Young Musicians Shine at Winter Festival
More than 200 children and young people filled the Sage Gateshead with free, live music throughout the weekend.
The Young Musicians Programme Winter Festival showcased musicians of all ages and backgrounds. We heard from the youth ensembles Quay Voices, Folkestra, Jambone and Young Sinfonia as well as their training ensembles Folkworks Saturdays, Jazz Attack, Stringendo and Wind Band.
The weekend also featured musicians from the age of four upwards who study on the Foundation and Step Up programmes. Older students on the Centre for Advanced Training performed in sage 2, as well as filling the concourse with music across a wide variety of genres all day on Sunday.
Wendy Smith, Director of Creative Learning at Sage Gateshead, said: “It was fantastic to see and hear from such a diverse range of over 200 young musicians, filling our halls and spaces with a huge range of musical styles. We hope the weekend has inspired young people to join us. Our Young Musicians Programme is open to everybody. Applications open in February and there are bursaries available.”
Music performed included new pieces written for Jambone by tutor Paul Edis, Christmas tunes as well as a variety of genres.
Sage Gateshead’s Young Musicians Programme is made up of a range of opportunities for young singers and instrumentalists, from bands and ensembles to formal tuition and training. There are bursaries available for all youth ensembles and those attending the Centre for Advanced Training.
Peter Qiang, aged 16, plays the piano and has a hearing impairment. He joined YMP in 2016 and has grown in confidence, performing at the Winter Festival and taking advantage of many other performance opportunities that have come through being part of the programme.
He said: “Since I joined it has been my dream to play in Sage Gateshead’s main concert halls and I was able to do this at the Winter Festival.
“Being part of YMP has broadened my horizons and has opened up so many opportunities. I have found peers that have the same interests and hobbies as me and everyone is treated equally in the beautiful music world. It’s a great environment.”
Find out more about Sage Gateshead’s Young Musicians Programme here.
Ends
Photography credit: Ben Hughes