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- Expert guidance under the baton of Mr James Brice OAM
- Diverse repertoire
- Performance opportunities from community marches to national competitions
- Friendships and fun; make lasting connections with like-minded young musicians
What an extraordinary Easter it was for the Youth Wind Orchestra at the Australian National Band Championships in Brisbane!
Competing across two sections — Junior A and Open B — our young musicians delivered two outstanding performances, taking out first place in both competitions and achieving a clean sweep across both programs.
This is an exceptional achievement, made even more impressive by the demands of the Championships. Competing at Nationals is a test of preparation, musicianship, concentration and resilience, and the YWO musicians rose to the challenge magnificently. Across an extremely long day of competition, they maintained their focus, energy and commitment from beginning to end.
We are exceptionally proud of every musician who took to the stage. Their performances were the culmination of countless rehearsals, individual practice, teamwork and the dedication of our Musical Director, James, volunteers and families. Most importantly, the results reflect a group who came together and demonstrated just how much they can achieve when they work towards a shared goal.
Congratulations to all of our YWO musicians on an unforgettable Australian National Band Championships. You should be immensely proud of what you achieved in Brisbane this Easter 🎶🏆
The Youth Wind Orchestra took home 2nd place at the NSW State Band Championships this year!
With six bands competing in our section, it was fantastic to see such a strong field and healthy competition. We love seeing the standard of community music continue to grow, and being challenged by other talented ensembles makes these competitions all the more rewarding.
We are incredibly proud of every one of our musicians for the preparation, commitment and musicianship they brought to the stage. Well done to all members - a fantastic result and one to be proud of! 🎶🥈
Each year, the Youth Wind Orchestra is honoured to take part in the ANZAC Day March through Sydney CBD, coming together to remember and pay tribute to those who have served and sacrificed for our country.
Marching through the heart of Sydney alongside veterans, service organisations, community groups and fellow musicians is a special experience for our young musicians. It is a privilege to be part of such an important day of remembrance and reflection.
We are incredibly proud of our musicians for representing YWO with such respect, maturity and pride. Lest we forget 🇦🇺
It is with great pleasure that we announce the awarding of Life Membership of the Band Association of NSW to Mr James Brice.
JAMES BRICE, the musical director and conductor of Castle Hill RSL Youth Wind Orchestra and North West Wind Ensemble, has been awarded the prestigious 2021 Hills Citizen of the Year.
At a Hills Council Australia Day Ceremony, James was recognised for the past 16 years of exceptional work with the young and older musicians from the Hills area.
In the past 12 months, he has worked tirelessly to ensure that each of his 100 local musicians have been able to continue to play every week, despite the restrictions imposed through Covid. James carried out 73 online rehearsals with a participation rate equalling those in venue. He recorded click-track recordings for members to play along with and embarked on major recording projects that have been taken to the world stage.
James is a leader in education and community banding and the Hills area is indeed incredibly fortunate to have him as one of their own.
African Symphony – Isolation Project April May 2020
While all of our lives have become restricted as we are temporarily confined to our homes in a way we have never been before, we are witnessing some amazing musical creativity around the globe. From YouTube parodies to apartment block sing-alongs we are watching the ability of music to increase our sense of social cohesion, to convey our emotions and to keep our communities together.
Castle Hill YWO and NWWE have mobilised their members to continue to play and share music. Not only have we continued our weekly rehearsals, albeit from different homes around the Hills District, but we have also embarked on new and exciting recording projects. YWO are so proud to share our Isolation Project African Symphony which shows how hard we have continued to work and love what we do. Alongside, our North West Wind ensemble members recorded their ANZAC Day tribute with Colonel Bogey. March by Kenneth J. Alford recorded at 39 locations across Sydney. These are both available on our Facebook pages or at the YouTube links.Special thanks to Bob Wheatley of Stolen Planet Productions and Tristan Baker of BAM Studios for their audio and video editing expertise and assistance. We hope you ENJOY!
A free concert at Bella Vista Farm on November 11 will mark the Centenary of Armistice, 100 years since the guns fell silent at the end of World War I.
The multiple award-winning Castle Hill RSL Youth Wind Orchestra will be joined by some Royal Australian Army “big guns” when they perform Tchaikovsky’s ”1812 Overture”.
The famous orchestral piece was written about Russia’s defeat of Napoleon’s invading French army in 1812 and is played at major events and festivals around the world with either cannons firing or fireworks.
The free concert ends the Centenary of Armistice Day program at Bella Vista Farm on November 11 which will also feature performances by massed pipe bands, including the Castle Hill RSL Pipe Band, and a performance by the RNSW Lancers Band between 6.30pm and 8.30pm.
Congratulations to all our YWO members for your magnificent performance and results on Sunday. It was a great win! Thank you parents and family members for coming out to Penrith so early on a Sunday morning and supporting our members so enthusiastically!! We felt incredibly proud of all of you, not only musically but also for the brilliant behaviour and attitude that you displayed - representing our organisation with pride. We are also extremely grateful to have so many YWO parents and ex parents giving up their time to volunteer with the running of the event. Thank you Steve Jones, Ian Burke, David Kimpton and Jack Hwang for transporting and setting up/taking down our percussion, to Trevor Skinner, David Brierley (YWO parents from way back!) David Raciti, Tessa G, Margaret Jones and Gemma Rolph for hours and hours of behind the scenes work. We have an admirable sense of community in our organisation. Finally our BIGGEST thanks to James for his hours of commitment and dedication to our YWO members. We are so incredibly fortunate to have the best of the best leading our team.
