Youth Music duo off to pursue pro careers

Rangi Hall tunes up Whangarei Youth Music's Concert Band for one of the last times.

It will be a bittersweet end-of-year concert for Whangarei Youth Music this year as they lose two key players who are off to pursue dreams of becoming professional musicians.

Concert Band conductor Rangi Hall will wrap up eight years of heavy involvement with WYM on Sunday before he makes the shift to Auckland to pursue a degree in music performance, majoring in the French horn.

Mr Hall started with WYM in 2007 as a band member playing saxophone and tuba, later picking up French horn and progressing to be conductor of the WYM Concert Band.

He also has positions in Northland Sinfonia, National Youth Concert Band and the Manukau Concert Band.

The talented 24-year-old said he was making a late run at career as a musician.

"You need about 10 years just to make a name for yourself," he said.

Despite this, he said he was confident he could turn his part-time passion into a fulltime job.

"French horn is really really challenging, but at the end of the day I just like the noise it makes," he said.

Mr Hall will be joined at the University of Auckland by 18-year-old WYM student Scott Martin, who will study for his Bachelor in jazz saxophone.

WYM's concert, The Pohutakawa Performance, is at Forum North, on Sunday.

It will feature performances from Brioso Corde, Whangarei Youth Orchestra, Whangarei Youth Concert Band and others. Koha entry.