Most read Youth Music Network posts 2019
Thank you to everyone who's contributed to the Youth Music Network community this year! Here are the top blogs of 2019.
10) Music for Babies (0-12 months) Independent Case Study - Babigloo
"It seemed to lift and carry Rachael back to finding the joy of motherhood and a way to cope through music. Watching Millie gain in confidence was very rewarding – the day we had a harpist seemed to touch them both greatly."
9) Transferrable skills and music leading – Rob Tilsley, Plymouth Music Zone
"I take huge learning and value from sharing what I witness and what this means between people. It has enriched my own life experience and has very much shaped how I work as a music leader, among other things."
8) Podcast Episode 5: Hip Hop in Music Education with Essex Music Service - Daniel Williams, Youth Music
"The wide-ranging conversation highlights the role of hip hop in reaching and inspiring young people, its impact on forming personal identities and its effectiveness in supporting language development and expression. We also explore the roots of the culture, its evolution into modern forms of the genre and touch on some of the recent media controversy surrounding drill music."
7) Peer learning and Maracatu in the North East - Tim Coyte, Switch It
"We wanted to show our young musicians some potential career/development opportunities and that there are different routes for different people, Sam said “I have taken a very non-traditional and non-academic route in terms of working within the community music scene, so you don’t need to necessarily be good at theory or have to have loads of grades, instead have lots of passion and drive.”"
6) Reflective Essay for Musicians in Healthcare Mentoring Programme - Lila Bhattacherjee, rb&hArts and Sound Connections
"Each of these projects has pushed me out of my comfort zone and taught me invaluable skills as a musician, but what I’ll remember the most are the human interactions I’ve been lucky enough to experience as part of this work."
5) Supporting children’s language development, memory, listening and attention skills - Soundtots
"3-year-old children from disadvantaged backgrounds will have heard on average 30 million fewer words than children from affluent backgrounds and also possess half the vocabulary. However, the right environmental support has the potential to make a real difference in children’s language learning, and consequently, to their later academic success / life chances."
4) Podcast Episode 6: Exchanging Notes - Nick Wilsdon, Youth Music
"At a time when a lot of press coverage is focusing on music in schools being under threat, this conversation looks at how new ways of working can engage young people in school-based music making and support their musical, personal and social development."
3) Circle of Light Week One - Circle of Light
"I’ve been working on a little bit of everything, I worked with two of my friends who also study here and we started working on a song about mental health. We’ve been doing some looping, kind of dark but like a rock vibe. I then stood in as a bassist for another group and that was more of a relaxed and happy song."
2) From participant to music leader and beyond - Shane Gray, Plymouth Music Zone
"We had a massive breakthrough and this little girl just suddenly made a sound with the microphone, one day she just did it. I just had such a warm feeling. It's not like I have to do it, it's like I want to do it and it's like having the feeling of wanting to try and make everyone happy."
1) Stormzy vs Mozart vs Music Education - Max Wheeler, Charanga VIP Studio Sessions
"Education needs to make the leap and accept that all forms of music are valuable, regardless of our own personal taste. Mozart may have more harmonic complexity than a Stormzy track (arguably in some cases), but Stormzy wins on complex syncopated rap flows and using language to interact with an international hip hop & grime fanbase. These are both important. One does not exclude the other."
Want to join in and start blogging next year? Take a look at our top tips for writing posts on the Youth Music Network.
Photo by Blouhaus Photography - New YVC performing at the Youth Music Awards 2019 in association with Hal Leonard Europe