Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sorry to hijack, but have any of your kids gone to Interlochen camp in the summer? My DC wants to apply for French horn, just wondering how competitive it is for middle school.

Its supposed to be very competitive but its insanely expensive which is why we'd never do it.

My kid has— if your kid plays in one of the orchestras discussed here, they shouldn’t have a problem getting in.

Anonymous wrote:Our teacher told us that a couple of decades ago MCYO was run by a married couple that divorced and the other started PVYO. Clearly there are enough musicians to support multiple orchestras which is a wonderful thing!

Hmm... I doubt that. It's true that two male MCYO conductors left for PVYO in 2013.

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Anonymous wrote:Same here! We are trying to decide between DCYO and PVYO where we’ve been the last two years.

Which PVYO group? My son played in most of them (+MCYO later on); I might be able to give you a sense.

Generally speaking, PVYO is higher level than DCYO. But it might depend on the specific orchestra.

DP. How does PVYO compare with MCYO?

PVYO is a level down from MCYO.

Several levels down.

According to my child’s violin teachers, they are equivalent levels, but PVYO is less snobby. (Still waiting to hear back from both, but she encourages her students to go with PVYO, clearly.)

Then they don't know what they're talking about, or they're trying to be nice. If your kid is serious about their instrument and seeks more challenge, you might want to change teachers - they're not doing your kid any favors.

+1

Objectively untrue.

+2, we had to change teachers as the focus was very different. We use someone affiliated with the orchestra who plays professionally. We loved our previous instructor but it was very different. Our child thrived with someone much more strict, structured and really focused on technique. MCYO provides a list of instructors but their milage varies so ask your conductor for suggestions.

MCYO does not sound enjoyable at all. Making your kid switch from a teacher they loved to one who is really strict and structured is definitely not something I would do in order to maximize chances in a particular orchestra.

Not PP you were talking to, but my kid hates it when instruction is not excellent. They want the best teacher, and I got them a wonderful private teacher: the fact that years of top-notch musical instruction gets my child in the first chairs of their MCYO section every year is almost besides the point - almost, because my kid loves MCYO. It's easy and fun for them. The boys and girls that sit besides her are really nice, and they get along great, and laugh and giggle during rehearsal.

There is this racially-tinged perception on DCUM that "MCYO=not fun and competitive", but my kid views it as a moment of fun relaxation with friends. She does WAY HARDER THINGS with her private teacher.

If your perception is that your child needs to struggle to get into their MCYO orchestra and that it's all hard work and no fun, the truth is that they're not quite at the right level. So either they're motivated to get better at their instrument to have a better experience in MCYO, or they can try to enter another youth orchestra and have fun there.

Because it's about the fun!

Our teacher told us that a couple of decades ago MCYO was run by a married couple that divorced and the other started PVYO. Clearly there are enough musicians to support multiple orchestras which is a wonderful thing!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Same here! We are trying to decide between DCYO and PVYO where we’ve been the last two years.

Which PVYO group? My son played in most of them (+MCYO later on); I might be able to give you a sense.

Generally speaking, PVYO is higher level than DCYO. But it might depend on the specific orchestra.

DP. How does PVYO compare with MCYO?

PVYO is a level down from MCYO.

Several levels down.

According to my child’s violin teachers, they are equivalent levels, but PVYO is less snobby. (Still waiting to hear back from both, but she encourages her students to go with PVYO, clearly.)

Then they don't know what they're talking about, or they're trying to be nice. If your kid is serious about their instrument and seeks more challenge, you might want to change teachers - they're not doing your kid any favors.

+1

Objectively untrue.

+2, we had to change teachers as the focus was very different. We use someone affiliated with the orchestra who plays professionally. We loved our previous instructor but it was very different. Our child thrived with someone much more strict, structured and really focused on technique. MCYO provides a list of instructors but their milage varies so ask your conductor for suggestions.

MCYO does not sound enjoyable at all. Making your kid switch from a teacher they loved to one who is really strict and structured is definitely not something I would do in order to maximize chances in a particular orchestra.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Same here! We are trying to decide between DCYO and PVYO where we’ve been the last two years.

Which PVYO group? My son played in most of them (+MCYO later on); I might be able to give you a sense.

Generally speaking, PVYO is higher level than DCYO. But it might depend on the specific orchestra.

DP. How does PVYO compare with MCYO?

PVYO is a level down from MCYO.

Several levels down.

According to my child’s violin teachers, they are equivalent levels, but PVYO is less snobby. (Still waiting to hear back from both, but she encourages her students to go with PVYO, clearly.)

Then they don't know what they're talking about, or they're trying to be nice. If your kid is serious about their instrument and seeks more challenge, you might want to change teachers - they're not doing your kid any favors.

+1

Objectively untrue.

