Published: 04 Mar 2016
Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop today announced £10 million continued funding for the refreshed Youth Music Initiative and revealed the recipients of £1.1million funding, in a key note speech stressing the vital role the arts have to play in tackling youth inequality.
Ms Hyslop confirmed the funding for the Youth Music Initiative, which allows young people to take part in music in and outside of school, for 2016-17 and announced the successful applicants through the Access To Music Making and Strengthening Youth Music awards of the final £1.1million YMI funding from 2015-16.
For more information see the Scottish Government press release.
Raymond Black, Youth Music Manager at Creative Scotland said: “Creative learning underpins Creative Scotland’s commitment to ensuring that everyone can access and enjoy artistic creative experiences whoever they are, wherever they are from and at any stage in their life. YMI has given thousands of young people across Scotland the opportunity to learn about and enjoy music making activities.
"Taking part in musical activities can make a real difference to the lives of children and young people, as well as being fun and enjoyable, communications skills, confidence and self-esteem are developed and enhanced whilst also creating career pathways for Scotland’s young talent.
"Our continued strong partnership with all thirty two of Scotland’s local authorities enables the YMI to have a truly national reach. This partnership working ensures more children from all backgrounds, in all parts of Scotland, have an equal chance to develop and achieve their potential.
"None of this would be possible without the hugely talented and dedicated music practitioners working in communities across Scotland, increasing young people’s awareness of music, arts and culture from Scotland and across the world."
Recipients of £1.1million YMI funding include Sistema Scotland, the National Piping Centre, the Scottish Brass Band Association, Reeltime Music, Sound Waves and Hazelwood Vision.
Sistema Scotland will enable the next generations of children in Raploch, Govanhill and Torry to access Big Noise, offering an inclusive, immersive and intensive programme of high quality, out of school music-making. Across all three Big Noise centres, children moving into Primary 3 will be engaged in the after-school orchestra programme for the first time as string players. In Big Noise Raploch and Big Noise Govanhill, children moving into Primaries 5 and 6 will be encouraged to join or re-engage with the programme as woodwind, brass or percussion players.
The National Piping Centre grant will support the National Youth Pipe Band of Scotland Programme of Excellence: to inspire the composition and arrangement of new music, enhancement of performance, and delivery of educational outreach throughout Scotland.
The Scottish Brass Band funding will establish new youth brass bands throughout Scotland and in doing so to give young people an opportunity to learn a worthwhile, lifelong, pleasurable skill.
Reeltime Music will work in partnership with local organisations to meet the needs of young parents facing disadvantage within the local community.
Sound Waves, delivered by Mull Music Makers, provides access to high quality music-making opportunities in a severely under-serviced remote area through a regular programme of music workshops. The workshops are delivered by our experienced team of professional music tutors and focus on developing core musicianship skills through Kodaly-based singing games, rhythm skills, music theory and group violin tuition.
Hazelwood Vision will primarily focus on young people with Additional Support for Learning Needs. It will enable further development and sharing of previously learned skills. It will also enable more and different young people to acquire new skills in music making and music technology. It will bring young people together to make music, celebrate ability, reach out to the wider community and begin the acquisition of employability skills and skills for life. Through training opportunities and practical delivery tutors, trainees, students and volunteers will develop their knowledge and experience of inclusive practice. This project will contribute greatly to the future sustainability of musicALL.
