Music of the Skerne, and Classically Yours: outreach continues in many forms at Orchestras Live.

Participants' word responses to a presentation
by Discover Brightwater about the River Skerne
in the first creative workshop.

Whilst live performances have not been possible, Orchestras Live has been continuing its outreach work across the country. 

A new project, Music of the Skerne has recently started. Based at the Haughton Academy in the Haughton-le-Skerne area of Darlington, County Durham, the project involves pupils creating a new work inspired by the River Skerne (a tributary of the River Tees).

Through a series of creative online workshops, working with composer/arranger Sarah Freestone and lyricist Katie Doherty, pupils will create lyrics and music inspired by the river and its history - from Romans to railways via marshland and the Durham Ox.

The resulting new piece will be premiered by Opera North later in 2021, with the support of artistic partners Discover Brightwater, Darlington Hippodrome, Durham Music Service and Opera North.

In other Orchestras Live news, its Classically Yours programme is five. The programme works to engage new audiences by addressing the inequalities of opportunity to access high quality live orchestral music in the East Riding of Yorkshire, and in a recent article on the website, 'Why would a professional orchestra want to come here?', Jan Ford, Senior Creative Producer, reflects on those five years.

Full details from the Orchestras Live website.