Membership: Membership to YYSO and YES! is open to youth ages 8 to 21 who have met the musical technical requirements for participation. Currently, we have students from 16 schools throughout the Valley in our program.
Tuition: Tuition for YYSO is $400 per year ($200 per semester). Tuition for YES! is $300 per year ($150 per semester). Tuition is payable in full at the beginning of each season, or may be paid in two installments for fall and spring semesters. Financial assistance may be available. Please inquire through the form on the Contact Us page to learn more.
Auditions: Prior to each season, the YYSO and YES! hold formal auditions.
Fall Auditions: Occur in August and September. Please check the Calendar for details.
Winter/Spring Auditions: Occur in January. Please check the Calendar for details.
Mid-cycle Interest: Students may join YES! at any time. Depending on timing, students may join YYSO mid-cycle. Please contact us through the form on the Contact Us page.
Handbook and Forms: Our policies and procedures are in the Parent & Student Handbook. Once accepted into YES! or YYSO, students must submit an Enrollment Form and Commitment Form, along with a tuition payment. The YYSO and YES! are committed to ensuring participation of as many qualified students in our Valley as possible. We provide financial assistance as we are able and actively seek the support of the Yakima community in this important work. If you are a community member or organization who would like to help us in this area, specifically, please contact us through the form on the Contact Us page. We will be very grateful for your support!
Safety Note for Families – Weather & Travel: If we have severe weather conditions, YES! and YYSO rehearsals may be canceled. In this rare event, we will send out an email and otherwise attempt to notify everyone as soon as the decision has been made by our conductors. However, we also urge you to make the best decision for your family. Our musicians travel from all over the Valley and road and weather conditions vary from place to place. If you and/or your teen driver are uncomfortable driving due to the road conditions and/or the weather, then you should stay home and notify your conductor of the reason when it is convenient to do so. While attendance at rehearsals is a critical part of membership in YYSO/YES!, the safety of our children and families is paramount.