Bearsden and Milngavie Youth Orchestra is a youth orchestra for children aged 8 – 18. We have four sections, currently best described as friendly ensembles: String Orchestra, Wind Band, Concert Orchestra and Symphony Orchestra.
We aim to complement the other styles of orchestra by providing above all a friendly environment, where players learn to enjoy playing in an orchestra. We also provide opportunities for solos and for small groups to perform in settings where they will not feel intimidated.
BMYO can trace its history back to 1969, when the Milngavie Symphony Orchestra was founded by Andrew Thomson for adult players. It became the Milngavie Orchestral Society in 1974. A junior section was founded in 1975 by Anna Moffat, a local violin teacher, and the two orchestras became part of the Bearsden and Milngavie Arts Guild.n
BMYO was run very informally in its early days but this has had to change with the times and there is now a committee. A formal constitution was adopted in 1999 and BMYO became a Scottish charity in 2004. We have also joined Making Music, the National Federation of Music Societies. Most orchestras for children are either run by local authorities, such as East Dunbartonshire, or are national bodies, such as the National Youth Orchestras of Scotland. BMYO is most unusual in being independent. The Helensburgh Saturday Orchestra is the nearest similar organisation that we know of (its conductor is Yvonne Hall, a former member of BMYO).