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New Bristol Youth Music Project

Theo Berry, Decode Music Editor | 04.10.2003 14:27 | Culture | Education | Social Struggles

Bristol Music Mentoring is a new youth music project being run by the Youth Music Action Zone under the Remix banner. It will provide aspiring teenage musicians with FREE access to advice, coaching and tuition from Music Industry Professionals. Participants will also have access to recording studios and the opportunity to gain experience in related areas such as engineering, journalism, management and production.

The Project will be launched at the Victoria Rooms on Queens Road on Wednesday the 22nd of October (7.15pm for 7.30pm) with performances and talks from local musicians and industry workers including the fabulous Jane Taylor.

YMAZ would appreciate any kind of publicity for the Project, particularly publicity in advance of the Launch Night in order to maximise attendance. Teachers, Youth Workers, Press and Musicians are all invited along with all Bristol teenagers who aspire to a career in the music industry.

Programme Contacts:

James Hutchinson (YMAZ) Remix Co-ordinator
 James_Hutchinson@bristol-city.gov.uk 07876795014

Theo Berry (Music Editor, Decode) Volunteer Co-ordinator  theo_berry@yahoo.co.uk 07881408844

Bristol Music Mentoring – Press Release




Bristol Music Mentoring is a new youth music project being run by the Youth Music Action Zone under the Remix banner. It will provide aspiring teenage musicians with FREE access to advice, coaching and tuition from Music Industry Professionals. Participants will also have access to recording studios and the opportunity to gain experience in related areas such as engineering, journalism, management and production.

The Project will be launched at the Victoria Rooms on Queens Road on Wednesday the 22nd of October (7.15pm for 7.30pm) with performances and talks from local musicians and industry workers including the fabulous Jane Taylor.

YMAZ would appreciate any kind of publicity for the Project, particularly publicity in advance of the Launch Night in order to maximise attendance. Teachers, Youth Workers, Press and Musicians are all invited along with all Bristol teenagers who aspire to a career in the music industry.

Programme Contacts:

James Hutchinson (YMAZ) Remix Co-ordinator
 James_Hutchinson@bristol-city.gov.uk 07876795014

Theo Berry (Music Editor, Decode) Volunteer Co-ordinator  theo_berry@yahoo.co.uk 07881408844




www.remix-music.org.uk






Bristol Music Mentoring

The Aim:

To provide 14-18 year olds with an opportunity to further develop an existing interest in music, and to provide music coaching and advice on music orientated career opportunities. The project will endeavour to provide the young people with individually tailored support and tuition programmes that will allow the participants to work towards some form of accreditation and performance in May 2004. Not only will the young people involved be invited to attend workshops and support session aimed at improving their general musicianship, but they will also be invited to sessions that explore music-related careers (e.g. engineering) and issues (e.g. copyright law). It is hoped that by the end of the programme all participants will have audibly improved as musicians in their chosen field.

The Programme structure:

· October: The Launch
The launch night will be on Wednesday the 22nd October 2003, to which all participants, supporters and project volunteers will be invited. The fabulous Jane Taylor will be among the performers. Participants, parents, teachers, youth workers and the curious all are invited to this opportunity to meet the musicians and industry professionals who will be working on the programme over the course of the following 8 months.

· The first 7 weeks: Introductory Workshops
Following the launch night, seven weekly workshops will be held during the weeks leading up to Christmas. These workshops will be designed to introduce the participants to different musical genres and styles of playing. The exact content of these workshops will be based in part on the requests of the participants garnered through application and launch night feedback forms. However, it is thought that these workshops might well cover topics such as: Blues, Classical, Drum n’Bass, Electronica, Hip-Hop, Jazz, Punk, Rock, Reggae, Singing/Songwriting, etc. Each workshop will also include a brief (20 mins) introduction to a non-musical aspect of working in the music industry (e.g. licensing, copyright, engaging the audience, etc).

The workshops will run for approximately 2 hours during the 4 to 7 after-school slot on weekday afternoons. Several venues are being considered for the location of the workshops, including Bristol University Students’ Union in Clifton. It is hoped that funds will be found to cover all travel expenses for both participants and volunteers.

The Workshops will be the main focus of the project during the first 7 weeks. It is hoped that by inviting all the participants to take part in these together it will allow a sense of togetherness to evolve within the group. The workshops will also provide the opportunity for new groups and bands to be formed. Less regular and more specific sessions, such as music journalism or jazz singing, may also be offered during these first seven weeks, but only in a support role to the main workshops.



· January to April: Individually Tailored Support
Following the introductory workshops it is hoped that the participants will now have a greater sense of where their musical interests lie. After making clear these interests to us in feedback questionnaires and 1-to-1 chats, the project will now endeavour to provide each individual with an individually tailored programme of support and tuition to help them realise these interests. This might mean simply enrolling the participant on projects offered by existing music and youth projects, or it may mean providing regular 1-to-1 music mentoring with music professionals. Areas of interest will not be limited to those explored in the introductory workshops.

· May: Performance, Accreditation and Celebration
While it is hoped that many of the programme participants will have the opportunity to perform prior to the end of the programme, an end of programme celebration, possibly in conjunction with Bristol Music Live, will be planned that will provide all the programme’s participants with an opportunity to showcase their talents. A compilation CD will also be recorded, if possible, and accreditation given to all participants who complete both the basic programme and any further courses they enrol on auxiliary to the principle sessions.

The Participants:

Young People can apply or be nominated to take part in the programme if they meet the following criteria.

· They should be able to demonstrate a developed interest in music.
· The suggested age range for participants should be 14 to 18, although exceptions might be made for deserving candidates from outside this bracket.
· Participants should normally be resident in Bristol.

How to Apply:

You can apply for a place on the programme (or nominate somebody you believe would be interested in it) by writing to:

James Hutchinson, 0117 9224276
YMAZ (Music Mentoring Programme)
1st Floor, Colston Hall, Colston Street, Bristol BS1 5AR

Don’t forget to include a stamped addressed envelope so that an application form can be sent to you. Alternatively you can e-mail James at the address below and a form will be sent to you as an attachment.

Programme Contacts:

James Hutchinson (YMAZ) Music Mentoring Co-ordinator
 James_Hutchinson@bristol-city.gov.uk 07876795014

Theo Berry (Music Editor, Decode) Volunteer Co-ordinator
 theo_berry@yahoo.co.uk 07881408844

Theo Berry, Decode Music Editor
- e-mail: theo_berry@yahoo.co.uk
- Homepage: http://www.remix-music.org.uk