| National Youth Choir | |
|---|---|
| Choir | |
 National Youth Choir at theRoyal Albert Hall in 2016. | |
| Also known as | NYC |
| Former name | National Youth Choirs of Great Britain, British Youth Choir |
| Founded | 1983 (1983) |
| Artistic Director | Lucy Hollins |
| Chief conductor | Nicholas Chalmers, Linsey Callaghan |
| Headquarters | Durham, England |
| Label | NYCR, NMC, Decca, Delphian, Sony, Signum & others |
| Website | www |
TheNational Youth Choir, formerly known as the National Youth Choirs of Great Britain and the British Youth Choir, is a family ofchoirs for outstanding young singers, and those with outstanding potential, in theUnited Kingdom. It comprises five choirs for around 900 children and young people between the ages of 9 and 25:[1]
The National Youth Choir also has a number of additional programmes and schemes, including its three Emerging Professional Artist programmes, the Fellowship,[2] Young Conductors and Young Composers[3] schemes, and its Learning & Engagement[4] programme.
The organisation also has a strong community of over 1,000 former members, National Youth Choir Alumni,[5] who often participate in performances alongside National Youth Choir's flagship choirs.
The National Youth Choir was founded in 1983 by Carl Browning, with its five choirs have a membership of over 900 young singers aged 9 to 25 from across the UK.
The NYC regularly gives performances at venues and festivals such as theRoyal Albert Hall, theRoyal Festival Hall,The Glasshouse, Gateshead, theRoyal Concert Hall Nottingham, Edinburgh Festival, Snape Proms, theRoyal Variety Performance[6] and theBBC Proms[7] as well as at events of national significance.[8] High-profile international artists NYC has worked with range fromDaniel Barenboim[9] toKylie Minogue &Melanie C, along with top choirs includingThe Sixteen,Tenebrae,The Tallis Scholars,BBC Singers and many others. The music it creates and performs encompasses a wide diversity of genres and vocal styles, and NYC regularly creates and releases audio and video recordings on its own record label,National Youth Choir Recordings, and online platforms.[10]
NYC also supports the development of emerging young professionals through itsFellowship programme for future choral leaders and performers, itsYoung Composers scheme and itsYoung Conductors programme (launched in 2024).[11]
Lucy Hollins was appointed Creative Director of National Youth Choir in Spring 2023, succeedingBen Parry, who held the position from 2012 to 2022.[12]
National Youth Choir operates its own record label, National Youth Choir Recordings (NYCR), which releases music recorded by its choirs viaSpotify,Apple Music,YouTube Music and other majormusic streaming services. The label was started in 2015 and publishes new recordings each month, which are regularly featured on playlists curated by each streaming platform's editorial team, as well as being broadcast on national radio stations, includingBBC Radio 3,Classic FM andScala.
Prior to 2015, National Youth Choir's recordings were primarily released onrecord labels includingDelphian,[22]Priory[23] andEMI. The Choirs have also performed on discs forDecca,Classic FM andSignum Records,[24] most notably including the premiere recording ofKarl Jenkins'The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace (2001).[25]
National Youth Choir also partners withNMC Recordings to produce its annual "Young Composers" albums: a set of pieces for singers aged 18 to 25 and NYC's Fellowship Ensemble composed by that year's cohort of young composers.
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