Orchestras for All is delighted to announce Nick Thorne as our new Executive Director. Nick joins us as we approach our 10 year anniversary and launch of new 2020-2025 strategy after leadership roles at Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Dorset Music Hub and most recently as Head of Partnerships at the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain.
National Orchestra for All appoints Lucy Hale as inaugural Young Composer-in-Residence
Orchestras for All is delighted to announce Lucy Hale has been appointed its inaugural Young Composer-in-Residence for the 2019-2020 season. Hale will work with the 100 young members of the National Orchestra for All (NOFA) to create a brand new piece of music to be premièred at the spectacular season finale concert on 9 April 2020 at LSO St Luke’s in London.
Welcome Susanna!
Words into Music with the National Orchestra For All
On Sunday, April 14, 2019, one hundred young members of the UK’s National Orchestra for All (NOFA) took to the stage of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire for their 2018-2019 season finale concert. As ever, the young musicians of this unique, mixed ability orchestra came from all over the UK; as ever, they brought the audience to its feet. And once again, they delivered a world premiere, this time An Orchestra of Overheard Conversations—which they also co-composed.
WordPlay 2019: highlights from the season so far!
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As our 2017-2018 Orchestras for All (OFA) season Music and Dance: Rhythm of Life draws to a close, our attention is turning to our new season, WordPlay, and the exciting repertoire and creative activities we have planned for 2018-2019. WordPlay will explore the inter-connectedness between music and words looking at how music can communicate, tell stories and convey meaning. We will be learning and creating repertoire that celebrates music inspired or influenced by both the written word and the spoken word.
Orchestras for All announces developments in its leadership team
Marianna Hay, the Founder and Chief Executive of OFA has been selected as a Fellow on the prestigious Clore Leadership Programme. Since Marianna founded OFA in 2011 the charity has worked with over 1000 young people with complex needs, supported over 75 music teachers and community music leaders and created over 25 arrangements of specially-created music for mixed ability ensembles. In 2016, Marianna won the Musician’s Union Inspiration Award for her work with Orchestras for All at the Music Teacher Awards for Excellence.
A Waltz in the Park: Making the notes playable for a mixed ability ensemble
The Modulo Programme 2017-18 has launched, with Modulo Meets coming to Birmingham, London, Manchester and Sheffield in March 2018! While schools looking to kick-start ensemble music-making are signing up to the programme, OFA’s arranger-in-residence, Emma Oliver-Trend, has been busy arranging repertoire on the theme of music for dance, ready for our Modulos to begin rehearsing in January. We asked Emma to tell us a bit more about the process she works through when arranging for mixed ability ensembles.
