Campaign launched to encourage youngsters t get into music

A campaign has been launched to encourage more children in West Norfolk to discover and develop an interest in instrumental music and singing.

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​The teaching of music has been recognised as being hugely beneficial to wider education, and it is with this in mind that the West Norfolk Music Centre is launching its new drive for younger members attending both primary and secondary schools.

Aspiring musicians are not required to have taken any exams, or to go through any audition process, all that is needed is enthusiasm, a willingness to learn, and a love of music.

Lessons on offer include piano and keyboard, woodwind, brass, strings, guitar and ukulele, singing, theory of music, drums and percussion, and the centre is also the base of the West Norfolk Youth Choir.

West Norfolk Music Centre is a registered charity which has been facilitating Saturday morning musical education in King’s Lynn for more than four decades, and is supported by the Norfolk Music Hub.  

It is based at Springwood High School in King’s Lynn, which is a member of the West Norfolk Academies Trust, which places great emphasis on promoting music within its 11 member schools.

The centre offers instrument hire, music lessons and chances to join groups and choirs, and many of its staff and trustees have connections with the centre going back for decades, with several of them having initially become involved through their own children’s music lessons, and having remained connected long after they left.  

One such person is the centre’s chair, Derek Stringer, whose wife and three children all learned to play instruments at the centre, and who has been involved with it for 25 years.  

“What I like most about the centre is that it gives people of all ages and abilities a chance to get involved and discover the joy of playing together with others,” he said.  

“Anyone who cares about music is more than welcome to come along and see where they fit in. Seeing people make the journey from being confronted with a new piece of music at the start of the term, to being able to perform it at the end of term concert, is a joyous experience for us all, and that’s the beautiful thing about music, and particularly why it can be so good for children.”

In the new school year, the Centre aims to get out into as many local schools as possible, to take the message directly to youngsters, and as a follow-up to this, it will be holding an open day in October, with details to be confirmed soon.

“Music is all around us, and can be a lifelong companion for happiness, learning and sociailising,” he said. “It’s a privilege to be part of an organisation that can introduce this to people’s lives, so please, come and join us.”

The West Norfolk Music Centre meets on term-time Saturday mornings at Springwood High School in Kings Lynn. For more details visit wnmc.org.uk or call  07752 181781.