Banded About Birmingham

Collaborative music project encourages sparks of creativity in Birmingham schools

School music lessons didn't used to hold much excitement - a class of 30 kids armed with plastic recorders, attempting to play in unison but instead simply producing a cacophony of squeaks, toots and sounds only audible to canines. Hardly the way to tap into any potential to find the next Nigel Kennedy, Jimmy Page or Soweto Kinch.

Happily, some of today’s generation of Birmingham school children have an enviably better experience to spark their creative minds.

For the last 12 months, more than 3,000 children and a host of teachers, professional musicians and music lovers have been taking part in workshops and performances as part of Banded About, a year-long project by the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and its Birmingham Music Hub partners – Birmingham Jazz, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, Town Hall Symphony Hall and Digbeth-based Sound It Out.

Ranging from ages 9-13, the main focus has been to keep children interested in music after progressing into Year 7.