Auditions
NPYJO audition registration for the 2025-26 season is now open.
The NPYJO accepts students between the ages of 12 and 17. For additional information, please email YouthJazzOrchestra@artisnaples.org.
Audition Materials
Blues Improvisation
Students will be asked to improvise over a medium tempo concert blues:
- Trombone, piano, guitar, bass, vibraphone: B-Flat blues
- Trumpet and tenor saxophone: C blues
- Alto and baritone saxophones: G blues
Solo Piece
Students should prepare a solo piece of choice. Examples include:
- Play the melody and/or improvise on a standard tune
- Play the melody and/or improvise on a jazz original
- Play the melody on a ballad
- Play a solo transcription
- Play a jazz etude
Rhythm Section Addendum (piano, guitar, bass, drums):
- Piano and guitar students who are able will be asked to comp and create their own voicings from chord changes (not required for acceptance)
- Bass students who are able will be asked to walk and create a bass line from chord changes (not required for acceptance)
- Drums are asked to demonstrate swing and Latin styles (bossa nova and Afro-Cuban)
Rehearsals
The Naples Philharmonic Youth Jazz Orchestra normally rehearses on Wednesday from 4-7pm.
Tuition
Annual tuition for the Naples Philharmonic Youth Jazz Orchestra is $350. Some scholarships are available.
Pay student tuition
The Naples Philharmonic Youth Jazz Orchestra (NPYJO) celebrates its 11th year in 2025-26. Nearly 25 students from Lee and Collier counties participate in the NPYJO each season, where they learn jazz techniques and styles in a big band setting.
The NPYJO is an educational ensemble that has grown out of the success of the Naples Philharmonic Jazz Orchestra and the All That Jazz series. The NPYJO studies the repertoire and arrangements of jazz greats such as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Horace Silver, Thelonious Monk and Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers.
Brandon Robertson
Naples Philharmonic Youth Jazz Orchestra Director
Excused absence request
Pay student tuition
Concerts
The Naples Philharmonic Youth Jazz Orchestra performs each season on the Artis—Naples Kimberly K. Querrey and Louis A. Simpson Cultural Campus.
2024-25 Season
Concert Performances:
Spring Concert
May 18, 2025 • 7pm
Concerts for the 2025-26 season will be announced this summer.