American youth symphony

The American Youth Symphony (AYS) is an orchestra based in Los Angeles, California, which was founded in 1964. The mission of AYS is to:

"The American Youth Symphony's mission is to inspire the future of a timeless art form by sharing exceptional, innovative concerts based on our landmark training of musicians ages 15-27. The orchestra provides paid fellowships to 100 musicians who represent extraordinary talent from all over the world. We present free concerts, creating an opportunity for everyone to experience the joy, beauty and exuberance of remarkable orchestral performances."

Jim Svejda, music commentator for KUSC, has described AYS as "the finest youth symphony on Earth."

Currently, Carlos Izcaray and Juan Felipe Molano act as music director and resident conductor of AYS respectively.

AYS was founded in 1964 by conductor Mehli Mehta (father of Zubin Mehta and Zarin Mehta), then Director of the Orchestra Department at UCLA. Mehta led AYS for 33 seasons, retiring at age 90. Of his reasons for founding AYS, Mehta said:

"It takes a lifetime to learn symphonic literature... When they leave the American Youth Symphony they will have performed all the symphonies of Beethoven, Brahms, Tchaikovsky and Dvořák, plus the last six symphonies of Mozart, five of Mahler, two of Bruckner and all the Strauss tone poems. To be a musician, you must know these things."

During the 2013/14 season, AYS was composed of 108 musicians from 26 schools. Training with AYS is tuition-free, and acceptance is competitive. Each season, 250-300 applicants audition to fill an average of 30 open positions.

Composer and violinist David Newman (an alumnus of AYS), said of the training:

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