Adam Gellibrand
I’ve enjoyed more Music Workshops this year with funding secured by Wellspring West Sussex.
In May and June this year I had an enthusiastic group of drummers at Kingslea School in Horsham! I worked alongside Assistant Headteacher Tricia Barrett and her team at the school, who were really supportive and creative. Tricia really helped engage the children and make the sessions fun. I took my set of Djembes for the sessions and we quickly played rhythms together and had great communication through the music. I’ve always found that with percussion workshops; you can get straight into the workshop essentials: confidence, communication, inclusion and group work. Over the course of six workshops I was joined by 14 children from Reception to Year 3, who loved the sessions. The children had varying needs including Autism, ADHD and Developmental Language Disorder. Being in a mainstream school can be challenging for them in many ways, and the drumming sessions gave them an opportunity to express themselves. The feedback from Mrs Barrett was really positive, with the children commenting ‘the sessions were a release for big feelings’ and ‘when are we doing it again?!’ I was down in Chichester over the summer, bringing the drums, sound system and DJ decks along to the summer club at PACSO! I set up mics, decks and a karaoke booth in the venue at the college and had a great time. It’s always a great party atmosphere at PACSO and the simple feeling that everyone is invited! The guys got to use the decks; cueing app tracks, using the cross fader and sweeping the filters! The microphones I set up were soon being used for the karaoke booth, with headphones, giving the young people a great opportunity to choose music and sing along with the PACSO crew. All the staff at PACSO commit to the club and it really helps with the Music Workshops; it’s always fun to work there. I also had a great afternoon at Wheely Wonders in August with children and parents joining a drumming session with the sheep as our audience! There’s more good news – Wellspring has secured more funding from the National Lottery to deliver workshops to children and young people with disabilities and learning difficulties. Please get in touch if your organisation or club is interested in Music Workshops over the school holidays! Adam Gellibrand Email: [email protected] |