Tell us about the BSO’s SEND schools’ tours?

Jess: Our blended ensemble of musicians travels across the South West playing music to students in SEND schools each year. This year the tour travels to schools in Alton, Bristol and Poole. The ensemble is made up of 14 players from the BSO, BSO Resound and the National Open Youth Orchestra (NOYO) and there will be music from Bartok’s Romanian Dances to Bernstein’s West Side Story, and much more! The concerts are conducted by our Calleva Assistant Conductor Enyi Okpara this year and are presented using Makaton by one of our BSO Associate Musicians, Sam Mason. The aim is to create a really fun and dynamic experience for students, and the opportunity to listen to some brilliant music!

Why are these tours so important for SEND students?

Jess: For many SEND schools, travelling on a school trip is a real barrier due to accessible transport challenges and care needs, as well as venue accessibility issues. Therefore, it’s important for us to bring live music to schools directly.

A lot of students in these schools are already very engaged in music-making so bringing concerts like these to them is incredibly valuable. One school, Treoloar’s, has their own Clarion band! So it’s great that they can see Clarions being used in our ensemble.

As well as inspiring music-making generally, it’s important that students in SEND schools see a high level of representation of disabled musicians in our ensemble; it shows them that there are musical pathways available to them, such as NOYO and BSO Resound.

Why is this year’s tour different?

Jess: The main difference this year is that the tour includes musicians from NOYO as well as BSO and BSO Resound musicians. A key reason for this is that we want to provide musicians from NOYO further development opportunities. They’re all embarking on their own different musical journeys, so this is an opportunity for them to gain professional experience in multiple settings and alongside BSO musicians. And it’s brilliant for SEND students to see young musicians represented in the ensemble too!

What does it mean for the players (from various ensembles) to connect with the next generation of students and musicians in this way?

Kate: We all remember amazing teachers and mentors; and we all have musicians we look up to. I remember many of my own who have moulded me as a player­ — some of them no longer alive —  but whose wisdom I carry with me. As a teacher, I get great joy from working with students and young musicians and watching their successes. I also learn as much as I teach, because I have to ensure I give to each student what they need individually. I couldn’t teach without learning and I couldn’t perform without teaching, or indeed teach without performing. Once on stage, age gaps melt away, even if there is sometimes an experience gap.

What feedback have you had from students and teachers about the impact of these tours?

Jess: We receive a lot of feedback in the moment from observing student’s emotions, whether that is dancing or running around because they are excited or moving closer to hear the music. Teachers also consistently tell us that students get so much out of these concerts and that they really engage with the music; we hear that they feel more inspired to play after our visit. We also receive a lot of feedback people say it’s great to have Makaton used as well because they use it in the schools all the time.

How will the special finishing performance at Wiltshire Music Centre bring together the work of the tour?

Kate: On a personal note, I’m looking forward to performing a more extended concert and playing all the pieces at their full length, following on from the shortened versions necessary for the schools’ concerts. It is always rewarding to perform repertoire a number of times and to bring it to a more cohesive performance than is possible on one rehearsal day and a one-off concert.

For me the SEND tour becomes more rewarding with each performance; the reception by our schools’ audiences is always joyous and effusive. To finish with a full-length public concert takes the music to a wider audience, and I hope they forget about the disabilities while the music is playing.

To book tickets for our concert at the finishing performance of the SEND tour at Wiltshire Music Centre in Bradford-on-Avon, on Wednesday 23 July, click here