The National Youth Orchestra of Canada will return to Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario for its 2025 summer residency. That takes place from from June 16th to mid-July, when the next gen of Canadian orchestral musicians trains for the future at the newly renovated Savvas Chamberlain Music building.
Music Director Naomi Woo will lead the residency at Laurier, incorporating a range of experiences from orchestral rehearsals and chamber music concerts to masterclasses, and professional development workshops of various kinds. Laurier’s newly revamped resources include state-of-the-art practice facilities and performance spaces. Mental health and wellness support is also available to help the young musicians adapt to the pressures of professional practice.
In a statement, NYO Canada extended its gratitude to Queen’s University and the Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts for hosting the orchestra’s summer residencies during the renovation period at Laurier.
“We are immensely grateful to Queen’s University for their unwavering partnership over the past few years,” says NYO Canada CEO Christie Gray in a statement. “Their generosity and commitment to the arts have enabled us to maintain our momentum and provide exceptional training opportunities for our musicians. We are thrilled to return to our roots at Laurier, where our musicians will thrive in an environment dedicated to their artistic growth.”
“It has been our privilege at the Isabel Bader Centre to support NYO Canada’s mission during Laurier’s renovations.” said Gordon Smith, director of the Isabel Bader Centre for Performing Arts. “Witnessing the dedication and passion of these young musicians has been truly inspiring. We wish them all the best as they return to their home at Laurier, and we look forward to welcoming them back to the Isabel in the future for many more memorable performances.”
“Welcoming NYO Canada back to Laurier fills us with immense pride and excitement,” said Cynthia Johnston Turner, Dean of the Faculty of Music at Wilfrid Laurier University. “The return to our newly renovated building symbolizes a powerful homecoming for both NYO and Laurier. We’re thrilled to provide NYO Canada’s young musicians with an inspiring
We asked both Christie Gray and Naomi Woo about the move, and NYO Canada.
NYO Canada CEO Christie Gray
What is it like to see a new cohort of young musicians enter the program each year?
Each year NYO Canada is so proud and excited to welcome a new cohort of exceptionally talented young musicians to NYO Canada. Each season brings a fresh wave of energy and passion, and witnessing the development of these artists is sincerely a joy and privilege for the entire NYOC team and faculty. The dedication and artistry they bring to their instruments and performances is incredibly inspiring; they represent the very best of Canada’s next generation, in classical music and beyond.
The NYO Canada experience is about so much more than musical excellence. It’s about forging lifelong friendships, building a strong sense of community, and gaining invaluable experience performing for diverse audiences across the country. Throughout our 65-year history, our alumni have told us year after year that the bonds formed and the lessons learned during their time with NYO Canada stay with these musicians throughout their careers.
What about the move back to Waterloo? What does it represent for NYO Canada?
We’re particularly thrilled that next year’s residency will mark at return to Wilfrid Laurier University after a 4-year pause to accommodate extensive renovations at the school of music and Maureen Forrester Recital Hall. And, we’re especially excited about this opportunity to engage with the vibrant Kitchener-Waterloo arts community, especially after the challenges of the past few years and the tragic loss of the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony. We believe in the power of the performing arts to connect, uplift, and inspire, and we look forward to sharing the extraordinary talents of our young musicians with audiences in this region.
The future of classical music in Canada is bright, and NYO Canada is proud to play a vital role in nurturing and supporting the next generation of artists and citizens.
The National Youth Orchestra of Canada performs Danial Sheibani’s Out of Thin Air during their summer 2024 tour:
Music Director Naomi Woo
What are your general impressions after leading the NYOC for the summer tour? Working with young musicians has its special joys — and its challenges. You have a wide range of experience when it comes to conducting. Is there anything that makes conducting NYO Canada special, or different than the others?
The young musicians of NYOC and I had a fabulous summer last year. The strength of the tour experience is one of the distinctive features of NYO. Something magical happens when any group of musicians goes on tour together, whether it’s a professional orchestra (I’m currently preparing to go on tour, for example, with the Philadelphia Orchestra, to China for a few weeks) or a rock band piling into a tour bus and sleeping on couches.
Before we began our tour last year, I told the musicians of NYOC that what I hoped tour would create for us is an increased feeling of trust, so that the bonds we all built off the stage would allow us to trust each other more deeply onstage too. I really felt that! By the end of tour we were able to take more risks in our music making because we deeply believed we could trust each other. It’s an inspiring feeling as a musician, and one that I hope these young musicians bring to other musical contexts, as well as to the rest of their lives.
What are your thoughts on the level of talent displayed by this next generation of professional classical musicians in Canada?
The future of music in Canada is in inspiring hands. This isn’t just because the next generation of professional classical musicians in Canada is talented, hard-working, and passionate, but also because they are equipped with tools to care for themselves and others. One example is the J&W Murphy Initiative for Health and Wellness offered by NYO, which includes therapy sessions, physiotherapy and massage, and a partnership with Xenia Concerts that provides workshops on collaboration, leadership, self-care, and inclusive concert design. I believe the way that we show up as collaborators is an important part of music-making, as is treating our colleagues and ourselves with respect and care.
Looking forward to the residency at Wilfrid Laurier next year, do you have any specific plans for NYO Canada, perhaps pieces or composers to explore?
I’m always interested in how repertoire can expand our musical horizons. I like to choose repertoire that will engage both the musicians and audiences. I always hope that by combining pieces of music that aren’t always programmed together, everyone can come away learning something new about a familiar work or composer. Of course, one of the special things about NYO is also the size of our orchestra, and we’ll definitely be performing works next summer that take advantage of the number of musicians we have on stage! The repertoire isn’t public yet, so I don’t want to give anything away… but there’s definitely some pieces on the list that are “bucket list” items for me and for many orchestral musicians. We’ve chosen some pieces that young musicians across Canada will be very excited for the chance to play!
National Youth Orchestra of Canada Summer Residency 2025
- For more information, and to apply, see [HERE].
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