At National Youth Arts Wales, we believe all young people should have the opportunity to flourish through the arts. As part of our strategic responsibility for the ecology of youth arts in Wales, we identify key talent pathways into our five national ensembles, and work with partners to actively address any gaps.
Strings Attached is a new project for young string players of Grade 4 standard and above, run in collaboration with the South-East Wales music services.
The first 2-day event took place at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff on 12 and 13 October, bringing together over 50 young string players from across South Wales to join National Youth Arts Wales.
Participants worked intensively with the NYOW Tutorial team, preparing some fantastic string repertoire whilst learning more about playing techniques and ensemble working. They were supported by tutors from the music services and a team of Peer Mentors, young musicians from within the ranks of the National Youth Orchestra of Wales.
There was also an opportunity to hear more about the audition process for the National Youth Arts Wales music ensembles. The Q&A session was led by Matthew Jones from National Youth Arts Wales with tutors who sit on the NYAW audition panels and the Peer Mentors who have been through the audition process a number of times themselves.
The weekend ended in a wonderful sharing of the music they’d learned, with the standard of playing testament to the hard work and dedication the participants had shown across the weekend.
Megan George from RCT and participant in the project said: “It really enjoyed playing for the whole weekend. The choice of pieces was great and it was so useful to learn some proper string orchestral techniques”
A parent of a participant said: “There are some areas of Wales that have lost their regional youth orchestra and making the jump from county to National level can feel like a hug leap. The standard achieved in two days was incredibly impressive and has given the students the opportunity to bridge that gap. We need more of these days!”
Matthew Jones, Senior Producer and Deputy Chief Executive at National Youth Arts Wales said: “During the COVID lockdowns, most opportunities for young musicians were taken away. Those who had just started their musical journey at the time arguably being the most affected. Suddenly their ability to progress was halted, weekly rehearsals and lessons were suspended, and playing with like-minded young people in a residential situation was impossible.
It is now a priority for everyone in music education in Wales to urgently provide intermediate learners with additional support to recover lost ground, regain their inspiration, and reach their full potential. Underpinned by the National Music Service for Wales, collaborative and joined up working with music services and other organisations means we can do more together.”
This weekend was the first of what we hope will be a continuing programme of work, with plans already in the pipeline for similar projects in North, West and Mid-Wales.
NYAW is very thankful to the generous support of Colwinston Trust, ABRSM and the Arts & Business Culture Step fund as well as our core funders, Arts Council Wales and the National Music Service whose funding has made the Strings Attached project possible.