Our Music, Our Way
Our orchestral programme in Redcar and Cleveland bringing communities and generations together to create and share inspirational and accessible orchestral experiences.
Our Music, Our Way harnesses the power of collective music-making, putting the communities of Redcar and Cleveland at the heart of the music. The programme focuses on increasing the breadth and quality of cultural provision for the community, inspired by the area’s rich heritage and urban, industrial and rural characteristics.
What we wanted to achieve
Co-creation of new music by local people is at the heart of the programme, alongside providing opportunities for young children to experience live music. The programme provides different participant groups with the opportunity to engage in creative work and perform new music with a professional orchestra at celebratory events they contribute to shaping.
Our Music, Our Way seeks to reach new audiences for orchestral performances and build a repertoire of new music about life in Redcar and Cleveland, bringing local people together to celebrate the joys of music-making in their community.
What we did
In Autumn 2021, we ran a series of consultation events to gauge interest and develop a sense of what the community desired. These informed the development of a pilot programme in 2022-23 that was primarily delivered by Manchester Camerata, delivering creative projects with schools and care homes.
In 2023/24, an ongoing school’s programme was established with Royal Northern Sinfonia (RNS), composer Michael Betteridge and teachers from Tees Valley Music Service (TVMS). The programme is anchored in two secondary schools and engages different primary schools each year. As part of this, young people co-create brand new music to perform with RNS at a concert in their community.
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Really lovely to see the young people engaging with classical music and to sense the pride they feel for the area.
~ Audience member
Outcomes
Since the beginning of the partnership in 2021, our activity has produced:
- 8 new pieces of music created by the people of Redcar and Cleveland
- New audiences engaged in Redcar and Cleveland with 718 people attending orchestral performances
- 633 participants engaged across 86 workshops
- 435 additional young people learnt Our Music, Our Way songs through Snappy Sing, reaching an audience of 392
- 8 performances delivered alongside 4 early years performances.
In 2024, the following outcomes were observed:
- Young people built practical creative skills in music composition, instrumental and performance skills, as well as non-cognitive skills through working together as a team, gaining confidence through sharing ideas and communication skills. Agency and ‘youth voice’ were important aspects of the approach to encourage decision-making and engagement, resulting in stronger learning and aspiration outcomes.
- Increased awareness of creative careers.
- People felt that music and orchestras were something ‘for them’. Feedback demonstrated that the programme delivered a positive and inspiring experience and provided many first-time orchestral experiences.
I’ve been interested in music; I wanted to learn an instrument and get more into creating music – but I’d just started and didn’t really have any experience. It was all new to me.
Then I took part in the Our Music, Our Way project. I learned a lot about the skills involved in writing and creating music, and really found myself getting better at it really quickly. But the biggest change for me was in my confidence, becoming confident that I actually can create music.
Now, I really feel confident and able to keep making music. I have a better idea of how it works, and what I can do – and I’m really excited about continuing to make it.
Participant
Future plans
We are working with TVMS to establish legacy activity programmes to bridge the gap between creative projects. These include:
- Additional music delivery with schools
- Access to bursaries for instrumental/vocal tuition
- Including young people’s new songs in TVMS Snappy Sing programmes to engage more young people in music written by their peers
The partnerships established as part of this project are also evolving into a long-term programme to support the growth of musical learning and cultural capital for young people.
Our Music, Our Way will continue to evolve in response to the community's need, with the programme including:
- Creative projects with schools that support the development of music provision and instrumental learning
- Engaging first-time orchestral experiences for children
- Engaging young people in a Young Producers group to drive the development and delivery of Our Music, Our Way
- Health and wellbeing projects and relaxed concerts for those in care settings or with health needs
- A series of culmination events and concerts in the community.
Our Music, Our Way is co-produced by Redcar and Cleveland Council, Tees Valley Music Service and Orchestras Live. We are grateful for the support of our funders, the Woodsmith Foundation and Hays Travel Foundation.