York Youth Symphony Orchestra

06/16/2026

Audition sign ups are LIVE for our '26-'27 season! Remember to fill out the audition application to sign up for your audition slot on August 29th. Check out our website for audition information and how to register: https://www.yorkyouthsymphony.org/yysoauditions

Reach out to [email protected] with questions!

06/01/2026

Audition registration for the 26-27 year is now live! Please read through all of the requirements on our website before signing up via the Google Form. After completing the form, you will receive the Time to Sign Up link which will let you pick your audition time.

Reach out to [email protected] with any questions!

1. UPDATED 6/1: Audition registration/time slot selection is now available here. Complete the Google Form, and the Submission page will provide you with the Time To Sign Up Link.

05/19/2026

Congratulations to our musicians on a wonderful season, and a special shout out to our seniors who are leaving us this year. We are so proud to have such dedicated students, and know you all will go on to do great things!

Have a great summer, and we look forward to seeing you all in August for auditions!

05/18/2026

We ended the YYSO season with our annual YYSO Chamber Concert, featuring four spectacular small ensembles absolutely crushing it on classical, modern and world premieres!!

05/17/2026

Join us this evening at 5pm for our chamber concert! The event is located at 115 S Howard St, York, PA, 17401, in the building to the right of Collusion's entrance (labelled The Side Show). There will be signs out front to direct all concert guests. And friendly reminder, the concert is FREE.

Our Brass, WoodWinds, Strings, and Cello ensembles will be premiering new works by young composers, in addition to playing classical pieces. These new works are being played for an audience for the very first time, so come out and be a part of this unique experience.

Can't wait to see everyone in just a few hours!

05/13/2026

YYSO Weekly Updates [Final 2025-2026 Update]

Congratulations on a beautiful concert and to our seniors on their upcoming graduation! You all played spectacularly as always. Please see below for our final updates and reminders for the 2025-2026 season.

Message from Mr. B and Bethany
Please see this week's email for a message from Mr. B and Bethany regarding the end of the season and Sat's concert.

YYSO Auditions for 2026-2027
YYSO Auditions are officially taking place on Sat 8/29, mark your calendars! Audition info is already posted to our website, with more to come! A couple of other key dates to remember:
6/1: Audition registration goes live
7/15: Orchestra excerpt(s) are released on our website
8/22: Audition registration closes
8/29: Audition day!

If you have any music-related questions or concerns about next year’s concert dates, please email [email protected]. Logistical questions should be sent to [email protected].

Lost and Found
Please see this week's email for a short lost and found message about some items left behind after the concert.

Chamber Concert and Updates
CHAMBER STUDENTS: See this week's email and the one from your Chamber Director for final reminders regarding the performances this weekend.

There are TWO wonderful chamber performances this weekend! On 5/16, the WoodWind and Brass ensembles will be playing at 7pm at the Appell Center in the lobby before the YSO concert.

Our chamber concert, and final YYSO performance of the year, will be on Sun 5/17 at 115 S Howard St., York, PA 17401 (attached to Collusion Tapworks). Doors will open to concert attendees at 4:30pm and the concert will begin at 5:00pm. For parking, we can use Collusion’s lot, street parking, or the nearby garages.

Spring Concert Music Returns
If for any reason, you failed to turn in your music after the YYSO May concert, you may return your music to Bethany at our Chamber Concert on 5/17 at 5pm at the venue attached to Collusion Tapworks. If you can't stop by the chamber concert, reach out to our info email immediately so we can make other arrangements.

Thanks for reading and remember to read the full weekly updates, which were distributed by email!

05/09/2026

Our final concert of the year is today! We'll be featuring beautiful music, our 2026 Concerto Competition Winner Deborah Slack, a performance with select students from the YJSO, and our senior and scholarship recognition ceremony. We hope to see you there!

Tickets are on sale and can be purchased at the following link and on our website: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/spring-concert--2026-8. They will also be available for purchase at the door.

See you all in a couple of hours!

05/06/2026

YYSO Weekly Updates [5/9/26]

Happy final concert week and second to last newsletter! Below are SOME of the updates from this week's email, please read the actual email to get all of the important concert info.

Schedule for 5/9: Rehearsal will run until 11:30am!
8:30-Aragonesa
9:00-Spanish Dance
9:30-Ritual Fire Dance
9:50-Break
10:10-Schubert Unfinished
10:35-Grieg Piano Concerto
11:00-Jurassic Park with YJSO

Important Concert Info
The dress rehearsal and concert are this Sat, 5/9 at Central York High School, located at 601 Mundis Mill Road, York, PA 17406. Concert dress for the dress rehearsal is optional. The concert will begin at 3pm.

If you are no longer able to attend the concert for any reason, please email us ASAP. Submitting an Absence Report Form is not enough, you must notify us by email!

For the lunch break, you will be allowed to leave the school. However, you MUST sign out with Bethany at the front desk and sign back in when you return. The school will be open and staffed, so you are welcome to stick around between the dress rehearsal and concert. There will be lunch for those who registered. Lunch details and the sign-up, are in this week's email. Students are also welcome to bring their own food.

Call time is 2:30pm. You must arrive in your concert dress and be in the band room for the pre-concert talk.

We will be using the Performing Arts entrance, which is to the right of the main entrance and labeled accordingly. The main doors will be unlocked for concert guests beginning at 2pm. There is plenty of parking available for everyone around the school.

You may unpack and leave your personal items and cases in the band and chorus rooms.

See the email for dress code guidelines.

Music Returns
YYSO folders will need to be returned immediately following the concert. Hannah will be waiting for you at the exit with a box to place your folder into. Do not leave without giving her your music!

See the email for more info, especially chamber kids!

Chamber Updates
For all groups, there is NO chamber this Sat, 5/9 due to the YYSO concert. See the email for more info.

Thanks for reading and remember to read the full weekly updates, which were distributed by email!

05/02/2026

We are ONE WEEK away from our final concert of the year!!! In addition to our wonderful orchestra, our spring concert features our 2026 Concerto Competition Winner Deborah Slack, a performance with select students from the YJSO, and our senior recognition ceremony. Don't miss out on this concert!

The concert will be next Saturday, May 9th at 3pm at Central York High School. Tickets are on sale and can be purchased at the following link and on our website: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/spring-concert--2026-8.

See you all in one week!

Also thank you to everyone who donated yesterday at Give Local to support our students and organization, we appreciate you!

05/01/2026

Today is Give Local and we're celebrating with a special YSO chamber performance featuring musicians from our YYSO string quartet! They will be playing on the roof of the Yorktowne Hotel this evening from 5-7pm. We hope to see you there!

The big day of giving event runs until 7pm tonight! You can support local organizations like ours by donating through the Give Local website. The link to our page is below. These donations help support the daily operations of our organization and also help to fund programs like tuition assistance and our yearly scholarships. Please consider donating, if you are able, and attending tonight's performance. We greatly appreciate any support you can offer our organization and students!

https://www.givelocalyork.org/organization/York-Youth-Symphony-Orchestra