Merry Christmas Everyone!

Well done and thank you to everyone involved in the concert on Wednesday. You were fantastic and there were lots of positive comments about your performances from those who watched. Click here to watch the video.

BYMT news

BYMT Musical Theatre are looking for performers for our forthcoming full-scale musical productions of BUGSY MALONE and THE SOUND OF MUSIC.

We are looking for singers, dancers and actors and the information for both productions are as follows:

THE SOUND OF MUSIC
Audition Date: Wednesday 12th January
Time: 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm – The Von Trapp Children auditions (ages 8 – 15. For unbroken voices).
Time: 8:15 pm – 9:00 pm – Adult roles in the show (ages 16 – 21).

Please prepare the song ‘The Sound of Music’. We will need to hear solo singing and see some scene work. Audition scenes will be provided on the day.

Rehearsals: On Sunday afternoons in February and March for the Von Trapp Children and the adult roles plus Tuesday evenings for the adult roles only between 7:45 pm – 9:15pm.

Show Week and Performances: Monday 21st March – Saturday 26th March 2022.

BUGSY MALONE

Audition Date: Wednesday 12th January
Time: 6:45 pm – 7:15 pm – For ages 8 – 11.
Time: 7:15 pm – 8:00 pm – For ages 12 – 15.

You do not need to prepare or bring anything as we will teach all the audition material on the day.

Rehearsals: On Sunday afternoons in March and April as well as every Tuesday during term time at the following times:
4:30 pm – 5:45 pm – Ages 8 – 11
6:00 pm – 7:30 pm – Ages 12 – 15

Show Week and Performances: Friday 29th April – Monday 2nd May 2022.

If you want to sign up for an audition, please use the following link: https://forms.office.com/r/6EwUiCrfi1
There you will find a very simple form that you will need to fill in. Once you have filled in the age of the student, the appropriate options available to them will appear for you to tick.

If you have any questions, then please do not hesitate to get in touch by emailing: max.reynolds@live.co.uk

Spotlight on… Brooke

This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is image-26.png — **Photograph courtesy of Laura Pannack**

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Every Saturday I get up at 6.15, get dressed and then we drive up to London with the double bass, so that I can attend the Royal Academy of Music. My day starts (9am) with choir, where we sing a range of choral music and practise sight reading. From this, I head straight off to Chamber Music class where we explore and play a piece of music in great depth, looking at how it is constructed etc. Next comes Alexander Technique, where I learn how to make the best use of my body in order to make the best sound possible when playing and how to keep my body healthy and injury free. It is then a rush to get to orchestra, where I join lots of other musicians to work on orchestral repertoire. A quick refuel at lunch is followed by conducting class which is always great fun. We all take our instruments along and create a make-shift orchestra, while we each take turns to conduct. It is hysterical when you wave your arms about and no-one starts to play, or when you wave them at random, ever changing speeds and the playing goes crazy – the tutor is surprisingly patient! Next up is General Musicianship, a 45-minute class where we study music theory and look at complicated harmony and melody features in different types of music. My brain always hurts after this class! Immediately after this, I grab my bass and go to Bass Class, where all the double bassists get together and hone our performance and analysis skills. My day ends with a 1-1 double bass lesson with my teacher Josie. I love all the classes but this is my favourite because I get to work on my technique and own repertoire.

Aside from the Royal Academy, I am excited to be a London Philharmonic Junior Artist for the year. Being part of the LPO family is a real privilege and comes with lots of opportunities, for example, I have a double bass mentor (Laura) who plays for the LPO. I also learn from professionals about the industry, get to carry out work experience with LPO and am invited to watch the LPO in concert a number of times (they are amazing live!). You can find out more about it here. https://www.lpo.org.uk/education/edu-junior-artists.html

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Finally, I auditioned for the National Youth Orchestra and was successful in getting a place for the third year running. The NYO is incredible and I count down the days between courses. We stay in universities all over the country, sometimes for weeks on end, play incredible music all day, perform in some of the country’s top venues with some of the world’s best conductors. It’s just brilliant and I am lucky to be a part of it! I also love the NYO Inspire activities, which are all about reaching out to, and working with, other young musicians from all over the United Kingdom so that everyone has the opportunity to make music. NYO Inspire is all about getting as many young people involved in music as possible and if you want to find out more about it and perhaps apply look here https://www.nyo.org.uk/inspire

Listen to this fab arrangement of Sleigh Ride for trombones

Calling all drummers – free online masterclass this Sunday

Learn first-hand from Peter Erskine, the ten times ‘Best Jazz Drummer of the Year’. Explore his vast knowledge, gathered across a career featuring on over 700 album recordings, countless artist collaborations and 2 Grammy Awards. Click here to find out more and to sign up.

Something to try over Christmas for the jazzers among you

This is a fantastic opportunity. Once registered, you will have full access to a selection of resources specifically designed to help you practise, perform and improve from wherever you are. Click here to register and access all the resources.