Dream opportunity for local musicians as Greater Victoria Youth Orchestra makes Nelson stop
By Brendan Quinn
The Greater Victoria Youth Orchestra (GVYO) is making a BC Interior stop by Nelson on Friday to play with some local musicians from L.V. Rogers and Trafalgar secondary schools.
The event is a big chance for local, up-and-coming young musicians to expand their skills and musical talents by playing with the highly acclaimed youth group.
Students like Kelly Vrugteveen, in Grade 12 at L.V. Rogers and first chair trumpet, are particularly thrilled to play new music with new people.
“I’m really excited for the GVYO to come, because it’s not the first time we’re doing a combined band performance,” Vrugteveen during practice at LVR.
“We tried to do it with Trafalgar, and that went okay, and we’ve done it with A.L. Fortune — a school from Armstrong —a nd it’s had a really great effect on all of us. We get to meet new people, and see what other schools are doing.”
Vrugteveen said that other schools focus on areas that her program doesn’t, and vice versa, and it’s great to exchange these styles and play something different than what she’s used to playing.
“With the A.L. Fortune band, they came up to us and said ‘you play such awesome music, we only play marches’, and where I’m sitting it’s like ‘we do a lot of movie themes,’ which is really exciting to me but [they] get to do classical music and marches, which I’d like to do. It’s interesting to see other people who are the same age but in a different area learning the same thing but different. I just love it.”
Tim Bullen, a music teacher at LVR, is also looking forward to the event, especially Thursday when his students get to meet and rehearse with the GVYO before the big night.
“We’re hosting them for a few days and they’re going to be touring about and playing and performing throughout the area,” Bullen explained.
“On Thursday these kids that are in the band room will be rehearsing with them for a little while, we’re going to have a bbq and do some combined pieces on Friday night when there will be a big performance in the gym,” he said.
The Greater Victoria Youth Orchestra: 30th Anniversary Tour happens Friday (May 6th) 7:30 pm, at L.V. Rogers Secondary School, Gymnasium and the doors will open at 7 p.m.
Tickets are available at Otter Books, Eddy Music & LVR office for $10/ticket or $30/Family of four.
The GVYO is also performing in Kimberley and Fort Langley.
Those in love with music, this is a performance people will not want to miss.
