The Comox Valley will have some representation on this year’s National Youth Orchestra (NYO).
17-year-old Claire Mindell from Courtenay has been selected to join the NYO’s 65th Anniversary Tour of Canada.
Mindell said it’s been a dream of hers to be part of NYO Canada since she was 12 years old.
“I definitely feel very grateful and honoured to be a part of NYO this year, I’m really excited to go and meet other young musicians in Canada and work with all the amazing faculty.”
Mindell will join 90 other musicians from across the country aged 16-28 on a full-scholarship tour across Canada.
Mindell added she auditioned when she was first eligible last year but wasn’t selected.
NYO Music Director Naomi Woo said the tour serves as a steppingstone towards future careers for the musicians selected.
“Members of NYO Canada go on to become players in all of the country’s major orchestras and in orchestras around the world, they can go on to become educators, teachers and professors.”
The orchestra will perform five shows in British Columbia, with four of them taking place on Vancouver Island.
- July 26: Chan Centre for the Performing Arts, Vancouver, B.C.
- July 30: Port Theatre, Nanaimo, B.C.
- August 1: Christ Church Cathedral, Victoria, B.C.
- August 2-3: Symphony Splash, Inner Harbour, Victoria, B.C.
