ABRSM, the world’s leading authority on musical assessment, is to sponsor the Federation of Music Services (FMS) for the academic year September 2010 to August 2011. John Witchell, Chief Executive of FMS, announced the sponsorship agreement at the FMS Conference 2010 in Belfast (16–18 June). The grant will support the ongoing promotion and provision of the 12- month FMS course “Rising with the tide: managing and leading music services in the 21st century”.

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 FMS Conference 2010 programme

You can also read about the cross culture Irish welcome that conference delegates will receive from talented pupils in each of the Education and Library Boards.

Presentations from the conference will shortly be on the conference page.

Download the Feedbackformhere! Conference Feedback Form 2010

The Federation of Music Services’ annual conference in Belfast from 16 – 18 June will be the first occasion that the conference has been held in Northern Ireland and it comes at a time when the future level of government support for music education after 2011 is still uncertain.

On the first full morning of the conference at the Belfast Hilton hotel, delegates will be greeted by a youthful Irish musical extravaganza in the form of ‘Celtic Fusion’. The band has a meld of talent from across the province including drummers and dancers are from St Cecilia’s College (Western Education and Library Board) and the Southern Education and Library Board (SELB), and traditional musicians from Our Lady’s Grammar School (SELB). (more…)

The Federation of Music Services (FMS), the organisation that represents all music services in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, has announced that Virginia Haworth-Galt is to become its new Chief Executive. She takes up the post on the 9th August 2010.

Ms Haworth-Galt is the first FMS chief executive to come from outside the world of music services and her appointment signals a mood of change within the music education sector as budgets come under scrutiny and streamlining of services moves into sharper focus. (more…)

I just wanted to thank FMS for producing the ‘Ten things you should know’ poster.

I am making good use of it by using it as a back page to programmes, brouchures, reports etc - in fact anything I send out. I am also producing a ’stop press’ flyer ‘Ten things you should know about YOUR Music Service’ to accompany it.

I think in these times, anything we can do to keep music at the forefront of schools’, parents’ and politicians’ minds can only be good.

Isobel Liebman
Principal
Havering Music School

Mayor’s music education fund

A £100,000 grant was announced this week to seed fund partnerships between local authority music services and orchestras and ensembles in London.  The programme will open in May 2010 and will cover projects in the academic year September 2010 to July 2011.  The aim is to give young people the experience of working with professional musicians, encouraging them to make music in ensembles whilst helping to raise their musical aspirations.  It will also strengthen and deepen the partnership working between London’s music services and the orchestral sector.  The fund will be administered by the GLA in partnership with the Federation of Music Services’ London region, and working closely in the first instance with the Association of British Orchestras (ABO). 

The GLA Music Education Programme steering board will be chaired by Karen Brock, Head of Tower Hamlets Arts and Music Education Service (THAMES).

You can download a copy of the GLA Music Education Strategy here:

Making Music Matter - Music Education Strategy for London 2010-2012

by Graeme Smith, Head of Croydon Music and Arts, Treasurer of Federation of Music Services

Member of Music Manifesto Partnership and Advocacy Group

Investment in music and cultural education in Finland and its place as the top performing country for educational attainment of 15 year olds in reading, maths and science is no coincidence.  That was my conclusion after spending two days in Finland visiting schools and music schools, talking to key music educators and studying information about the Finnish education system.

In Finland the key to the link between music and cultural education and educational attainment is that across all Finnish education there is a focus on Finnish culture.  From history to home economics the national curriculum in Finland stresses the importance of studying Finnish culture, other cultures which have influenced Finland, and other cultures from around the world.  The sense of identity this gives to people living in Finland is a major factor in promoting confidence and achievement in a nation which has historically been overshadowed by its much larger neighbours.

In the UK we tend to use the arts to teach about different cultures.  It is time we developed a more positive approach to giving young people a cultural identity.  This will also improve community cohesion in multi cultural Britain.  To enjoy and value other cultures we must first value the culture of our own heritage.  That is true whether a young person’s cultural heritage is from a region in England or from another part of the world or a mixture.

We already know how music and the arts can contribute to young people’s development.  They can learn vital personal, social and educational skills to enable them to achieve.  Through the arts young people can explore challenges and adversities in life, understand them better and take strength from coping with them.  Young artists can make a positive contribution to their communities.  Investing in arts education will build resilience in vulnerable young people, reduce youth crime and disorder and reduce the number of NEET young people (Not in Education, Employment and Training).  Investing in arts education will save money.

This is well understood in Finland.  An international study of arts education in more than sixty countries found that Finland has far more arts education than any other country.  Finnish music schools have more than five times the funding from central government compared to music services in England, and more than eight times the funding from Finnish municipalities than music services receive from local authorities in England.  Yet the overall spending on education in Finland is very similar to here.

Let us use music and cultural education to give our young people their own cultural identity and the confidence, self esteem and aspiration which goes with it.  Let us use music and cultural education to enable our young people to achieve as highly as the highest performing nations in the world.

The full-length article can be downloaded here:  Lessons in music and education from Finland

Cambridgeshire Music is delighted to present an exciting series of concerts for the beginning of 2010.

A Celebration of Youth Wind Music
15 February 2010,7pm, West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge
The Cambridgeshire Youth Wind Orchestra will perform under the direction of Russell Cowieson.

CPYO Spring Concert
9 April 2010, 7.30pm, West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge
This concert will feature the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Youth Orchestra performing Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony and music by Bernstein and Copland.

Gala Concert
10 April 2010, 5pm, Peterborough Cathedral
This concert will bring together young musicians from throughout Peterborough and Cambridgeshire to perform a wide range of music in wonderful surroundings. It will be a memorable evening.

TICKETS
Spring Season Ticket (3 concerts): £10
Single Ticket: £5
Free for concessions

Please call 01480 373555 or email cm@cambridgeshire.gov.uk for more information or to book tickets.

The FMS annual conference for 2010 will be held at the The Hilton hotel, Belfast. See the conferences page for more details or go straight to the online booking area.