Joined Up Music: Year 3
February - July 2019

2019 marks the third year of our Joined Up Music project which includes music-making and stage design workshops, interactive performances, and instrumental taster sessions for schools across rural Powys.

Project partners

• Sinfonia Cymru
• South Powys Youth Music
• Theatr Brycheiniog
• The Hafren
• Wyeside Arts Centres

One Small Step

We welcomed pupils from 24 primary schools to our 2019 show, which was inspired by the 50th anniversary of the moon landing and devised by John Barber and Hazel Gould. Presented by John and with plenty of audience interaction, soprano Lucy Knight and the musicians of Sinfonia Cymru performed music spanning 400 years by Britten, Mozart, Purcell, Ravel and others.

Children from six local schools joined the musicians on stage to perform new songs they had created in workshops with John and Sinfonia Cymru violinist Katie Foster. The stage was brought to life by designs created by children from across the County in a series of workshops led by Hilary and Graham Roberts.

“what a fantastic group of musicians, the children really got so much from their experience.” (Newbridge-on-Wye Primary School)

Following on from One Small Step, Tim Cronin of South Powys Youth Music has been delivering instrumental taster sessions for pupils at Clyro, Penmaes, Builth Wells, Newbridge on Wye, Carreghofa and Buttington Trewern Primary Schools. Our final ‘Joined Up’ activity this year will be a day of music making and creative writing activities for Year 5 pupils at Gwernyed High School in south Powys.

Resources

• One Small Step Resource Pack (pdf, 6.6MB)
• Guide Tracks of Project Songs:
  • From Darkest Night: with vocal line (mp3, 4.14MB)
  • From Darkest Night: accompaniment only (mp3, 4.14MB)
  • Thou Turn'st this World: with vocal line (mp3, 2.29MB)
  • Thou Turn'st this World: accompaniment only (mp3, 2.29MB)

'One Small Step' is part of our three-year 'Joined Up Music', project which has enabled us to work closely with schools, music organisations and arts venues across Powys, as well as the professional chamber orchestra Sinfonia Cymru. Joined Up Music is made possible through funding from Arwain, the EU Rural Development Programme, partnership support from Sinfonia Cymru, Theatr Brycheiniog, The Hafren and Wyeside Arts Centre, and match funding from the Ashley Family Foundation and Colwinston Charitable Trust.