What we do

We want all children and young people in Yorkshire and the Humber to experience the enjoyment of music-making, and for them to develop musical skills and interest in music which may last them their whole lives.

We have excellent musicians from across the musical range; popular and folk musicians, those who are classically trained, songwriters, drummers and DJs, and many who are multi-talented. Our musicians use a variety of approaches to develop musical skills in young people – including formal techniques like Kodaly and Dalcroze, to creative, exploratory and child-led approaches.

We work with many partners – Childrens Centres, Primary and Secondary Schools, other arts and community organisations, to offer children and young people the best possible opportunities for music making and music learning.

We also train musicians, teachers and anyone who is involved in young people’s music-making - to develop their skills and improve the opportunities open to young people.

Our History

Yorkshire Youth and Music began life in 1979 as a regional branch of Youth and Music, a London-based audience development agency subsidising tickets for young people to attend live music events.  In 1991 we became independent, and our core activities changed to music-making by young people, rather than for them. We are a registered charity and regularly funded by Arts Council England.

In 1995 Yorkshire Youth and Music was a music prize-winner in the prestigious Prudential Awards for the Arts.  In 1999 we won a large scale Millennium Festival Fund Award and received the region’s largest award from the New Opportunities Fund (Out-Of-School-Hours Learning) for Sounding Out.