+2, we had to change teachers as the focus was very different. We use someone affiliated with the orchestra who plays professionally. We loved our previous instructor but it was very different. Our child thrived with someone much more strict, structured and really focused on technique. MCYO provides a list of instructors but their milage varies so ask your conductor for suggestions.

Anonymous wrote:Sorry to hijack, but have any of your kids gone to Interlochen camp in the summer? My DC wants to apply for French horn, just wondering how competitive it is for middle school.

Its supposed to be very competitive but its insanely expensive which is why we'd never do it.

Sorry to hijack, but have any of your kids gone to Interlochen camp in the summer? My DC wants to apply for French horn, just wondering how competitive it is for middle school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone heard yet from either orchestra (MCYO or PVYO)?

Not yet for my wind player. MCYO says that they will send results by the end of the day tomorrow. PVYO did not provide a timeframe to my knowledge - I hope they send results soon!

PVYO’s website says results will be emailed “by September 1.”

Thanks! I had missed that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Same here! We are trying to decide between DCYO and PVYO where we’ve been the last two years.

Which PVYO group? My son played in most of them (+MCYO later on); I might be able to give you a sense.

Generally speaking, PVYO is higher level than DCYO. But it might depend on the specific orchestra.

DP. How does PVYO compare with MCYO?

PVYO is a level down from MCYO.

Several levels down.

According to my child’s violin teachers, they are equivalent levels, but PVYO is less snobby. (Still waiting to hear back from both, but she encourages her students to go with PVYO, clearly.)

Then they don't know what they're talking about, or they're trying to be nice. If your kid is serious about their instrument and seeks more challenge, you might want to change teachers - they're not doing your kid any favors.

+1

Objectively untrue.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone heard yet from either orchestra (MCYO or PVYO)?

Not yet for my wind player. MCYO says that they will send results by the end of the day tomorrow. PVYO did not provide a timeframe to my knowledge - I hope they send results soon!

PVYO’s website says results will be emailed “by September 1.”

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone heard yet from either orchestra (MCYO or PVYO)?

Not yet for my wind player. MCYO says that they will send results by the end of the day tomorrow. PVYO did not provide a timeframe to my knowledge - I hope they send results soon!

Has anyone heard yet from either orchestra (MCYO or PVYO)?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can those in the know speak more about PVYO? My kid just auditioned (she's in 6th) - waiting on results

Did she audition for both MCYO and PVYO? Honestly, at this age, any half way decent program is going to be beneficial. My daughter, who is good at her instrument, deliberately chooses to audition for a "lesser" youth orchestra. The primary reason for it was to avoid a toxic environment, and cutthroat competition, but she has really enjoyed her experience here. She has consistently auditioned with more difficult material than she would at the better regarded one, has progressed nicely through the ranks, played more difficult repertoire in orchestra than she has had to in her lessons, and because she is a young kid in an orchestra full of older kids, is called a prodigy (she's not; she knows she's not), which has helped a bit with her self confidence. Bonus points for making high school friends, which will help her out when she gets into high school.

At some point, she may audition for the highest level orchestras in the better regarded one, but that will only happen because she feels like she has learned all that she can in her current orchestra.

She only auditioned for PVYO. She's not a competitive kid but she really likes playing with other people. She did a lesser known orchestra (upcounty) and it was too easy. Looking for a bit more challenge with little stress. She practices daily but only 30 mins, which I hear is nothing close to the expectation at mcyo.

PVYO sound perfect for her. Definitely enough of a challenge without a lot of stress.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can those in the know speak more about PVYO? My kid just auditioned (she's in 6th) - waiting on results

Did she audition for both MCYO and PVYO? Honestly, at this age, any half way decent program is going to be beneficial. My daughter, who is good at her instrument, deliberately chooses to audition for a "lesser" youth orchestra. The primary reason for it was to avoid a toxic environment, and cutthroat competition, but she has really enjoyed her experience here. She has consistently auditioned with more difficult material than she would at the better regarded one, has progressed nicely through the ranks, played more difficult repertoire in orchestra than she has had to in her lessons, and because she is a young kid in an orchestra full of older kids, is called a prodigy (she's not; she knows she's not), which has helped a bit with her self confidence. Bonus points for making high school friends, which will help her out when she gets into high school.

At some point, she may audition for the highest level orchestras in the better regarded one, but that will only happen because she feels like she has learned all that she can in her current orchestra.

She only auditioned for PVYO. She's not a competitive kid but she really likes playing with other people. She did a lesser known orchestra (upcounty) and it was too easy. Looking for a bit more challenge with little stress. She practices daily but only 30 mins, which I hear is nothing close to the expectation at mcyo.

DP here who came to say that my kid is hoping for PVYO too, though she also auditioned for MCYO and DCYOP. Fingers crossed for both our kids!