A group of people sitting in chairs playing music.

Atlanta Festival Youth Orchestra

FALL 2025 CONCERT ON NOVEMBER 22, 2025 at 4PM!

The Atlanta Festival Academy is excited to welcome the 2025–2026 season of the Atlanta Festival Youth Orchestra, under the direction of conductor Jeremy Woolstenhulme.

The Atlanta Festival Youth Orchestra offers elementary and middle school string players a unique opportunity to perform in a high-quality, large ensemble from an early age. Designed especially for students who may not yet have a school orchestra, the program provides a fun and supportive environment to learn from a conductor while playing alongside a variety of instruments.

Participation is open to students from 1st through 8th grade in the Metro Atlanta area and beyond, with rehearsals and performances held in North Fulton County. Admission is by audition.

For the 2025–2026 season, all rehearsals and concerts—unless otherwise noted—will be held at Northview High School.

Click here for map of student drop-off and parking locations.

Rehearsals are scheduled for Tuesday evenings from 6:00–7:45 PM.* 

*Times subject to change
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AFYO SPRING 2024 CONCERT VIDEO

Audition Information

If you are interested to audition, please email Ensembles@AtlantaFestivalAcademy.org. Below are the audition requirements.

Scales

  • Violin: G major scale, 2 or 3 octave, separate bow
  • Viola: C major scale, 2 or 3 octave, separate bow
  • Cello: C major scale, 2 or 3 octave, separate bow
  • Bass: G major scale, 1 or 2 octave, separate bow

Prepared Repertoire

Students should prepare 3-5 minutes of music of their choice, including a technical (fast) excerpt and a lyrical (slow) excerpt. Sight-reading will also be included during the audition.

APPLY HERE!

Tuition

The non-refundable annual tuition for the AFYO is $750.00 is due on August 31, 2025. 

Atlanta Festival Academy Programs

  • Atlanta Festival Academy Summer Music Camp (founded in 2019)
  • Atlanta Festival Academy Solo Competition (founded in 2020)        
  • Virtual Masterclass Series (founded in 2020)
  • Atlanta Festival Academy Chamber Music Camp (founded in 2021)
  • Atlanta Festival Chamber Orchestra (founded in 2021) 
  • Atlanta Festival Junior Orchestra (starting in 2023)
A group of people in yellow shirts holding their instruments.
A logo of the fulton county tree.
Major funding for this program is provided by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners.
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This program is supported in part by Georgia Council for the Arts through the appropriations of the Georgia General Assembly. Georgia Council for the Arts also receives support from its partner agency – the National Endowment for the Arts.