News and Reviews

News: Funding Secures Innovative Music Making Projects
April 13 2011

Sinfonia Viva, the East Midlands-based professional Orchestra, has secured funding from Arts Council England – enabling it to forge ahead with plans to develop its concert giving and community and education programmes throughout the region.

Sinfonia Viva will receive £191,000 in 2012-13, rising to £200,473 in 2014-15 – an announcement welcomed by Chief Executive Peter Helps, who said: "I am obviously delighted with the news which gives us a firm footing on which to plan the future programming for the Orchestra."

Principal Conductor André de Ridder added: "I am pleased that the Arts Council has shown so much confidence in the plans and structure of the Orchestra."

Sinfonia Viva has built up a national reputation for its high quality concert programme, coupled with ground-breaking community and education projects - enabling young people in particular to work with and then perform alongside professional musicians at venues across the region.

These have, in the past two years alone included:

• Nottinghamshire: working with pupils at The Grove School in Newark which culminated in a performance at The Palace Theatre
• Derbyshire: bringing together more than 100 primary, secondary and college students for the world premiere of Night Shift where they composed and performed music inspired by the Orchestra's resident composer Anna Meredith's night on the city streets
• Lincolnshire: working in partnership with Lincoln Drill Hall and The Usher Collection at The Gallery for a music making project and performance involving pupils from Monks Abbey Primary School and Nettleham Junior School as well as students from Lincoln College
• Leicestershire: working with 100 pupils from three North West Leicestershire schools in a unique music and dance project evoking the magic of The National Forest
• Northamptonshire: bringing together 40 young and older people from Daventry Youth Forum and Daventry Over Fifties Forum for an innovative music project aimed a bridging the generation gap culminating in a concert organised by Daventry District Council

Viva Education Manager Marianne Barraclough concluded: "Our education outreach work has won national acclaim and the funding from Arts Council England will give us the solid platform to work with more local authorities, schools and community groups across the East Midlands to inspire young people in particular to get involved in all sorts of music whether playing or listening."

She continued: "Research with schools involved in past projects throughout the East Midlands showed that more than 80% of the young people involved had never before been to an orchestral concert before – let alone perform in one! Our projects are therefore designed to give a dynamic, high quality first experience for many of these young people to show them that orchestral music can be fun."

Media enquiries: Sarah Jenkin-Jones - Tel: 01332 515102/07951 945 665 sarah@jjpublicrelations.co.uk

Anna Meredith is Sinfonia Viva's Composer in the House - a Royal Philharmonic Society and PRS for Music Foundation initiative.