The goals of the Oakville Symphony’s Youth Program are:
- To support the development of young musicians in the Halton area
- To find and develop new players for the orchestra
- To encourage cultural diversity in the youth of the community
The purpose of the DE CLARA YOUNG ARTIST AWARD is to stimulate the interest of young people by creating opportunities for them to develop their skills by playing with the orchestra. In turn, their participation helps the orchestra to achieve its objective of continuous improvement of the symphonic sound. The award was re-named the De Clara Young Artist Award to acknowledge former Music Director Roberto De Clara’s dedication to encouraging young musicians during his 24-year leadership of the Oakville Symphony. (Apply here.)
Each student receives a bursary of $1,500 (see sponsorship page).
The YOUNG ARTISTS for the 2022-2023 season
The KENNETH HOLLIER AWARD
Named in honour of the orchestra’s founding musical director, the Kenneth Hollier Award was introduced in the year 2000 to recognize promising young artists. It is available to string players and non-string players in alternate years, and comes with a bursary of $500. (Apply here.) Congratulations to the 2022-2023 winner: Qiyue He, violin.
The DEVELOPING ARTIST AWARDS
The Developing Artist Awards were introduced to recognize the talents of other competitors for the Kenneth Hollier Award. They are given at the discretion of the judges. Congratulations to the 2022-2023 winner: Matthew Buczkoski, cello.