Press Release

William reports on an exciting grant from the local network fund.

WISSEY VALLEY ARTS

Press Release

Date: 15 February 2007

Contact: John Preston

01366 500628

Striking the right note

Wissey Valley Arts has won a grant of over £6,000 from the Local Network Fund to set up a music group in Stoke Ferry. John Preston will be organising percussion workshops for budding musicians of all ages, with a special focus on those under nineteen. The sessions will start in April and take place on one evening each week at a venue in Stoke Ferry. There will be a small charge of £2 or £3 for each 2 hour session. John hopes that some people who join will be able to perform live at the Stoke Ferry Festival in the autumn.

The grant runs for one year and covers most of the costs of buying equipment, tuition and room hire, and John wants to show that a good eye for rubbish can help too: "I would like to give the opportunity to play on Kit Drums, samba, African and also junk percussion". Wissey Valley Arts is keen to encourage people to realise that masses of money is not necessary if you want to be creative, though support, encouragement and advice are. The organisation is working on a number of plans at the moment, but, as John says, "Percussion is a way to get going and achieve satisfying results relatively quickly, I imagine the group's membership will develop. In my experience once creativity finds confidence the group could bring in tuned instruments such as guitars, flutes, fiddles, or whatever to add melody and riffs onto the rhythm playing."

This project is particularly aimed at young people under the age of nineteen years, though the value of adult volunteers participating alongside young people cannot be underestimated. "Any group making music needs to develop listening and concentration skills, in order to work." John points out. "My only requirement of people who join this group is that they are willing to do this."

So if you are under nineteen and play something or want to play something and would like to learn with a large group, or if you are an adult who plays music or is interested in developing skills please contact John C Preston on 01366 500628 or email johnpreston1977@hotmail.com.

William Alderton