Schools Prom – Monday 11, Tuesday 12 & Wednesday 13 November 2013
6 November, 2013
3,000 of the UK’s best young musicians take to the stage at the Royal Albert Hall, London
This November, 3,000 young musicians, aged 7- 21, have been given the opportunity of a lifetime - to perform on stage at one of the world’s most iconic venues at the Music for Youth Schools Prom concerts.
Thirty three groups from across the UK will take to the Royal Albert Hall’s stage to perform a huge range of different types of music including orchestral, rock and pop, choral, samba, jazz, folk and more. Each night will have each own unique theme and will also host a different mass ensemble beginning with 600 young people from Essex on Monday, followed by massed ensembles of 600 people from Lincolnshire on Tuesday and Cornwall on Wednesday. The Schools Prom concerts offer much variety during the three evenings, from Swindon-based indie trio, The Debuts, to the Oxfordshire County Youth Orchestra.
The Royal Albert Hall is a long-standing supporter and major sponsor of Music for Youth, a music education charity. Together they work to champion youth music and develop musical talent by supporting young performers and offering them a platform to showcase their talent.
The Schools Prom concerts offer progressional routes to excellence by supporting all young musicians, whether choral or instrumental, across every genre from all parts of the UK. Performing at the Royal Albert Hall, on the world’s most famous stage, is the chance of a lifetime for young musicians and the Schools Prom concerts have proven to develop some of the UK’s best talent. Following in the footsteps of the likes of Gary Barlow and Laura Mvula, the Schools Prom could be a first step in a long and successful career in music. To date over 2.4 million young, talented musicians have taken part in the Schools Prom concerts as part of Music for Youth’s 40 year activity.
Judith Webster, Chief Executive of Music for Youth, said: “The Schools Prom concerts provide a unique showcase of exemplary music education allowing young musicians of all ages and musical interests to express their talents on a large scale. They aim to represent the excellence and innovation taking place in young people’s music-making.”
Chris Cotton, Chief Executive at the Royal Albert Hall, said: “We are very much looking forward to welcoming the talented young musicians of Music for Youth to the Royal Albert Hall once again. One of our key aims is to encourage the promotion of music throughout the UK and we see our partnership and sponsorship of Music for Youth as a great driver in helping provide the memorable opportunity to perform on ‘the world’s most famous stage’ as well as celebrating the enormous musical talent, in the young, that is thriving throughout the country”
The Royal Albert Hall chooses to support Music for Youth as part of its charitable remit to support future generations of talent. With its on-going education and outreach work it provides opportunities for those who may otherwise never have the chance to visit or perform at the venue.
Tickets, priced from £5, are available from the Royal Albert Hall Box Office on 020 7589 8212 or at www.royalalberthall.com
Notes to editor
For more information please contact:
Sophie Pettengale 020 7861 2535/ spettengale@goodrelations.co.uk
Sean Carrigan 020 7959 0531/ seanc@royalalberthall.com
For Music for Youth enquiries please contact:
Jessica Paton 020 7759 1830/ jessica@mfy.org.uk
Music for Youth
Founded in 1970, Music for Youth is a national music education charity providing free performance opportunities for young people aged 21 and under through an annual season of nationwide festivals and concerts.
MFY offers young people the opportunity to perform live in a supportive environment in festivals across the UK, celebrating and supporting the breadth of music-making by young people both in and out of school. In addition MFY stages a series of free concerts, performed by young people for young people, providing first-hand experience of live music-making.
Major Sponsors National Union of Teachers, Times Educational Supplement, Royal Albert Hall
Sponsors ABRSM, Vivendi
With funding from Department for Education, Creative Scotland
Supporters The Garfield Weston Foundation, Tower Leasing Ltd, Department of Education for Northern Ireland
Media Partner Classic FM
For more information, please visit www.mfy.org.uk/schoolsprom, www.facebook.com/musicforyouth and www.twitter.com/musicforyouth
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is the world’s most famous stage. Its breathtaking auditorium hosts over 370 shows a year by the world’s greatest artists. The magical atmosphere combined with inspired artists creates legendary events.
