It originitated in the music camps founded by John Bishop and Ruth Alexander in 1948.

[1] AYO offers tailored training and performance programs yearly for aspiring musicians, composers, arts administrators and music journalists, aged between 12 and 30.

The Australian Youth Orchestra is one of eight "national elite training organisations" of the Australian Roundtable for Arts Training Excellence (ARTS8), partially funded by the Australian Government via the Office for the Arts.

[2] AYO offers several programs:[3] The APRA Classical Music Awards are presented annually by Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australian Music Centre (AMC).

[4] The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music.