> A new pop/rock group - the bAnd
> The Brent Flute Choir Workshops
> Brent Makes Music 2010
> Brent Young Musician of the Year 2010
> The Triangle Project & Concert
> BMS and The Schools Proms 2009
> New BMS Flute Choir Launched
> BMS and the Flutewise Project 2009
> BMS and the Razumovsky Project
> Brent Junior Musician of the year 2009
> Junior Fest 2009 - a great success

> the bAnd - Auditions & Info
> Brent Young Musician of the Year
> Brent Makes Music
> Junior Fest
> Brent Junior Musician of the Year

> Claremont Evening Centre
> Wembley Evening Centre
> Queens Park Evening Centre
> Brent Elementary Choir
> Brent Junior Choir
> Brent Junior Ensemble
> Brent Guitar Ensemble
> Brent Junior Samba Band
> Brent Youth Concert Band
> Brent Youth String Orchestra
> Musical Futures Programme
> Music'sCool Programme

> Which Instrument to Play?
> Instrument Hire
> Examinations

Latest News
In this section you'll find information and links to the many new developments, initiatives and projects that are being run by Brent Music Service.  Being a very busy organisation, Brent Music Service provides its students and the schools it serves with a vast array of innovative programmes.  

The 'Latest News' section is designed to keep you informed of these and is regularly updated, so please check back soon to learn more.

Be Part of Something New - the bAnd

Brent Music Service are embarking on a new modern band initiative - this is your chance to be part of something new!  We're looking for Brent’s best young guitarists, drummers, singers, bass players and keyboard players to set up a new modern pop group – the bAnd.

The group will be run by professional gigging musicians from Brent Music Service and it already has its first public event booked at Wembley Arena in July 2010 with a possibility of appearing at Glastonbury in 2011!

If you are a talented guitarist, drummer, keyboard player, bass player or vocalist with some performance experience, live or go to school/college in the London borough of Brent and are between the ages of 14-19 we need to hear from you before 9th April - download the application form today!

[Find out more]

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The BMS Flute Choir is looking forward to its second weekend workshop, taking place on 13th and 14th March in Malorees Junior School.  The workshop is aimed at flautists currently being taught by Brent Music Service aged 8-18 and across the abilities of grade 1-8, coming together for two days to get the most out of their instruments, music and general fun! 

Following the resounding success of the first workshop last November, the attendees of the March event will be able to enjoy another fantastic time of music making, mixed with a large helping of fun!  

The weekend will cover a range of topics, helping the participants to improve their technique, introducing them to the full range of flutes available, providing them with tuition in various sized groups,  give them the opportunity to learn new pieces and prepare for a workshop concert taking place at the end of the weekend.  An all round brilliant couple of days that will unquestionably improve their flute playing and music comprehension, not to mention the many new friends they'll make from  across the borough.

Find out more about learning the flute [click here].
Find out more about the next weekend workshop [contact Ms Campbell]

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Thursday, 8th July 2010 sees the return of Brent Makes Music - an impressive showcase event run by Brent Music Service and performed at the famous Wembley Arena.  This is a key night in the diary, so come and enjoy the unique atmosphere and experience that comes from around 1500 children from the London Borough of Brent performing a spectacular collection of music under the theme of 'I Have a Song to Sing'.

The evening will also bring a representative group from the highly successful Music'sCool early years music programme, a guest soloist performance from the (yet to be selected) winner of  Brent Young Musician of the Year 2010, the debut of Brent Music Service's newest venture, a rock/pop band - the bAnd, and the first appearance at this event for the BMS Flute Choir

Brent Music Service really does have a song to sing and it's happening at Wembley Arena on Thursday 8th July 2010 at 7.30pm - Tickets will be available to purchase from the Wembley Arena Box Office in May. 

[Find out more]

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The auditions are over and the six finalists have now been selected!  

Well done to everyone who took part - the judges particularly commented on the extremely high standard of all entrants this year.  

The deserved finalists selected include:

• Laurent Shinar - Double Bass [View Profile]

• Timothy Crawford  - Violin [View Profile]

• Rebecca Ryland-Jones  - Piano [View Profile]

• Indira Grier  - Cello [View Profile]

• Preeti Mahankali-Rao  - Double Bass [View Profile]

• Deni Teo  - Cello [View Profile]

These six young musicians will now compete for the title of 'Brent Young Musician of the Year 2010 and a share of an impressive prize fund totaling £800, together with the exciting opportunity to perform as a special guest soloist at the Brent Music Service showcase event 'Brent Makes Music 2010'.

The finals take place on Thursday 25th March at Claremont High School, Claremont Avenue, Kenton, HA3 0UH, so please come and support your local musical talent!

