READING Youth Orchestra (RYO), one of the country’s longest running young people’s music groups, has reached a membership milestone.
From small beginnings it has grown into an ensemble today of more than 50 young players.
In 1944, as part of Reading Council’s Youth and Community department, and with then just eleven members, it provided instruments and a place for young people to make music together and to socialise.
Quickly growing, RYO even toured to Germany in 1949, but decades later, with its funding withdrawn in the mid 2000s, and with no staff, rehearsal space, storage, or marketing, the orchestra was on the brink of folding.
In 2006 the Eureka Foundation, Reading University, and local volunteers stepped in, enabling it to run independently, without any grants or Government or local authority funding since 2006.
It has been steadily growing since then.
During the pandemic its committee kept rehearsals going online, making videos instead of concerts, and as a result came out of the pandemic in 2021 with 50% more players than before.
It continues to attract talented young musicians from Reading and the wider Berkshire area.
In 2023 RYO achieved charitable status, and earlier this year won the ‘Event of the Year’ alongside Reading Symphony Orchestra at What’s On Reading’s Cultural Champions awards, for a joint concert put on by both orchestras in 2024 for their 80th anniversaries.
At the same event, RYO’s Music Director Mel Le Breuilly also won the ‘Youth Champion Award’ 2025.
“Our players have opportunities to perform solos and small group pieces,” she said, “and some have also composed music for us too, popular additions to our traditional classical and film score repertoire.
“But RYO isn’t only about making music.
“It’s about being a community of players who support each other, so as well as rehearsals we offer regular social opportunities too.
“They’re a really friendly bunch – lively and hardworking – and seeing them every Friday is the highlight of my week, every week.”
Despite reaching its 50 member milestone, there is still space for more musicians.
“We’d love to fill a few remaining vacancies with more secondary school age young people,” said Mel.
“We’re especially keen to hear from french horn, trombone, viola, oboe, bassoon, or double bass players of around Grade five level and above.”
RYO rehearses at St Joseph’s College, Reading, on Friday evenings, with a performance given at the end of every term.
For information, and to join, visit: www.ryo.org.uk, or search for Reading Youth Orchestra’s Facebook and Instagram pages.
