We are very pleased to announce that we have joined forces with the Shropshire Music Service to launch a new group for young people who want to play traditional and acoustic music.
The Shropshire Youth Folk Ensemble will be open to all musicians aged 10 to 18 and will kick off with a two-day workshop on May 26 and 27 at Oakmeadow School in Bayston Hill.
The workshops, costing just £10, will run from 11am to 4pm and will end with a showcase for parents on the second day. The ensemble will develop into a long-term group that will work towards performing at the festival.
To book a place at the workshop, please contact Shropshire Music Service on 01743 874145. For more information on the ensemble, go to www.syfe.org.uk.
Our Education Director Izzy MacLachlan is spearheading the project with Matthew Keegan-Phipps, the former head of music at the Belvidere School in Shrewsbury.
Izzy said: “The ensemble was open to musicians of all levels. There’s no audition and we hope it will appeal to players of a variety of different instruments. It doesn’t matter if you don’t have any official music grades – we are looking for people with a passion for traditional or acoustic music and who would like to learn more about folk music.
“We have such enthusiasm and uptake of our events for young musicians at the festival, this ensemble will be a way of carrying this on throughout the year.”
One of the aims is to develop a mentoring scheme for young musicians with an established artist who can offer help and advice within the folk industry.