[Read More]

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On Monday 9^th November, members of the BMS Junior Ensemble, the BMS Concert Band and the BMS Senior Strings Orchestra, visited the Royal Albert Hall to watch the Schools Proms Concert.

Joseph Cheung (a member of the Senior Strings Orchestra) has written a full review of the trip which offers a superb account from a young audience member's point of view.

[Click Here] to Read the Review.

Anna Brindle seemed impressed by the experience:
"I was amazed by the playing standard of all the young people.  By the end of the concert I was determined to pick up another instrument. I would like to start to play the piano properly now. Though, after watching the whole concert, I felt I also wanted to play steel pans, electric guitar, recorder, xylophone, the drum kit and pretty much every other instrument I heard that evening! It was an amazing experience and I hope I can one day go again!"

Sofia Peacock also commented:
"The Hall was magnificent!"

"For me the most memorable performances were the steel band who played very bouncy pieces, the Welsh choir who sang Hallelujah (in Welsh), Quartet + 1 with their variety of musical instruments, and the special school with their unique ‘soundboard.’"

"The second part of the performance did not disappoint - particularly when the rock band came on and we all started screaming our heads off- well, the girls anyway!"  

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To capture the atmosphere and provide an insight from a performer's perspective, we have now added a review of the BMS Junior Fest 2009 event.

Prepared by Sofia Peacock, a performer at Junior Fest, the review gives a great personal angle on the event.

You can read the review by [Clicking Here] or by following the link on the Junior Fest 2009 page. 

Junior Fest 2009 took place on the 9th July at Brent Town Hall.  It was a musical feast enjoyed by all who attended, with over 150 young performers aged 8-13 presenting a showcase of musical talent to an enthusiastic 500+ strong audience.  

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The Triangle Project is a workshop initiative run by an organisation called DNA Culture, as a way of practically engaging young people in an exploration of popular music from the perspective of migration, immigration and trade.  The week long project explores how people have travelled from one country to another taking their music with them thereby preserving their identity and sharing it with others.

On Saturday, 7^th November at 7.30 pm The Triangle Project Concert will take place at Claremont High School, Kenton.  Tickets will be available at the door priced just £3.00 (£2.00 concessions). 

Presented by Brent Music Service, in association with DNA Culture, this exciting concert is the ‘end of course’ result of a ground-breaking music workshop, The Triangle Project.  This musical workshop took place during the October half-term, combining around 30 of Brent's young musicians with some of the biggest professional instrumentalist names from the UK, Africa and the USA,(including Pee Wee Ellis from the James Brown Band, Juldeh Camera star of WOMAD, Ramon Goose from Ace Bluesman and Diabel Cisshoko, Kora from Mali).  [Read More]

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A musical feast was enjoyed by all at the Brent Music Service Junior Fest 2009.  Held at Brent Town Hall on the evening of 9^th July, over 150 young performers aged 8-13 presented a showcase of musical talent to an enthusiastic 500+ strong audience.

The youngsters performed like seasoned professionals, with effortless stage changes and well-crafted choreography.  The evening was a true credit to the performers and indeed their tutors and the organising team for the event. [Read More]

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Following on from the success of the Flutewise experience (read more), Brent Music Service will be starting a flute choir in the next academic year.

This will include a set of training weekend workshops each term run by Jocelyn Campbell and BMS tutors culminating in a performance at ‘Brent Makes Music’ 2010 at Wembley Arena.

If your child attends one of the schools served by Brent Music Service and is of Grade One standard or above, they will receive details of the first workshop from their teacher at the start of the Autumn Term. 

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Flutewise - Inspirational Projects for BMS Flautists

Workshop
In January and March, 2009, Liz Goodwin, Gareth MacLearnon and Libbie Burrows from Flutewise ran two workshops at the BMS Evening Centre in Queens Park Community School , with some 50 young flute players from Brent, aged between 9 and 18, grades 1 to 8, in a massed flute choir.  

We worked on a piece that had been commissioned from Flutewise by Ian Clarke, a very successful flute composer and professor at The Guildhall College.  There were some rather strange things we had to do with our flutes: whale noises, tongue stops and percussive finger clicks, as well as shouting out zig zag rhythms at various points in the piece.  It was a great experience for our children to get together with other flute players and be part of such a massive sound.  

At the Barbican
In May, we went to the Barbican, where there were workshops and concerts all day.  We saw crystal encrusted flutes, piccolos and flutes as big as drain-pipes, we even had the opportunity to play flutes that cost £10, 000!!!! Throughout the day, there were flute concerts and workshops to join in and listen to.  We heard some of the best flute players in England play and it was all finished off with a world record attempt at a massed flute choir playing pieces we had rehearsed at 10 am that morning.  It was a long day, but all the children thoroughly enjoyed the experience and were inspired to do loads more practice!! I was very proud of all of them.  

