Big Meet 2!

On the 19^th of May 2024, which was a lovely sunny day in Birmingham, we had our second ‘Big Meet’ of this year in the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. Young musicians attended from all around the country for a workshop which had group discussions, learning and improvisation.

The day started out with some Youth Voice activities, where the young musicians discussed what their ideal Future Talent event would be. Ideas ranged from a workshop with ‘Two Set Violin’ to a concert at the Royal Albert Hall. They then had to work out how they might make this event happen, including looking at potential timelines and what resources would be needed.  

These activities both allowed us to have a better understanding of what the musicians want out of Future Talent, and gave the musicians a chance to think about what goes into an event.  

After lunch, the musicians got to take part in a workshop with kora player and drummer, Seckou Keita. This workshop focused on learning by ear and improvisation, inspired by West African musical traditions.  

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The workshop allowed for an individual focus, and all the young musicians had multiple chances to improvise, including in the final showing there was for parents.

The workshop also included elements of Sekou directing the musicians as they were playing, with the piece performed having no fixed structure and they had free rein to improvise!

Overall, the workshop was a brilliant chance for our musicians to work on skills that they may not typically work on, and we’d like to extend a huge thank you to Seckou for leading the event.

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