Make a Donation Today
Your support, however small or big, will transform lives.
CORONAVIRUS EMERGENCY: MUSIC APPEAL
The closure of churches, concert and rehearsal venues results in a total income loss for us of £10,000 each month. This comprises both cash donations and revenue generating events including our choir concerts, workshops and the Leeds International Organ Festival.
In response we are now asking for your urgent support. With your help we will be able to continue our full programme online with thousands of children each week. During the most challenging time of our recent history the need to nurture talent, raise aspirations and provide security and structure for our choir families and school communities is at its greatest – with your help we will not abandon the children we work with.
‘This is truly excellent work, and your call for us to increase, not diminish, music, education, community and charity is so encouraging.’
Tom Daggett, St Paul’s Cathedral
OUR RESPONSE TO THE LOCKDOWN
With churches and schools closed, many providers have ‘furloughed’ their entire music staff. At a time when children desperately need these musical and educational skills our approach is different: to adapt and retrain all staff to work effectively in the new online medium. Our message is ‘business as usual’; providing stability and reassurance in these uncertain and distressing times.
‘He absolutely loved the rehearsal! I was so happy to see him sitting quietly, listening totally engaged and didn’t want it to finish! I think the online lessons will benefit everyone, not only the boys, we all need something to keep us going especially in this difficult time. We are so grateful that you can continue to teach the children. Even though he can’t go out, he is at least happy that he can still learn to sing with you and continue to see his choir friends.’
Choir Parent
BUSINESS AS USUAL
Using the combined creative and technological skills of a diverse musical team we have been delivering our full 18 after-school choirs, School Singing Programme and Keyboard Training Programmes online since 26th March. We must continue to inspire our young musicians and provide stability and reassurance for children and families in these uncertain and distressing times.
Whilst we are all confined to our homes our online work is providing children with all the mental health benefits of structured learning, keeping them busy and engaged with a sense of routine. Families are telling us it is also a great help to them as a whole.
TAKING A NATIONAL LEAD
On 2nd April Diocese of Leeds Music organised a webinar called ‘Practical Approaches to Choir Rehearsals Online’ to share what we had learnt with other organisations. The 50 attendees included Westminster Abbey, St Paul’s Cathedral, HM Chapel Royal Windsor, Christ Church Oxford and King’s College Cambridge as well as choir directors from a diverse range of schools and colleges. Find out more >>
WITH YOUR HELP WE CAN
Please consider texting CHURCH MUSIC to 70500 to contribute £5 to the Music Coronavirus Emergency Appeal.
Fabulous opportunity here for boys age 10-13: @junior_trinity @Voices_Found @CreativeEdTrust @DRETmusic @into_opera @ChapelRoyalHCP @BrittenPears @MonBoysPrep @SouthendChoirs @DOLMusic @GlosBoysChoir https://twitter.com/ETOpera/status/1420766954374275075
@gerrylynch @DOLMusic works with 1000s of children in Catholic schools every week on a model that centres choral music in state schools (emphatically not outreach), with the cathedral element an outcome of this - the primary purpose for the Diocese is evangelisation.
@thomas_leech @gerrylynch @DOLMusic Amazing and inspiring work in @DOLMusic 👏 👏 👏
Staff | Diocese of Leeds Music
www.dioceseofleedsmusic.org.uk
Vacancies Music Programme Manager Contract: PermanentLocation: West Yorkshire Join our award-winning team! The post of Music Programme Manager is a full time position for a gifted and dynamic arts administrator. Our Music Programme, recently recognised by a prestigious Royal Philharmonic Society awa...
Leeds International Organ Festival
www.judithweir.com
For two years, I've been looking forward to visiting the enthusiastic Leeds International Organ Festival, led by cathedral organist David Pipe. But with restrictions still in place, we had to get back online. LIOF presented an ingenious e-programme of organ recitals, plus a few live events, and I of...