Happy New Year from all at Music for Kids! 2011 was a wonderful year for us, in which we went from strength to strength. There were some changes, we moved to a new location, Under the Bridge Studios, which comes with a beautiful community room ideal for the classes and is also home to Brighton’s best communtiy radio station, Radio Free Brighton.
Our home, Under the Bridge Studios
We’ve seen a lot of new faces, with new kids and new parents attending throughout the year, making friends and connections with each other and becoming part of the big Music for Kids family. The parents and carers have told us that it’s been great to get the chance to meet
A couple of the kids in the group.
in such a relaxed and friendly environment, and have had the opportunity to build mutually supportive relationships. It was so rewarding to see the new children joining the group, being given the ability to learn and play with instruments and activities and growing in confidence as a result.
A pancake in the works!
We ran a range of different, special activities throughout the year for alongside our normal weekly classes. For pancake day our volunteer Hashem came along and cooked delicious pancakes for everyone to enjoy!
Later on in the year we had an arts and crafts session where the children were encouraged to decorate their own Easter bonnets to get us all in the Easter mood! This was really fun, and gave the children a very hands on project
A closeup of one of the Easter Bonnets
and beautiful bonnets to wear and keep once they were done! As both events went down so well we’re certainly planning on running them again this year, and where we can making them even better and more exciting than before!
Throughout 2011 we maintained our close relationship with the wonderful people at Brighton Peace Choir. The choir provides a great opportunity for slighty older children to take their love of music and singing further. Open to 5-15 year olds the choir reherses regularly and performs throughout the year. One of the highlights of 2011 was a performance in london at the House of Commons itself, which included a tour for all of them! Many of the children from Music for Kids go on to join the choir when they are old enough. The choir is run by professional singers with years of experience, and the children really enjoy the chance to sing in a big group and the unique opportunity to
Brighton Peace Choir
perform, having a wonderful time. The songs performed are about peace, respect, environmental issues and more.
Alongside the growth and success of Music for Kids the studio itself has been host to numerous communtiy projects. In the Spring and Summer we were host to a group of students from Blatchington Mill school. Due to the presence of Radio Free Brighton in the building we were able to give them firsthand experience of creating and producing their own radio shows, handing over all the creative responsibility to them and allowing them to explore their own potential. Over the course of a few month they had recorded an aired a school radio show, a play, a
The students from Blatchington getting the oportunity to make their own music and radio shows.
series of global conversations talking to victims of the floods in Pakistan. They also wrote and compossed their own song, which they recorded here at the studio with the help of some of the bands who practise here and did a series of storytelling segments for younger children to listen to at home. The students loved their time here and we’re very eager to do a similar project in the new year.
Some hands on musical experience!
We’ve been discovering new family friendly trips and activities throughout the year as well, see our links of the right hand side of the page for some interesting ideas of what to do with the family.
This is just a small selection of some highlights of last year, if we were to write about everything we’ve enjoyed in 2011 there wouldn’t be room on the page!
Please, if your interested in the activities for children and young people here at Under the Bridge, do get in touch. You can reach us for enquiries through email ( jaki.chase@gmail.com ), over the phone (07799 564 620 or 01273 601 804) or simply by coming along to the studio or for a class! We’re open seven days a weeks and would love to see you.
Music for Kids classes run weekly, every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 11am and 2pm, year round, with a new class for children 3+ starting on Monday the 23rd at 4pm. Music for Kids does not exclude anyone on financial grounds, with reduced rate and free places available for those on low or no income. But it is those who can afford to play which allow us to continiue running. Classes cost £50 for twelve (£4.11 per week). Booking in advance is advised, as drop in places are £6. All siblings are welcome, with the cost per session being £1 per sibling. Suitable for children from 4 weeks to 3 years.
The classes are run by Jackie Chase, an award winning music teacher who works to th Kodaly and Orff method of music education. Classes are based around seasonal themes, celebration all festivals and traditions.
Everyone is welcome!
The organisation is overseen by Mrs Jackie Chase, ABRSM Honorary Local Representative, classical piano teacher for many years, music workshop leader and founder of Under The Bridge Studios. With so much experience Jackie inspires dedicated practice, performance and understanding in a way that has proven success. Mr Andy Aruldoss is our musical director and classical and contemporary guitar and bass tutor. Experienced in many aspects of live performance and band leading Andy also teaches guitar/bass privately at Under The Bridge Studios and for the West Sussex Music Service as well as offering recording skills to the organisation. Jackie and Andy are backed up by a group of teachers and experienced youth workers all trained and CRB checked.
