A new orchestra that aims to transform children's lives made its performing debut in Aberdeen yesterday.
Torry is the third community in Scotland to establish a Big Noise orchestra, a scheme inspired by Venezuela's "El Sistema" movement, with over 200 Primary 1 and 2 children from Walker Road and Tullos schools.
Big Noise Torry is delivered in partnership between Aberdeen City Council and the charity Sistema Scotland, with Aberdeen City Council committed to providing 75% of the funding. The other Big Noise orchestras are in Raploch, Stirling and Govanhill, Glasgow.
Sistema Scotland chairman Richard Holloway said: "From now on, every child growing up in Torry can have this orchestra in their lives. They will start as babies and by age six they will be given their own instrument."
makeabignoise.org.uk/sistema-scotland
This year's Glasgow Jazz Festival, which ended on Sunday, saw box office income increase by 20% with attendance also increased to more than 20,000.
Headline gigs included Gladys Knight's sell out concert at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall and a broad programme of jazz, funk and world music in the Old Fruitmarket and Recital Rooms, including a sell-out concert at the Old Fruitmarket featuring Eddi Reader with Scottish National Jazz Orchestra, contributed to the event's success.
The Rio Club - Glasgow Jazz Festivals' pop up venue - proved to be a popular venue, as was a new free, open air stage in the Merchant City. The festival presented the UK premiere of US jazz supergroup NeTTwork Trio and one of Australia's top jazz bands the Vampires, as well as first Scottish performances by Americans Jarrod Lawson (pictured) and Taylor McFerrin.
Jill Rodger, festival director, said: "We are delighted that this year's Glasgow Jazz Festival has been such a success, not only with increased ticket sales, but also with so many fantastic concerts. We look forward to building on this next year when we celebrate our 30th year in 2016."
jazzfest.co.uk
Conductor Holly Mathieson will take charge of the NYOS Junior Orchestra for its concert at Greyfriars Kirk on July 11 in Edinburgh. New Zealander Mathieson is currently the assistant conductor of BBC SSO as well as the Leverhulme conducting fellow at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.
The summer programme includes a work by Scottish composer John Maxwell Geddes, Hamish MacCunn's The Land of the Mountain and the Flood and Claude Debussy's Marche Écossaise as well as Edvard Grieg's In the Hall of the Mountain King, part of the BBC's Ten Pieces initiative, designed to open up the world of classical music to school children.
thequeenshall.net/elsewhere
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