Opened in 1871 as part of Prince Albert’s vision for a centre for the Arts and Sciences, the Hall is a registered charity which operates without public funding, remaining true to his founding ambitions within a modern context. Extending the brand with 200 events outside the auditorium, the Hall has broadened its appeal to younger, diverse audiences whilst still engaging its existing customers.
The Hall also offers the Elgar Room, a state-of-the-art small-scale performance space which hosts performances of classical music, jazz and world music, comedy, dance and hush, a series of gigs for just signed bands throughout the year. In the main auditorium, it offers the Albert Sessions, an initiative that encourages up and coming acts to play at the Hall by offering reduced rental fees to promoters and lower ticket prices to encourage younger audiences to visit the Hall. It also works extensively with schools, young people, disadvantaged groups and partners such as Music For Youth through its Education programme, reaching over 100,000 participants each year as part of its extensive public benefit remit. It has also been appointed by the Arts Council as one of the country’s regional music education hubs.
For more information, please visit www.royalalberthall.com/ www.facebook.com/royalalberthall/ http://life.royalalberthall.com
GROUP INFORMATION
KEY
GROUP NAME / AREA
DATE: MONDAY 11 NOVEMBER 2013
TIME: 19:00-21:00
THEME: CELEBRATION
Music is an incredible force that unites people - featuring high energy music with a party atmosphere, and impressive, thematic numbers.
Bromley Youth Concert Band / Bromley, London Borough of Bromley
Ezra / London
Greater Gwent Youth Orchestra / Newport, Gwent
Original 5 / Leigh-on-Sea, Essex
‘Out of Essex’ Massed Ensemble / Essex
Percussion School / Ramsgate, Kent
Pimlico Academy Steel Orchestra / Pimlico, London
RNCM Session Orchestra / Manchester
St. Aidan’s Chamber Choir / Harrogate, North Yorkshire
Weekend Rescue / Exmouth, Devon
Yaxham Ukes / Yaxham, Norfolk
DATE: TUESDAY 12 NOVEMBER 2013
TIME: 19:00-21:00
THEME: TRANSFORMATION
Understanding the past to shape the future - expect ethereal sounds, musical storytelling, and vibes reminiscent of a wartime era.
Belfast Royal Academy Irish Traditional Music Group / Belfast, Antrim
Cor Aelwyd Chwilog / Chwilog, Gwynedd
Friday Afternoons / Aldeburgh, Suffolk
Lincolnshire Massed Ensemble / Lincolnshire
Lucy Hodson and Emily Fox / St Albans, Hertfordshire
Minitrad / Ashford, Kent
North East Folk Collective / Aberdeenshire
Oxfordshire County Youth Orchestra / Oxfordshire
Sponnaissance / Towcester, Northamptonshire
Wardle High School Band / Rochdale, Lancashire
Youth Brass 2000 / Corby, Northamptonshire
DATE: WEDNESDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2013
TIME: 19:00-21:00
THEME: INNOVATION
Looking at new ways of doing things - presenting original compositions and new slants on old classics, and global influences.
Bents Green Special Sounds / Sheffield, South Yorkshire
Berkshire Youth Orchestra / Berkshire
City of Hull Youth Jazz Orchestra / Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire
Co-Create Cornwall Massed Ensemble / Cornwall
Dulwich Hamlet Junior School Fusion Ensemble / Dulwich, London
Hosta / Inverness
Lewis & the Ukes / Pengam, Caerphilly
St Thomas More School Chamber Choir / Gateshead, Tyne & Wear
The Adolphe Sax Quartet / High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire
The Debuts / Swindon, Wiltshire
Wellingborough Music & Arts Centre Festival Band / Wellingborough, Northamptonshire