National Festival of Music for Youth
If anyone was ever in any doubt that the music education scene in the UK was thriving, put them on a train and
tell them to head to Birmingham this summer! For seven days, young performers from across the country will
take over the city of Birmingham as part of the National Festival of Music for Youth.
Open air and indoors, the National Festival has become one of the major highlights in the music education
calendar. Packed with inspirational performances and workshops, this seven day Festival brings together over
10,000 of the country’s most exciting young performers - the next generation of the UK’s musical talent.
315 groups will perform live to audiences in Birmingham’s most impressive venues including Symphony Hall,
Town Hall, O2 Academy 2 and the Adrian Boult Hall (Birmingham Conservatoire). An outdoor music
stage in Chamberlain Square links up the entire festival and is a crucial part of the celebrations, providing the
local community with free entertainment throughout the seven days. The Festival is one of the world's greatest
youth music events and the line-up includes choirs, orchestras, steel bands, rock, pop and urban groups, brass
bands, music theatre groups, jazz bands and many more performing almost every possible style of music.
Throughout the week there will be workshops, conferences and brand new collaborative projects running as part
of the NF Fringe Festival.
On Monday Trinity Guildhall’s Celebrating Whole Class Instrumental/Vocal Teaching event kicks off the Fringe
Festival. Midweek is bursting with activities, including Singposium - the essential annual course for those
working with young singers, the Music Education Council’s AGM and the Festival’s first Urban Orchestra
created in collaboration with Punch Records. On Thursday hundreds of brass players from all over the UK will
unite to perform a premiere, and the BRIT School will present One Vision New Version. Bringing the Fringe
Festival to a close on Saturday, the NYMO Festival will see musicians from National Youth Music Organisations
perform collectively for the very first time.
“The Festival is one of the world's greatest youth music festivals which really does showcase the breadth,
innovation and pure talent that exists within young people’s music making in the UK,” says Lincoln Abbotts, Chief
Executive at Music for Youth. “The opportunity to perform in major venues provides these young musicians with
the motivation and inspiration to fully explore their musical ambitions.”
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