The National Youth Orchestra of Catalonia (JONC) was founded in September 1993 and was first named Jove Orquestra Simfònica de Catalunya (JOSC). It was in the year 1999 when it actually got its current name, JONC. Josep Pons conducted the orchestra from its very inception until 2001, when Manel Valdivieso took over from Pons as JONC’s Artistic director.
In 1999 the JONC Foundation was created in order to manage the increasing number of projects that were taking place within the orchestra. The Foundations patronage is comprised of several representatives from Catalonia’s musical, cultural and political life and the President of the Catalan Government is its Honorific President.
Since its creation, JONC’s goals have been to facilitate a complete orchestral training for the Catalan young musicians, to collaborate actively in finding them work and to foment attract new audiences.
All this initiatives are realized in the context of intensive work stages, lectures, conferences, concerts, TV and radio programs, educational materials edition intended for different target audiences, and others.
There are three different orchestras within the National Youth Orchestra of Catalonia Foundation:
The JONC Alevins is compound of young musicians up to 18 years old. Its goal is to provide these musicians with high level orchestral training.
The JONC admits musicians up to 25 years old and its main goal is to provide an integral orchestral training.
The JONC Filharmonia fulfills JONC’s artistic and pedagogic aims by means of productions at professional level. Its target is to provide post academic training and integrate the musicians in their professional life.
JONC orchestras have participated in the most important Catalan festivals and performed in the best Catalan concert halls under the expert advice of conductors such as Josep Pons, Guy van Waas, Ernest Martínez-Izquierdo, Jordi Mora, Manel Valdivieso, Barry Sargent, Jan Caeyers, Robert King, Paul Goodwin, Andrew Parrott, Antoni Ros-Marbà, Lutz Köhler, Salvador Mas, Edmon Colomer and Karl Anton Rickenbacher.
