Aim: ‘To develop a lifelong love of music in our young people’
Sowerby Music has been organising monthly professional concerts in St Oswald’s Church for 22 years.
13 years ago we realised that small rural schools in North Yorkshire have little access to professional music making and seldom have trained music teachers. Thus Music for Life was born. An attempt to share our enjoyment of music with the next generations.
Music for Life has now grown
and developed into the biggest and most diverse programme for young people organised and funded by any music society in the country.
All credit for this success lies with the many committed and dedicated volunteer members of Sowerby Music.
More information (1.1MB pdf leaflet).
Calling all Kids! Click the picture!
What is Music for Life? (pdf 31kb)
Evaluation report 2009 (pdf 131kb)
2010 Performers
Workshop for teachers NEW
Play music (MP3 - broadband only)
Photographs
Visit to The Sage, Gateshead
Peter Chase award for young musicians
Sowerby Music Patrons
What the children said:
6pac Trio I learnt that a drum in the drumkit has a lever that changes the sound. I really want a drumkit for my birthday.
6pac Trio It was very interesting when Andy opened up the piano and I saw all of the strings inside.
6pac Trio Thank you so much for teaching us so much about your instruments and how they worked.
6pac Trio I liked the music because it was really loud.
Steve & Alex I loved the singing and playing ‘The Zoo Blues’.
Steve & Alex I really liked learning the Italian words. I remember presto, lento, staccato.
Steve & Alex It was fun when you came and I loved it when I had a go at conducting.
Steve & Alex I liked hearing the bassoon because I have never heard it before.
Majestic Brass It was funny when you were having a conversation with the mouth pieces.
Majestic Brass I liked how you were getting us involved such as learning the song with the cool riff.
Majestic Brass You have really inspired me.
Majestic Brass I loved the comedy in the performance - it was brilliant.
Voice Matters The bit I liked best was when we sang the song about bananas because of all of the actions. We have sung it in our class.
Voice Matters I loved working in the workshop and singing together in a group to the rest of the school.
Voice Matters My favourite bit was when Frances & Julia sang the miaow song because it was hilarious.
Voice Matters I really liked your concert in the morning especially when we joined in the game for 'My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean'.
Voice Matters Everybody was humming your sings for days after you had come.
From Megan and Class 2,
Kirby Hill School, Boroughbridge:
Dear Janet and Sowerby Music for Life,
Thank you for bringing your percussion instruments to our school. We really enjoyed them. Loads of people liked the big gong and the enormous noise it made.
Every one enjoyed your performance, it was brilliant!!
The performance that we did at the end of the day was good. Everything went to plan and we all performed well.
Everyone in the school enjoyed it including the teachers and the cook.
I would like to say one more thank you for coming. We loved every single bit of your day with us.
Sowerby Music generates the largest outreach music programme for schools in the country organised by a music society. During 2009 approximately 3,600 children from the Hambleton District of North Yorkshire have been enthused by 9 groups of professional musicians performing concerts and running workshops in 37 schools.
For more information contact Pat Elton, Music for Life Organiser, by email: click here
From a headteacher: “If it wasn’t for Music for Life very few of our children would ever get to hear such a range of instruments played by professionals. I hope that it continues for a long time. Please thank the performers for the time, effort and enthusiasm they put in to enable children to have such great musical experiences”.
From another school: “This was music education at its best – fun, informative and completely engaging”.