The LSO’s Music-making workshop
Founded in 1904, the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is one of the oldest symphony orchestras in the UK. In addition to recording, performing and touring, it also runs an education programme called 'LSO Discovery'.
In this video, Rachel Leach, one of the animateurs(workshop leaders) at LSO Discovery, introduces the workshop that she runs in schools and other institutions with LSO musicians. She explains their approach for music-making workshops, in which they engage with children who each have varying abilities and musical skills.
Workshop structure
The details and length of the workshop are flexible and can be negotiated with the participants, but a typical plan may look like the following.
1. Warm-up
2. Introduce musicians’instruments
3. Demonstrate the task
4. Work in small teams
5. Teams share creations
6. Perform together
First is the warm-up, which is an effective way of signalling to the group that they are about to do something creative and fun. The warm-up involves a simple activity that everyone can participate in, such as passing a clap around a circle.
Next, musicians introduce the instruments they typically play. As time is limited in classrooms, it is a good idea to introduce them briefly without going into too much detail.
Then the children begin creating a new piece of music. The facilitator first introduces the music they will be working with (in the case of the LSO, from the orchestra’s repertoire) and its composer to the group, then uses three ideas pulled from the music to stimulate creativity. Please watch the video for in-depth examples of the ‘three ideas’ method.
Next, the children break out into teams and complete the task themselves with musicians. For this section, it is best to set a time limit.
After the teams have worked on their new creations, it is time to share them. It is important that the facilitator reassures the children that there are no wrong answers as each team presents their creations.
Sometimes it is alright to divert from the original plan, as the groups’ ideas may take you in a new, unexpected direction. After listening to each team's work, the facilitator takes on the role of navigator, bringing the children’s music together to create a single piece of work.
Finally, the whole group performs the music they created. After this, the musicians play the original piece. The children can compare their own music with the composer's original, discussing the similarities and differences.
Watch the video to learn more. Please feel free to use the tips and methods in your own workshops.