A Lifetime of Music, Born from Opportunity

When Naida Blackley first stepped into Canberra Youth Orchestra (CYO) ensembles in the 1980s, she was given more than just a place to play. She was given a beginning.

Those early experiences of making music alongside her peers opened a path that would become a 40-year career in music education in Canberra. From classroom teacher to conductor, and later Principal of the ACT Instrumental Music Program, Naida’s life has been shaped by the same organisation she now serves as a Board Member and Chair of the Fundraising Committee at Music for Canberra.

Looking back, she reflects on the moment that first set everything in motion:

“I was given my first opportunity as a conductor with the CYO Wind Ensemble, guided from lessons through to a performance of my peers in a carefully crafted opportunity. Today I am thankful as I continue to use the conducting skills first nurtured in this ensemble. What an opportunity I was given. Every time I pick up a baton even now I am grateful for the gift of music I was given at Music for Canberra all those years ago.”

There is a quiet continuity in Naida’s story — a baton passed forward through time. What was once a formative opportunity has become a lifelong calling, and now, a commitment to ensuring others can experience the same spark.

At Music for Canberra, we see this story echoed again and again: a first rehearsal that becomes confidence, a first ensemble that becomes belonging, a first performance that becomes a future.

As we approach the end of the financial year, we invite you to be part of that same chain of opportunity. Your tax-deductible donation helps ensure that young musicians today can access the programs, instruments, scholarships, and experiences that change lives — just as they changed Naida’s.

Thank you for helping keep the music going, from one generation to the next.

Help us raise $10,000 to support scholarships, instruments, performance opportunities, and community music programs across Canberra.



Your donation makes a difference

• $25 can help us promote Music for Canberra concerts, workshops, and community programs, giving an audience for our keen, wide-eyed young musicians.

• $50 can purchase easy-to-play instruments and resources, so our senior and community participants can make music together—perhaps even for the very first time.

• $100 can purchase sheet music for our instrumental and choral programs. Sometimes finding the perfect piece of music can make a young musician’s entire year.

• $250 can support a scholarship for a term of music-making for a young musician, opening the door when financial hardship would otherwise make participation impossible.

• $500 can help expand our instrument collection, placing instruments directly into the hands of young musicians ready to begin their journey.

• $1,000 can support a full year of music scholarship for a young musician, offering not just opportunity, but a deep breath of relief for their families.

• Your chosen amount can help shape a child’s musical path for years to come, creating opportunities for music-making where there might otherwise be none.