My Day at Flutewise
By Bretia Coxon Owens, Salusbury Primary School

Hundreds of flute players from all over the country, different kinds of flutes everywhere and fabulous and fun workshops. Where could be a better place to spend your time than Flutewise?

There were many enjoyable workshops to do all through the day such as The Flute Cupboard, Film Music and Mamma Mia workshop.

I went to The Flute Cupboard and Mamma Mia workshops. They were hosted by some amazing people who really inspired me. People like Stephen Clark [Mamma Mia] and Andy Findon  [ The Flute Cupboard.]

My favourite bit about Flutewise was the mini concerts that anyone could watch and my Grandma and Dad really enjoyed some of these while I was doing workshops.

Thanks to Liz Goodwin who organised it.

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Brent Music Service and the Razumovsky Project
During the Easter holidays, over 40 of BMS's young ensemble members and their parents were treated to an extraordinary concert by three of the Razumovsky Academy's sponsored young artists.

The Razumvsky Academy is led by world-renowned Russian cellist Oleg Kogan (a Brent resident himself) and the performances by his young representatives on cello, viola and double bass were of international class.

Inspiration, Questions and Guidance

The impressive performances were then followed by an opportunity for the appreciative audience to put forward questions, youngster to youngster.  Oleg Kogan then continued with a masterclass featuring two of Brent Music Service's own instrumentalists - Tianna Xia (violin) and Catherine Lyon (flute), working on Beethoven's Serenade in D for Violin, Flute and Viola Opus 25. 

Wigmore Hall

To complete the experience, two weeks later Brent Music Service took 30 of its ensemble members to The Wigmore Hall, London to hear more of the Razumvsky Academy's young artists in the formal concert setting of this world-famous venue.  This was a perfect end to an innovative collaboration between Brent Music Service and the Razumovsky Academy.

An Undoubted Success

Eric Angus, Deputy Head of Service and coordinator of this project, commented: "This project has been an undoubted success. By enabling our own BMS musicians to hear such high quality performances by other young instrumentalists, it has unquestionably demonstrated what can be achieved .  The opportunity to talk openly with the performers and to enjoy the unique tuition approach offered by Oleg Kogan in the masterclass was also part of the inspiration this project has given to those present."

He continued: "I hope that this project will be replicated in Brent schools in the future, enabling more Brent school children to experience such outstanding music-making by young performers in the striking surroundings of The Wigmore Hall  - a venue which has played host to the world's finest musicians."

The Razumvsky Academy Concert
- A BMS Student's Perspective from Wigmore Hall

Freya Parks, a BMS student attended the Wigmore Hall concert and has compiled a compelling review of the event:

On April the 28^th a small group from Brent Music Service went on a trip to The Wigmore Hall to see the Razumovsky Academy .  The Academy is led by Oleg Kogan and the young musicians come from all over the world.  It was very exciting setting off by tube on a Tuesday evening with our umbrellas at the ready. 

It was my first time at the Wigmore Hall and I was very impressed.  It is an amazing Edwardian building, which is the perfect ... [Read More]

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Kieran Varjavand (guitar) and Emile Misquita (trumpet) were the two gold medal winners, unanimously chosen by the three esteemed adjudicators.  Both gold medalists will now have the opportunity to perform as guest soloists at the forthcoming BMS Junior Fest 2009 showcase event on 9th July at Brent Town Hall. 

This, the first BMS Junior Musician of the Year competition was an unquestionable success, with the judges and audience alike being extremely impressed by all the performances.  Medals were awarded as follows:
Gold Medals - Kieran Varjavand (guitar),  Emile Misquita (trumpet)
Silver Medals - Reuben Cantacuzino (saxophone), Louise Hamilton-Vickers (trumpet)
Bronze Medals - Emma Daly (flute), Leah Lovell (violin), Catherine Lyon (flute), Aaron Merai (euphonium)

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This new website offers a much more comprehensive selection of information about our services and music in general.  We've also amended the navigation options so you can reach any page from wherever you find yourself in the site.

Lots of new sections have been added which will help you in your decisions if you are thinking about learning to play an instrument or joining one of our many music ensembles.  We've also included details of the special music programmes we are running within schools (in addition to our normal in-school tuition services).

We're sure you'll like it and we  welcome your suggestions for any additional information you would like included. Make A Suggestion

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Brent Music Service runs a junior choir at Wembley Evening Centre where 10-13 year olds can come and sing, make new friends and enjoy the fun of being part of a team.

The Brent Junior Choir has performed at some fantastic venues and events including Wembley Arena and the House of Parliament!  You too could be part of this great opportunity by joining the Brent Junior Choir!

Learn new songs, learn new styles of music, be part of a team and enjoy the performance opportunities that are available through the Brent Junior Choir. 

No experience necessary - just enthusiasm and a desire to sing!

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