The Orchestras

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The Dunedin Youth Orchestra (DYO) is Dunedin’s premier training orchestra and was formed in 1972. Its core function is to provide local young orchestral musicians (aged 13 to 25 years) with a high quality musical outlet and opportunities for their further development.
 

It is an audition only orchestra and selected applicants work towards formal concert presentations over two semesters.  Local and guest professional conductors are engaged for each concert and they choose a programme from standard orchestral repertoire, New Zealand works and new music by local composers. Awards are presented each year to those most promising performers and composers. 

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The standard of musicianship achieved within the Youth Orchestra is such that many members are selected to join the National Youth Orchestra, the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra and other NZ or overseas professional orchestras. 

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Orchestra members gain from specialised tutoring, exposure to a wide range of repertoire and conducting styles, and they benefit from the musical camaraderie, gathering each Friday evening with other like-minded young musicians. Players also contribute to music education in the city, mainly as tutors for younger players particularly through the Saturday Morning Music Classes, but also taking their skills back to their school or local orchestras and bands. Many collaborative projects arise from this meeting of young skilled musical minds.

                                             

                                                                                                               www.dyo.org.nz

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The Dunedin Symphony Orchestra (DSO) is Dunedin’s only professional orchestra and is funded by Creative New Zealand. We have established a reputation for the high calibre of our performances. Since 1966, the orchestra has been presenting its audiences with performances of a wide range of orchestral masterpieces featuring international and New Zealand conductors and soloists.

 

Dunedin is very much the home base of the orchestra and its players, and most of our performances take place in the city. As one of only four New Zealand City Orchestras, the orchestra is a key contributor to the city’s cultural vibrancy. The orchestra’s flagship is its annual five-concert series which encompasses music from the Baroque through to commissioned works. The orchestra’s versatility allows it to present various other artists, such as Te Vaka, singers from the Dunedin Sound genre, and more.  In addition, the orchestra accompanies City Choir Dunedin, Opera Otago and the Royal NZ Ballet, ensuring audiences can enjoy choral, operatic and ballet masterpieces too. We have also worked with Natural History New Zealand (NHNZ) on several innovative multi-artform projects.

 

We have a proud tradition of providing orchestral players in the community with a comprehensive range of educational projects to nurture future players, from the DSO Academy for younger, developing players, through to its University Scholarship for potential DSO players, and masterclasses and workshops for advanced players. The orchestra also presents chamber concerts at schools around Otago which enables access for those centred far from Dunedin. A very high proportion of the DSO players form the backbone of the city’s music teaching infrastructure, demonstrating how integral the orchestra is to the city and the University of Otago.                                                     

                                                                                                                      www.dso.org.nz