Open School Orchestras in Cornwall - an introduction
The film below gives an idea of the impact that the Open School Orchestra project has had in Cornwall. It has been a turning point in raising aspirations for the participants, the schools, and for what young disabled musicians in Cornwall can achieve, by giving their music a platform on Cornwall's biggest stage in front of an audience of almost 1,000.
The film below (made by Cornwall Music Education Hub) gives an introduction to the Open School Orchestras (OSO) project in Cornwall, part of the national project by OpenUp Music to create orchestras for young people with special educational needs or disabilities (SEN/D).
The project was delivered by Cornwall Music Service Trust staff, Steve Hawker and Simon Williams, and had quite an impact on the two schools (Pencalenick, and Richard Lander School). The 10 SEN/D students in each orchestra started off the year's project working individually or in small groups to find out what instrument they were drawn to, whether an acoustic instrument, keyboard, or an iPad app, including the Clarion app developed by OpenUp Music. As confidence and skills were built up they worked in larger groups, and finally as a whole orchestra, creating their own compositions and rehearsing them for performance.
The key turning point in the project was a large-scale gig for an audience of almost 1,000 (Cornwall Music Education Hub's showcase event, "Hub Sounds"). This was a major life event for the students, many of whom had never been in a theatre that size, let alone performed for an audience that large. Although they showed many nervous behaviours (including rocking, burping and farting!) both orchestras kept it together and gave a performance that many people later said was the highlight of the evening. By performing as equals in a gig with Cornwall's other talented mainstream young musicians, this helped raise aspirations for what inclusive music can be - for students, parents, schools, and the public. As is only right, there's now an expectation that Cornwall's OSOs should be a regular fixture in Cornwall's musical life.
The concert was also a turning point in the work of each OSO. They had a new confidence and purpose. And for the schools it also represented a moment of change - they had something to be proud of in their students, and now actively support the work continuing and developing over the next year with enthusiasm.
This project has been run by Cornwall Music Service Trust, with funding from Youth Music and Cornwall Music Education Hub. Photos are by Peter Glaser Photography, and were taken at Cornwall Music Education Hub's showcase event "Hub Sounds".