Category Archives: Music

First ever Scottish conference on Jazz Education


TAKE PART IN THE FIRST EVER SCOTTISH CONFERENCE

ON

JAZZ EDUCATION


For everyone involved in jazz education in Scotland – teachers, instrumental instructors, bandleaders, jazz musicians or organisers – the Scottish Jazz Federation (SJF) is running two one-day events with group discussions, presentations of teaching materials and expert speakers from Scotland and Europe.

Delegate one day fee – only £25

to include lunch and refreshments

Book by 29 June and pay only £20!

The conference is on:

FRIDAY 31 AUGUST

GLASGOW

The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

Or – the same programme repeated – on

SATURDAY 1 SEPTEMBER

INVERNESS

The Ironworks

TO BOOK, CLICK HERE <https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/JAZZCONF1>

If you haven’t taken part in our online database collection survey, please do it now. It only takes a few minutes

CLICK here <https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SJFJES2012>  for online survey

Fife, Flashmobs, Secrets and Songs

Fife’s Secret Song – ‘Fife Goes Olympic’

http://ltsblogs.org.uk/glowscotland/2012/06/19/fifes-secret-song-fife-goes-olympic/

A Flashmob of children from four Dunfermline primary schools performed a secret song they helped compose called ‘Fife goes Olympic’. Around 170 primary 6 &7 youngsters gave unsuspecting shoppers at the Kingsgate Shopping Centre a big surprise on Wednesday afternoon when they performed their song for the first time ahead of the Olympic Torch Relay in Dunfermline.

Festival Backstage competition on the lookout for TV journalists of tomorrow


Edinburgh International Festival today launched Festival Backstage, a behind-the-scenes mini site for Festival 2012 which offers a backstage glimpse of what goes into putting the Festival together, with videos and interviews with artists, staff members and fans made by young local filmmakers. The first film is about Julien Thibault, a young dancer from French company Ballet Preljocaj, who takes a break from rehearsals to talk about the challenges and the excitement of being a professional dancer. Watch the video at http://eif.co.uk/festivalbackstage

This year, in partnership with Standard Life and Napier University, they are running a competition offering one lucky young person aged between 12 and 17 the opportunity to join the Standard Life Festival Backstage production team for a day during the height of the Festival. They are looking for budding film makers or presenters to make a short film reporting on their passion for or experience of something cultural – it could be anything from a weekly dance class, or their talented brother or sister, to a recent trip to the theatre. A selection of the films will be hosted on their digital channels and a panel of experts will choose a winner to join the crew during the Festival, as well as winning tickets to a Festival show.

Entrants to the competition must be between 12 and 17. To enter upload a video (maximum length of 2 minutes) to YouTube and send the link to backstagecompetition@eif.co.uk. The deadline for entries is 12noon on 29 June 2012. A shortlist will be announced on 9 July, with the winner announced on 13 July. For more information visit http://eif.co.uk/backstagecompetition

Edinburgh International Festival joins Creativity Portal

Edinburgh International Festival is three weeks of the best theatre, music, opera and dance the world has to offer. The Festival also works year round on a programme of projects and events that encourage engagement with the Festival’s work and with the arts in general for people of all ages.
Every year the Festival works with over a thousand primary and secondary school children, inspiring and challenging them through education and outreach projects which encourage a deeper understanding of the world in which we live. Our projects explore the diverse cultures and international artists we present and give young people the opportunity too work directly with some of the world’s most accomplished and challenging performers.
Our professional development workshops give Scottish-based artists the opportunity to interact with celebrated artists and creatives from across the globe, while our community engagement initiatives bring a flavour of the Festival into the locality and allow us to develop relationships with harder-to-reach groups.
During the Festival talks, discussions and study events allow our adult audiences to explore the themes and ideas of the Festival programme and participate in a wide-ranging set of conversations about relevant political, cultural and social issues. In our artist conversation and masterclass series, our audiences go “behind the scenes” to meet our visiting artists and learn more about their lives and work.

Musical Futures website added to Creativity Portal

Musical Futures believes music learning works best when young people are making music, and when their existing passion for music is reflected and built upon in the classroom. As well as a website full of resources and news the site also offers the 2nd Edition Musical Futures teacher resource pack. Each chapter has its own section, many with additional audio, video and other materials. If you prefer, download the entire pack, or order a hard copy for free.

