County-Wide Opportunities
Buckinghamshire County Ensembles 2024/25 Season
County Group applications for 2024/25 are now closed.
If you still want to apply please email Paul Guenault on bmeh@bucksmusic.org
The Buckinghamshire County Groups exist to provide access to high level repertoire working with the best young musicians in the county. Our programmes will also include some partnership and masterclass opportunities with established professional musicians.
We recognise that at this level, many young people are pursuing music seriously and so the schedules for these groups are designed such that you can participate in more than one group should you wish.
All groups are open to any young person up to the age of 22 of the required standard. Applications are considered for anyone currently or previously resident or at school in Buckinghamshire and from any adjacent area where similar provision is not available. We are also happy to welcome university students who wish to return to Bucks to take part.
The 2024-25 programme will include a 5 day tour to Northern Spain for each group.
The Buckinghamshire County Groups perform at major venues and festivals in the UK and Europe, including most recently St John's Smith Square in 2024. They will have a residential in Northern Spain in the Summer of 2025 and have previously toured in Belgium, Jersey, Prague, Budapest and Iceland.
Buckinghamshire County Youth Orchestra (BCYO)

Musical Director: Tom Horn
Orchestral Manager: Melinda Priestley
Manager: Carolyn Sewell
Comprising the county's finest young orchestral musicians, BCYO has earned a reputation for exciting, high quality performances. Each season, the ensemble tackles challenging orchestral repertoire with performance opportunities not only in Bucks, but also at prestigious venues in the UK and abroad. Under the expert guidance of conductor Tom Horn, members are also supported by professional tutors who will challenge them to achieve their highest standards in playing. In the coming season, the orchestra will undertake a tour to Northern Spain.
Tom Horn developed his pasion while studying Music with Acoustics at Southampton University. He trained with notable conductors like Peter Stark, Peter Ash, Toby Purser, and Robin Browning.
Tom has worked with various Youth and Amateur Orchestras in the South of England, collaborating with renowned musicians including Nicola Benedeti, David Owen Norris, and Sir Mark Elder. Curently, he serves as the Musical Director for multiple ensembles, including the Buckinghamshire County Youth Orchestra, Pelly Concert Orchestra, Marlow Orchestra, Aylesbury and Slough Youth Orchestras. Additionally, he is involved with the Haslemere Music Society and founded the Charity Symphony Orchestra.
Buckinghamshire Youth Wind Ensemble (BYWE)

Musical Director: Ed Hodgson
Orchestral Manager: Fay Hayhurst
The high levels of musicianship in this ensemble means that it produces performances of exceptional quality, playing repertoire designed to challenge each player and provide them with a unique chamber ensemble experience.
Ed Hodgson studied the French horn and conducting the Guildhall School of Music and then followed it with a postgraduate course at the Royal Academy of Music. Since then he has enjoyed a varied musical career performing with orchestras including the BBC Concert Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Istanbul Philharmonic, Cyprus Symphony Orchestra and Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra . His West End experience includes playing in shows such as Oliver!, Wicked, Les Miserables, Gypsy, Miss Saigon, Kiss Me Kate and Warhorse, and has been a conductor on Mack and Mabel with Michael Ball, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Sinatra, Mary Poppins UK tours and has conducted the BBC National Orchestra of Wales brass ensemble for their series of recordings during lockdown. He can be heard playing on the soundtrack of Doctor Who, Hidden Kingdom, Atlantis and Crimewatch!
Bucks County Youth Choir (BCYC)

Musical Director: Edwin Pitt Mansfield
Manager: Karen Wallace
BCYC is an auditioned choir for experienced young singers and musicians who enjoy learning and performing a variety of music to a high standard. It is a county-wide ensemble performing mixed, choral repertoire in a friendly and supportive environment whilst building key choral singing skills. The 2024/25 season will feature an eclectic range of music, ranging from Baroque to Contemporary in genre and spanning different languages.
Edwin Pitt-Mansfield is an educator, performer and musical director based in London. As a Baritone, he has sung for opera companies, choirs and choruses throughout the UK and France. Edwin has established a reputation as a leading teacher of young voices and gifted teenagers. He is a member of the vocal faculty at Tring Park School for the Performing Arts and deputy vocal teacher at the Royal College of Music's Junior Department having previously taught at the Royal Ballet School and Stowe School. He is an examiner for Trinity College and Chair of the Association of Teachers of Singing (2022-24). As an educator he leads workshops, teacher training days, presents at conferences throughout the UK on the topic of male voice change and is a regular contributor to the UK magazine Music Teacher. Edwin is Musical Director of the Buckinghamshire County Youth Choir and Aylesbury Consort of Voices.
Bucks Youth Jazz Collective (BYJC)

