youth Music team on countyyouthmusic@hertfordshire.gov.uk for details. 

2025/26 Hertfordshire County Youth Choir - upcoming events

Termly Wednesday night rehearsals to begin on 10 September 2025

  • 13 December 2025 - end of term concert
  • 31 January 2026 – performance opportunity
  • 11 April – end of term concert
  • 6 – 10 August 2026 – choral course 

Hertfordshire County Youth Brass Band 

We are open to all brass and percussion players from across Hertfordshire, and welcomes confident young musicians who have had regular experience playing in orchestras and ensembles, such as regional or school groups.

As a member of the County Youth Brass Band you will discover, play, and perform a wide range of repertoire for brass band, whilst working with experienced conductors and sectional tutors who work to support you in developing your skills with performing as both individuals and an ensemble.

Each course offers high-quality musical opportunities to inspire members to reach their musical goals and to encourage the growth and personal development of the individuals we work with.

Apply now

The County Youth Brass Band is non-auditioned. - applications are now open.

2025/26 Hertfordshire County Youth Brass Band - upcoming events

  • 25-26 October 2025 (TBC) – autumn term course
  • 16 – 18 February  2026 – spring term course
  • 27 – 31 July 2026 - summer term residential trip (in collaboration with the wind sinfonia)

Hertfordshire County Youth Wind Sinfonia 

This is our county-level wind orchestra for woodwind, brass, percussion, and string bass players. Members of the County Youth Wind Sinfonia are confident young musicians who have had regular experience playing in orchestras and ensembles, such as regional or school groups.

Each County Youth Wind Sinfonia course offers inspiring opportunities to explore the breadth of wind band repertoire in a variety of rehearsal and performance environments, whilst developing confidence playing alongside other likeminded musicians from across the county.

The County Youth Wind Sinfonia also has opportunities for keyboard/piano players to get involved – get in touch to find out more!

Apply now

The County Youth Wind Sinfonia is non-auditioned. - applications are now open.

2024/25 Hertfordshire County Youth Wind Sinfonia - upcoming events

  • 14 – 16 November 2025 – autumn term course
  • 08, 10and 12 April 2026 – spring term course
  • 27 – 31 July 2026 - summer term residential trip (in collaboration with the County Youth Brass)

How to apply

All new and returning members must complete the online application form to participate in County-level music activities in 2025/26.

Signing up before the deadline of 29 August ensures you have access to a full year of opportunities, any relevant membership discount(s), and the opportunity to apply for principal positions in our auditioned ensembles.

Apply now

If you have an existing Speed Admin account, please log in with your credentials when prompted, otherwise please create a new account as part of the sign-up process.

When completing your application there will be some short questions about your level of playing experience which you’ll need to complete – this is so we can get to know you as a musician!

Late application process

  • The application/audition process is the same as on time applications.
  • Places are limited in each County Youth Music ensemble, in line with the musical requirements for each section.
  • Priority for places is given to on time applications ahead of late applications.
  • A reserve list process for calling up extra players is in effect.
  • Successful late applicants may be placed on this list where full places are not available.
  • No charge applies if you are accepted to the reserve list.
  • You will be only charged the relevant course fee(s) for the course(s) you attend.

2025/26 membership fees

Our termly fees are set to be able to cover all costs of running our county activities, such as hire of venues, conductors, tutors, and music hire. Our standard fees exclude food, drink, and transport unless otherwise stated.

Commitment to the ensemble is important. We expect all members to commit and be at all courses for the ensemble(s) they sign up for.  Our fees are designed to reward this commitment, and so if you attend terms 1 & 2 you will be eligible for the membership discount reflected in term 3.  

If you get a place in one of our auditioned orchestras (HCYO or HSSO) and want to also sign up for another ensemble such as County Choir, the Wind Sinfonia or Brass Band then the fee for this extra ensemble will be reduced to an ‘add on fee’, to make it more manageable to join more than one. Please see our table below for all fees.

 Termly feeTerm 3 annual member fee*Add on fee(for those with HSSO or HCYO membership)

Hertfordshire County Youth Orchestra

£220 per term

£118

N/A

Hertfordshire Schools’ Symphony Orchestra

£200 per term

£98

N/A

Hertfordshire County Youth Choir

£130 per term

N/A

£63 per term

Hertfordshire County Youth Brass Band

£110 per term

£63

£33 per term

Hertfordshire County Youth Wind Sinfonia

£110 per term

£63

 £33 per term

* Only members who have attended and paid for terms 1 and 2 are eligible for this term 3 discount.

Fees are invoiced at the beginning of each term. Please note that once your place has been confirmed for the year, you’ll be automatically invoiced each term unless provide advanced notice at the earliest opportunity for any courses you cannot attend. Providing this advanced notice allows us to offer places to other young musicians on our reserve lists.

County Youth Music Auditions

The Hertfordshire County Youth Orchestra and Hertfordshire Schools’ Symphony Orchestra are both auditioned ensembles.

We look for confident musicians with orchestral experience to join the orchestras. If you have worked on graded exams, grade 6/7+ for HSSO, and grade 8+ for HCYO is a good guide for the playing standard of each orchestra.

Once you’ve filled out the application form and indicated that you’d like to apply for HSSO and/or HCYO, you can begin preparing a short video submission. This comprises of:

  • A 3–5-minute piece of your choice (this can be accompanied or unaccompanied)
  • 2 x orchestral excerpts provided online, or 2 x approved Trinity excerpts (full details about this can be found on our auditions page)

Preparing and submitting audition tapes is great experience for your musical life after your time in our county ensembles.

Please note that although you can audition for both ensembles you will only be offered a place in one or the other, if successful.

Auditions FAQs

What if I already play in HSSO or HCYO and want to continue as I am?

If you already play in either HSSO or HCYO and want to continue, then you do not need to send in an audition tape. However, it’s important that you still complete the application form.

What if I already play in HSSO but think that I’m ready to move up to HCYO, or to have the chance to play in a principal position?

Please indicate this in your application form. We will require an audition tape as this would be a new ensemble for you.

Can I audition for both?

Yes, you can indicate that you would be happy to be considered for either ensemble, but if you are successful then you’ll be offered a place in one or the other of the orchestras.