Welcome to SBYMA
Santa Barbara Youth Music Academy is an energetic academic environment that provide a full musical experience to youth in a fun, safe and ever-changing framework of musical styles and performance venues. We utilize tailored teaching and performance models that naturally unite Santa Barbara youth from all cultures and backgrounds in an environment that ignites a desire to learn. We are a group of musicians, teachers, mentors and engaged parental and community volunteers that encourage every child to focus on their own value and untapped potential through music. We prepare our students with an opportunity to develop skills that will help them successfully pursue and play music in college and throughout life.
The collaborative skills of working with other youth musically, under the direction and mentoring of experienced, caring but firm musical professionals provides the discipline. Playing in a band in front of live local audiences with as many as 400 in attendence provides the incentive.
Young Musicians Scholarship Fund
The Santa Barbara Youth Music Academy Young Musicians Scholarship Fund is structured. SBYMA would like to offer scholarships to students whose families are experiencing financial hardship. in order to do this, we are seeking support from the community.
By simply performing with our youth bands in public, SBYMA places students on a waiting list for financial assistance. These are kids that are extremely motivated, some perhaps gifted musicians, yet they are unable to attend SBYMA because they can’t afford it.
For a student to participate in our core performance band program, it costs roughly $160.00 per month per student. This cost amount includes music studio rental and operations overhead, instrument acquisition, upgrades and maintenance, typical office computer and telecomm expenses, the cost of teacher/mentors, and the various extraneous expenses of high profile, multi-band performance events like the Youth Battle of the Bands.
Sponsors and Funding
The Santa Barbara Youth Music Academy is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that depends on generous donations from individuals, families, private and government institutions to grow.
Our vision is to have the SB Youth Music Academy become a valuable local resource that gives willing students a full music education, and provides our community with a steady, dynamic stream of accomplished young musicians. From a single band formed 3 years ago (see New Cats), we now have 77 students and 15 bands under direction. Ever since that first performance, we have fielded inquiries from financially disadvantaged families and school representatives that wanted us to work with their kids and get involved in their music programs. We have turned down dozens of families, programs and eager young musicians simply due to a lack of resources. Kids grow fast; we only have a short time to prepare them.
Thank you to our Sponsors
Pacific Bancorp
