Aberdeen City Council
Youth Music Initiative (YMI) Strategic Development Funding
Aberdeen City Strategic Development project
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Over the first three years of the Youth Music Initiative (YMI), a total of 41 projects have been granted strategic development funding, to the tune of over £1.2m. Strategic development funding was available in the first three years to help local authorities develop a wider range of strategic partnerships in youth music provision. |
June’s YMI project of the month focuses on Aberdeen City’s project.
The idea
In partnership with the University of Aberdeen, Foyer Music and Aberdeen City Music School, Aberdeen City Council’s project will work over the course of a year within each of Aberdeen’s 12 academies. The project will combine world music, composition and music technology. Secondary school pupils will, through a 12-15 week series of workshops, learn about world music, including learning the instruments and how to use world music as an inspirational starting point. Each school will form a band to create two new works, which will then be recorded and released on CD.
| Participating students will gain an understanding of the process of creating, recording and performing new music, offering them an insight into the music industry and potential career paths. They will be exposed to expertise that they would otherwise be unable to access. |
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The academies are using this as an opportunity to embed these elements into the curriculum, making it part of their SQA portfolio. A number are working with Intermediate 1 and 2 pupils in S3 while others are using the opportunity to give Higher and Advanced Higher pupils (S5/6) additional skills for their portfolio. The project is being tailored to each individual school’s needs, allowing them to work with varying age groups and levels of experience. For example, one academy plans to work with 40 less experienced pupils, while another academy will work with a small group of 6-10 more musically talented pupils.
Workshops will be starting from September, but meetings and taster sessions with the teachers and pupils involved have already taken place.
Linking into other areas
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As well as the direct work with secondary school pupils, the project seeks to create links with higher education, working with university students training to be music teachers. In-service training in music technology is being provided for the school teachers as well, so they can better support the pupils engaged with the project. |
Expanding beyond music as a subject, art and enterprise departments in the academies will be involved in the design and distribution of the resulting CD.
The product
Performances are being planned to take place in 2007, including a high-profile launch of the CD at an Aberdeen venue. This will involve everyone who takes part in the project and will include showcase performances by the bands.
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For more information about the Youth Music Initiative, visit the YMI section of our website. | |