Carnegie Hall

The National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America (NYO-USA)—one of Carnegie Hall’s three national youth ensembles—brings together extraordinary instrumentalists for intensive training and performances with world-class faculty and guest artists. They also tour internationally, serving as dynamic music ambassadors.

Ages: 16–19
Availability for Young Musicians: National
Season: Summer Program

NYO2—one of Carnegie Hall’s three national youth ensembles—is an intensive summer training program for outstanding young musicians. The program aims to expand the pool of musicians equipped with the tools to succeed at the highest level, particularly those from communities underserved by and underrepresented in the classical orchestral field.

Ages: 14–16
Availability for Young Musicians: National
Season: Summer Program

Gifted young jazz musicians come together as NYO Jazz—one of Carnegie Hall’s three national youth ensembles—to train with and perform alongside world-class jazz masters as well as tour internationally, sharing a uniquely American musical genre with people around the world.

Ages: 16–19
Availability for Young Musicians: National
Season: Summer Program

Professional and up-and-coming artists receive personal coaching and mentoring from world-class performers and composers who have established themselves on Carnegie Hall’s stages.

Ages: 18–35
Availability for Young Musicians: National, International
Season: School Year

This program provides future music industry leaders with essential related skills and facilitates connections with performing artists, music-industry executives, accomplished producers, songwriters, and more.

Ages: 14–22
Available for Young People: NYC
Season: School Year

Future Music Project gives young musicians from across New York City the opportunity to create, perform, and produce their own original music across all genres.

Ages: 14–19
Availability for Young Musicians: NYC
Season: School Year

Ensemble Connect is a program of Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School, and the Weill Music Institute in partnership with the New York City Department of Education. This two-year fellowship program prepares extraordinary young professional classical musicians for careers that combine musical excellence with teaching, community engagement, advocacy, entrepreneurship, and leadership.

Ages: Young Professionals
Availability for Young Musicians: NYC
Season: School Year

Dive into songwriting with Queens native and recording artist Orson Benjamin. In this three-part series, you’ll get a “Behind the Pen” look at the songwriting process as well as lessons and exercises. Enhance your songwriting with imagery, perspective, and creative lyricism.

Skills: Music-making
Topics: Songwriting, Composition, Music Production
Focus: Instruction (Participatory Course)
Time commitment: 20 minutes–2 hours

Create art with a purpose in this course for young thinkers, activists, and musicians. Led by hip-hop artists and educators Chen Lo and Asante Amin—the creative forces behind Soul Science Lab—these lessons introduce a creative process for sharing your vision to the world.

Skills: Music-making
Topics: Songwriting, Composition, Music Production
Focus: Instruction (Participatory Course)
Time commitment: 20 minutes–2 hours

Explore compositional practices with artists Mazz Swift, Clay Ross, and Sarah Elizabeth Charles as you refine your own creative process. Learn about each artist’s values and inspiration as they guide you through this online course.

Skills: Music-making
Topics: Songwriting, Composition
Focus: Instruction (Participatory Course)
Time commitment: 20 minutes–2 hours

Step inside producer and percussionist Charles Burchell’s studio in this five-part video series. Learn all about the different components of digital music production, including how to create loops, beats, basslines, melodies, and arrangements.

Skills: Music-making
Topics: Digital Media, Music Production, Composition
Focus: Instruction (Participatory Course)
Time commitment: 30 minutes–2 hours

Join songwriter and performer Bridget Barkan for this five-part video series. Learn how to craft an original song that speaks to your emotions and ideas, including how to write a chorus, bridge, and verses before putting the final touches on your composition.

Skills: Music-making
Topics: Voice, Songwriting, Composition
Focus: Instruction (Participatory Course)
Time commitment: 20 minutes–2 hours

Watch teen musicians from across New York City come together to create, perform, and produce their own musical compositions across all genres and instruments.

Skills: Music-making
Topics: Songwriting, Composition
Focus: Inspiration
Time commitment: 5 minutes

Young artists connect with fellow musicians and develop their talents with professional mentors as part of Future Music Project. Listen along to some of their musical creations in this songwriting playlist.