Approaches to Composing – guidance from professional composers now on Creativity Portal

The three films in this short series are aimed at pupils who are studying composing and arranging as part of an SQA course. Three composers, with varying backgrounds, offer a different take on approaches to composition.

David Trouton – music for theatre

John Harris – composing for concert hall and opera

Ken Johnston – Sibelius software and compositions which begin, not with a chord sequence, but a short riff.

https://wikis.glowscotland.org.uk/0000244/Creativity_Portal/Video_Resources/East_Lothian_CLN_-_Composing%2f%2fArranging

Sound Editing in Audacity for Oral Historians added to Creativity Portal

A course created by Alan Coady of East Lothian that is intended for oral historians is now listed on the creativity Portal. The course may also be useful to anyone interested in editing spoken word files (mp3, wav etc.) The program is a free download and you can find it at http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

The full resource can be found here: http://edubuzz.org/alancoady/files/2012/04/Sound-Editing-in-Audacity-for-Oral-Historians.pdf

14-21 year olds – Scottish Opera needs you – deadline Monday 28 May


Scottish Opera Connect gives aspiring young singers a unique, practical introduction to the skills and experience needed to perform opera. Our Connect Chorus meets throughout the year and follows a programme of evening and weekend workshops, masterclasses and performances, running from September 2012 to March 2013.

During the year you will work with a range of professionals involved in making opera in Scotland from composers, conductors and voice coaches to stage directors, choreographers and wardrobe designers. This is your chance to develop your knowledge, technique and creative skills. You’ll also be able to attend some Scottish Opera rehearsals and productions so you can see what happens when everything comes together.

To become a member of Connect Chorus you need to complete our summerGateway Course in July 2012. This intensive, week-long programme explores the past, present and future of opera through practical workshops and seminars. The week culminates in a short performance for your family and friends. Entry is by audition and all applicants should have some performance experience and be able to read music.

If you would like to get involved and are aged between 14 and 21 years old then simply visit scottishopera.org.uk/connect to download an application form and email your completed form to iona.jack@scottishopera.org.uk byMonday 28 May.

Win the Gold – music and olympics – free online resource

A new Olympics project, allowing pupils to create and work with music through an online tool from ABC Creative Music is now free to 6 local authorities, with a free trial available to all others.

The six local authorities include: Edinburgh, Midlothian, Dumfries & Galloway, East Ayrshire, Clackmannanshire, and Western Isles.

Due to popular demand and a great response from P4 and 5 teachers who have seen the material we have created a seperate course so that teachers can use this resource from P4-7 (Year 3 – Year 6). Check out the fantastic Medal Ceremony Interactive!!

Here is a short movie about our Olympic project – WIN THE GOLD:

http://www.abcmusic.org.uk and then click on the SITE TOUR button.

On Youtube: http://youtu.be/gg7iN5XOxs0

On Screencast: http://www.screencast.com/t/69wG4wiOATD

WIN THE GOLD is a fun Olympic themed song and range of flexible projects for P4-7 (Year 3-6) that class teachers can use to add music to an Olympic project.

To sign up log into ABC Online at www.abcmusic.org.uk <http://www.abcmusic.org.uk>  and go to Staffroom>Request & Unlock Trial Course and choose WIN THE GOLD – OLYMPICS 2012.

Eric Booth Masterclass – motivating arts learning experiences

Activated environment – motivated participants
An Eric Booth Masterclass, for ArtWorks Scotland

19 June 2012, 10 am to 4pm, at the Dovecot Studios in Edinburgh

Spend a day exploring the mechanics of motivation with a master ‘teaching artist’ and arts education consultant from the USA.

“Research shows that the single greatest influence on the quality of an arts learning experience is the motivation of the learner, and the second greatest influence is the social environment that impacts that individual’s motivation. Our workshop will explore the ways that teaching artists can better support the courage of participants to pour themselves into our learning opportunities, and the ways we create conducive environments—quickly.” Eric Booth

Places on this day long masterclass are limited to 30 and are open to artists across all artforms and levels of experience. As the ArtWorks team are keen to offer places to a cross section of artists, participants will be selected by a panel based on the criteria in the booking form.

To submit a request for a place on this masterclass request a booking form from Hilary Nicoll (ArtWorks Scotland project manager) viahilary.nicoll@creativescotland.com