Youth Orchestra Salinas (YOSAL) seeks California Arts Council support to expand performance opportunities for youth enrolled in its year-round orchestral and ensemble programs. CAC funds will support instructor time, music purchases, and logistics that allow over 60 students to perform in at least three formal concerts and five community-based events throughout Salinas. These performances will feature a mix of classical repertoire and culturally relevant works that reflect the students’ backgrounds, building musical excellence, confidence, and a strong sense of belonging. The program serves predominantly first- and second-generation Latino youth from low-income, bilingual households, and provides a safe, supportive environment for artistic growth and community engagement.
YOSAL’s primary goals are to make classical and orchestral music accessible to the city’s low-income youth and to provide a safe space and community through which they can also access mental health resources, such as counseling. YOSAL provides instruments, weekly music classes, ensemble rehearsals, choir, music theory, and music history classes, all free of charge to students in 1st through 12th grade.

