IAYO Youth Sub-Committee 2024

On Sunday, 25 February, the IAYO Youth Sub-Committee met on Zoom for the first meeting of the year. At this meeting, the committee agreed on the terms for the group and also started planning for their engagement with The Arts Council of Ireland’s #ShowUP campaign. This social media campaign is aiming to increase the attendance of 18-24 years olds at arts and creative events. This is a theme that also emerged during our own consultations with young youth orchestra members so it would seem fitting for us to delve into this topic. 

Below we provide a brief overview of the committee and its work. 

What is the IAYO Youth Sub-Committee? 

The Youth Sub-Committee is an official sub-committee of the IAYO board and as such has a direct to the board. It is made up of young people aged 16- 24 years of age from all over Ireland. Currently there is space for 4 new members, details on how to apply are included below. 

What do the Sub-Committee do? 

The Youth Sub-Committee aim to share their views, opinions and experiences with each other, the IAYO board and the wider community; gather and represent the views, opinions and experiences of other young people in youth orchestras; work together to develop initiatives to improve aspects of young musicians’ lives and to provide feedback and suggestions to the decision-makers within IAYO. 

How do the Sub-Committee work together? 

The sub-committee meet virtually at least once a month. Through the use of the Zoom platform, young people are enabled to join in regardless of their location. They will, however, endeavour to meet in-person during the year and IAYO would hope to be able to support young people to access these in-person sessions. Over the coming months the committee will be making use of various tools to help the collaborative work of the group. At the moment great use is made of online surveys and questionnaires. The Sub-Committee will also explore the potential use of Padlets (a collaborative web platform in which users can upload, and share content to virtual bulletin boards), shared documents and WhatsApp messaging.  

How can young people get involved? 

Potential members should be aged 16-24, have played with a youth orchestra or attended an IAYO course or festival at any stage and have a general interest in exploring young people’s roles in decision-making. It is the intention to have as wide a range of experiences as possible represented on the committee. There is no minimum playing standard required and those who no longer play with a youth orchestra are also welcome to join.

Young people interested in joining the Youth Committee or who would like to find out more about it can contact Rachel, the IAYO Youth Participation Officer at rachel@iayo.ie or 089 488 2626.