Skills: Music-making
Topics: Songwriting, Composition
Focus: Inspiration
Time commitment: 2–5 minutes

The ReUp is a video lesson series created by Dr. Byron Young that explores ways to incorporate meditation into music. Use tools from this series to help maintain emotional wellness, develop musical coping mechanisms, and explore the power of self-care and music.

Skills: Music-making
Topics: Wellness, Mental Health
Focus: Instruction (Participatory Course)
Time commitment: 20 minutes–2 hours

Learn creative tools to engage today’s audiences and spark joy and connection with your music through this self-paced video series for collegiate and early professional performers, featuring guidance from Ensemble Connect alums and other leaders in the field.

Skills: Instrumental
Topics: Audience Engagement, Teaching Artistry
Focus: Instruction, Inspiration
Time commitment: 5 minutes–4 Hours

Extraordinary young musicians from across the US come together each summer as part of Carnegie Hall’s national youth ensembles, where they learn from world-class faculty, explore major musical works, perform with celebrated guest artists, and much more. Watch them perform classical and jazz music in a unique online format.

Skills: Instrumental
Topics: Jazz, Orchestra
Focus: Performance
Time commitment: 5–10 minutes

Learn from peer musicians in this series of mini–master classes in which members and alums of Carnegie Hall’s national youth ensembles explore ways you can take your playing to the next level.

Skills: Instrumental
Topics: Stage Fright, Reed Making, Practice Journal, Techniques, Performance
Focus: Instruction
Time commitment: 5–10 minutes

Delve into wide-ranging master classes by top players from the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and Berliner Philharmoniker as they train the next generation of talented instrumentalists.

Skills: Instrumental
Topics: Orchestra, Strings, Woodwinds, Brass
Focus: Instruction (Master Classes)
Time commitment: 10–30 minutes

Pianists Jonathan Biss and Richard Goode provide technical tips and musical insights as they mentor young musicians in piano works by Debussy, Brahms, Beethoven, and Schubert.

Skills: Instrumental
Topics: Piano, Sonatas, Preludes, Impromptus, Klavierstücke
Focus: Instruction (Master Classes)
Time commitment: 5 minutes–1 hour

Through the initiative Fifty for the Future: The Kronos Learning Repertoire, a diverse mix of 50 composers share their works to create a new trove of resources for training young musicians. This workshop features the Ligeti, Argus, and Friction quartets, as well as other participating ensembles.

Skills: Instrumental
Topics: Strings, String Quartets, New Music
Focus: Instruction (Workshop), Inspiration
Time commitment: 5–45 minutes

Clarinetist, saxophonist, and composer Paquito D’Rivera and members of his ensemble discuss Latin jazz roots and rhythms, and the importance of communication and continued learning as a jazz artist. Workshop participants and faculty perform together in culminating concerts.

Skills: Instrumental
Topics: Jazz, Improvisation
Focus: Instruction (Workshop), Inspiration
Time commitment: 2–5 minutes

Join Ensemble Connect musicians in a series of interactive videos that introduce core musicianship skills through guided listening activities.

Topics: Articulation, Texture, Theme and Variations, Ensemble Music Making
Activities: Guided Listening, Discussion
Time commitment: 15 minutes–2 hours

World-renowned vocalists—including Joyce DiDonato and Marilyn Horne—share their insights with emerging professional singers and collaborative pianists.

Skills: Vocal
Topics: Opera, Art Songs, Song Repertoire
Focus: Instruction (Master Classes)
Time commitment: 10–40 minutes

Legendary hip-hop artist Black Thought led a master class at Carnegie Hall for rising and professional MCs. Check out these performances from their sold-out culminating concert.

Skills: Vocal
Topics: Hip-Hop
Focus: Inspiration
Time commitment: 2–5 minutes

French soprano Natalie Dessay shares her love of the recital art form and the unique challenges and opportunities it brings to singers.

Skills: Vocal
Topics: Recital, Art Songs, Debussy
Focus: Inspiration
Time commitment: 2 minutes