Join the New Zealand Youth Choir

Are you ready to step up?

We are gearing up to host live auditions between December 6-10 for the 2026-2028 cycle

Register your interest here and be notified when audition bookings go live!

 

What you need to know

Your Commitment to NZ Youth Choir: 

When we invite you as a new member, you will be asked to commit for 2026, 2027, and 2028..

2026 & 2027 will include domestic touring and concerts. Dates for 2026 will be confirmed closer to your audition time.

2028 – Will include 1 – 2 Aotearoa based courses, and culminate in an international tour.

You will also be required to work on your vocal technique and NZYC repertoire between courses.

Age

To audition for your first NZYC membership you must be between 17 and 23 years of age by 1st October 2025.

In some exceptional circumstances we may audition singers under 18 years of age. Please contact rachel@choirsnz.co.nz to discuss any eligibility queries.

 

 

How to Audition 

We are a friendly bunch of people and look forward to hearing from you. The auditions are our chance to get to know you a bit and hear your voice. We are not only looking for good choral singers but also for representatives of New Zealand.

You will be asked to sing a short excerpt, complete vocal exercises and let us know a bit about yourself in your audition.

  1. Please prepare a short piece of your own choosing. If you're not sure, you may use one of the pieces below.

 

 

Cost

There is no fee to take part in the auditions.

 

There is an annual membership fee that goes towards the costs associated with running the choir’s domestic courses. The costs include travel and accommodation, venue hires, concert marketing and ticketing, tutor fees and music purchases just to name a few. The membership fees do not cover the entire costs associated with any one of our courses. The shortfall in costs we source through funding, sponsorship, donations and ticket sales.

Please note that international touring years will involve a larger singer contribution to costs.

Scholarships

You are invited to consider applying for one of the two scholarships available to support paying the membership fees; the Ben Campbell Memorial Scholarship (financial hardship) and Professor Peter Godfrey Scholarship (for singer who is also an organist or conductor).

Scholarships will open in early 2026 and application information will be sent to all choir members

Why should singers audition for NZ Youth Choir?

Hear it from the members of the last NZ Youth Choir:

"NZYC has been one of the most amazing, life changing and influential experiences and I would recommend it to anyone" 

"You will grow as a musician and as a person"

"It is a wonderful experience and nothing like any choir they will have sung in before."

"NZYC is a whanau, and it is an honour to be a part of it. "

"Because there's no other choir quite like NZYC, you have amazing experiences, create lasting friendships and have the privilege to create high quality choral music that really moves people."

"It's an incredible experience, not only for your musicianship, but it's also so much fun"

"Great time, meet awesome people, have lots of fun with great music."

"Because there is nothing else like it!"

"It's an experience of a lifetime"

"You never know what you can achieve until you give it a go, and the possibilities with NZYC are endless."

You might also be interested in...

VOICES New Zealand, the country's premiere national choir is also currently taking applications for their next intake of singers.

"If you share our love for great choral singing and are passionate about working professionally with a group of like-minded singers on exciting repertoire, exploring the next level of choral singing and reaching the heights of choral excellence, VOICES is for you."

To find out more, click here.