Musical Director: Ralph Wyld
Manager: Fay Hayhurst
The central ethos of this new and exciting group is improvisation, with the majority of time spent working in small groups on interaction, listening and leadership and will include opportunities to work with established players. In addition to preparing for performances, there is a strong emphasis on process, ensuring our young jazz musicians have the skills to play in and lead jazz ensembles, and preparing them for further studies.
Award-winning vibraphonist and composer Ralph Wyld is making his name playing original, contemporary music with artists such as Yazz Ahmed and Stan Sulzmann. He has performed at venues and festivals across five continents, and released an album on Edition Records described as an "outstanding debut" by MOJO magazine. As well as directing BYJC, Ralph is a tutor for the National Youth Jazz Orchestra, and is a Licentiate of the Royal Academy of Music in jazz education.
Programme of events:

NORTHERN SPAIN RESIDENTIAL
Saturday 19th - 23rd July 2025
The dates above are firm and must be fully committed to, except in exceptional circumstances. As most members are in their upper school years, the summer term schedules ensure that they do not interfere with exam preparation.
Rehearsal locations with timings will be sent out to all members at the start of the season. All rehearsals are full days and exact times will be sent to members at the start of the season.
Members should be aware that other performance and masterclass opportunities may arise during the year, and we will give as much notice as possible for these.
How to Apply
All prospective and existing applicants must complete an application form.
Applications for all groups close on Sunday 7th July.
BCYO & BYWE
Open to players at Grade 6 level or above on their instrument. We will always consider applications from students working towards Grade 6 with the support and recommendation of their teacher and then assess their suitability at audition.
BCYC
Open to any singer who is Grade 6 and above. We will always consider applications from students working towards Grade 6 with the support and recommendation of their teacher. We welcome and encourage applications from instrumentalists who have an interest in singing and wish to sing in a high level choir.
BYJC
Open to players of any instrument with some experience and a passion for jazz and improvisation. They should be of a standard to play in a senior band or orchestra and most importantly be passionate about improving their skills and challenging themselves to improve.
Auditions
All new applicants are required to audition. These will be held in person in July - see dates below. You will be required to play a short piece (accompaniment not required) and do some sight reading. If you are applying for two groups as an instrumentalist we will try and facilitate one audition for all of your applications (excluding BYJC). If we are oversubscribed in a particular section we reserve the right to re-audition existing members (after auditioning new applicants) to ensure a balanced section. This audition would ideally be in person but could be via Zoom or video entry. If, by the start of the season, there are still spaces in a section we will consider late applications.
Applications close on Sunday 7th July 2024
All applicants must be under 22 years old on 1st September 2024
Audition Dates
BCYO & BYWE - 20th or 21st July
BYCYC - 22nd or 23rd July
BYJC - 29th or 30th July
Membership Fees:
1 group | £890 |
2 or more groups | £950 |
- Fees include all elements of the programme, including the full cost of residentials
- Subsidies are available for students eligible for FSM (50%) and siblings (20%)
- Payment plans can be arranged to spread the cost across the year
Access to all senior county groups is driven by ability and opportunity. We want all eligible and committed young musicians to be able to take part. If the cost presents a challenge, please contact the Director of Music at BMT for a confidential discussion via director@bucksmusic.org
Further Information
Please send any questions for the Group Managers
BCYO - Melinda Priestley - mpr@bucksmusic.org
BYWE & BYJC - Fay Hayhurst - fhayhurst@bucksmusic.org
BCYC - Karen Wallace - kwallace@bucksmusic.org
Joining any of the senior groups requires the commitment to attend all the dates listed above.
Do not send any payment now – once registered you will be contacted to agree your payment plan.
Student Leadership Programme
BMT is keen to promote meaningful leadership opportunities for young people. This programme will provide excellent young musicians in the county the opportunity to achieve ArtsAward at Bronze, Silver or Gold level, which are comparable awards to GCSE and A-Level qualifications. For more information, please visit www.artsaward.co.uk.

To apply for the Student Leadership programme, students will need to complete a formal application and be willing to make a significant contribution to music-making in the county.