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nTyme Music
Programs
The North Torrance Youth Musicians Ensemble supports the following
music programs:
North Torrance
Youth Chamber Orchestra (NTYCO)
The North Torrance Youth Chamber Orchestra will make its debut during the
2008-2009 season. This group was selected after an arduous audition
process. Most of the students who participate in this group also
participate in their school music programs at Torrance middle and high
schools. Many of the students study privately with some of the finest
teachers in the South Bay and have participated in the Colburn School,
Certificate of Merit Program, Wildwood Summer Institute of Music and Arts,
Asian American Youth Orchestra, South Bay Orchestra, and All Southern
California Middle and High School Bands. The group will be performing
music at the most difficult high school level as well as classical
standards performed by professional symphonies.
 North Torrance
Youth Symphony Orchestra (NTYSO)
The North Torrance Youth Symphony Orchestra has
members ranging from eight to eighteen years old. Like all of the other
North Torrance music programs, the participants do not receive grades or
credits for their work. Their participation is purely voluntary and yet
they are held to the same academic standards as other Torrance Unified
School District activities. The instrumentation of this group includes
traditional strings, brass, woodwinds, percussion, and even classic
Japanese instruments. There are now over 60 students participating in
weekly rehearsals and performances. NTySO competed in the 2007 Forum Music
Festival's Judges Invitational competition in southern California, where
they received the "Gold" level of achievement for their performance in the
High School division. The majority of the students of the NTySO are in
elementary and middle school and, in spite of their ages, they still
received the festival's highest honor. In March of 2008, the
students embarked on a 6-day, 5-night tour of New York City. During this
tour, they performed in the morning in New York City's Central Park and
had an adjudicated performance inside of America's premier music venue,
Carnegie Hall, where they received a "Silver" rating.
 North
Torrance Jazz Band
This ensemble of musicians play a more upbeat jazz, swing, and top 40 list
of songs. Like all of the other North Torrance music programs, it is a
volunteer group. However, because of the higher difficulty of music
played, its membership is by invitation only. They perform at all of
the North area concerts as well as select other engagement. Their
style of music always draws a crowd and their musicianship and style have
pleased many audiences.
 Reed Rush Clarinet Choir
Reed Rush is a special ensemble of Clarinet musicians. They perform at
special community events like at local hospitals during the holiday
season' These very special clarinet musicians are selected to participate
in this group from the other wind ensembles in the North Torrance area.
This group plays a variety of chamber music selected by the Director who
is himself a skilled and seasoned clarinet musician. Membership in
this group is by invitation only. The student must show proficiency in
reading sheet music as well as on the clarinet. It is open to all types of
clarinets from the standard b-flat instrument to alto and bass clarinets
normally provided by their school.
 North Torrance Strings N Things
Musicians playing at least one string and one wind instrument make up this
very fluid and versatile group. In general, these musicians have been
playing for a number of years. Many of them started with the string
instrument and because of need or necessity, picked up a secondary wind
instrument to help fill the other ensembles. These performers are all
seasoned and have been with the North Torrance music programs for most of
their music careers.
 Advanced Strings
The North Torrance Youth String Orchestra is comprised of orchestral
string instruments only. These are the advanced string musicians who have
worked their way up through the program. They have likely been playing for
at least two years and have demonstrated technical proficiency as well as
artistic proficiency with their instruments. The majority of these
students are also participants in the Zero Period strings class held at
Casimir Middle School. These are students who voluntarily attend an
additional class beginning at 7:00am and who are then shuttled to their
respective schools.
Beginning/Intermediate/Advanced Band
(Wind Ensembles)
This group consists of musicians ranging from beginners to skilled
advanced players. There is a wide variety of concert instrumentation that
makes up the body of this group. There are brass instruments, woodwinds,
and percussion. The main focus of this group is concert band music. They
prepare and perform at annual concerts such as the Winter, Spring, and
Summer Concerts as well as the North Area Music Festival. Membership
in this group is open to all students who have the desire and commitment
to improve their skills.
Beginning/Intermediate Strings
 The beginners class meets weekly to learn the basics of their string
instruments. There are violins, violas, celli, and bass currently in this
group. The students are from all age groups, all the way down to the 4
year olds! There is a ton of fun to be had and a whole lot of hard
work that is put into learning the basic musical techniques and reading
music.
The intermediates class is the next step in the journey of our young
musicians. In this course the focus becomes mastery of individual music
arrangements. There is an emphasis on performance as this group begins to
work on perfecting not only playing the music but the proper techniques
for producing sound out of their instrument. Bowing, hand position,
posture, and delivery are all a part of advancing their musicianship. This
group tackles more difficult musical pieces all the while still
maintaining the fun element of being a performer and a musician.
 Mommy/Daddy & Me Violin Class
This is where it all begins. Parents and their toddler
children have an opportunity to begin their musical
journey. This class is set up to get the children exposed
to the violin and to being learning the basics of
handling the instrument. This class gives children an early exposure and
appreciation for music. It's all about fun and learning between parents
and children. This program is available to everyone who is interested.
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