Music in the Round
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Music in the Round (MitR) is the leading national promoter of chamber music. We were established in 1984 by Peter Cropper, leader of the renowned Lindsay String Quartet, who pioneered the idea of music performed and listened to ‘in-the-round’. We present chamber music, in the widest sense of the term to include classical, jazz, folk and world music, at events characterised by passion, excellence and proximity.
Music in the Round is not simply a physical arrangement of the audience sitting around musicians; it is about connecting people to the music in a way that lives on long after the event. Each year we reach over 30,000 people across the country, engaging over 10,000 young people aged 0-19.
Our resident group, Ensemble 360, comprises 11 world-class musicians who are at the heart of our programme of concerts and innovative learning and participation events, delivering high quality music in a variety of settings to people of all ages and levels of ability.
Learning and Participation lies at the core of all our activity. We have strong partnerships with Music Education Hubs, schools, universities, colleges and, importantly, audiences, enabling us to bring music alive to people of all ages. Our four strands of activity engage children, young people and adults alike with a programme that includes activity from babies through to adults in their senior years, taking place throughout South Yorkshire as well as in collaboration with our partners up and down the country.
We commission new works for children from our Children’s Composer-in-Residence, Paul Rissmann, which receive nationwide performance, and these are at the heart of our Early Years programme for families and schools. We also provide comprehensive support for all (including non-specialist) teachers, nursery staff, parents and carers to build their musical knowledge and skills through a wide range of digital resources and a regular programme of Early Years Music training days and conferences.
Close links with the Sheffield Music Hub and Sheffield Music Academy have led to some amazing projects and events in the city, for both young performers and composers. Our Creating and Composing strand sees inspirational professional musicians deliver projects in primary, secondary and special needs settings, and projects such as ‘Schubert in Schools’ help support teachers to inspire their students to expand their musical creativity through singing and composition. We also bring people together to create music through ‘Coming Together’ events where anyone can get involved, from total beginners to advanced, and our pioneering Refugee Project in Barnsley invites refugees and those seeking asylum to come together once a month to make music.
Through our Emerging Talent strand, we nurture the development of young musicians through workshops, performance platforms, opportunities to play alongside professionals, mentoring and work experience. Our Bridge scheme provides a learning opportunity for young musicians who are currently studying music or have recently graduated, providing a platform for them to develop workshop-leading skills as well as improving their performance skills in concert. We regularly provide coaching and masterclasses for students at Sheffield Music Academy, part of the national network of Centres of Advanced Training.
Our Concerts Plus strand features talks by leading specialists on music and by experts who can bring a different perspective on the music from their own non-musical subject discipline. These include question and answer sessions, programme notes, resources and informal opportunities to meet musicians after concerts; all of which add to the depth and quality of people’s cultural experiences through the imaginative and eclectic concerts, festivals and events we programme.
Find us on YouTube
https://youtube.com/user/musicintheround
