TheMusicHub
Making Music Together
TheMusicHub Tuesday meetings will restart on Tuesday 3 October at 7pm in Bearsden Cross Parish Church
Who are we?
In October 2022 we started TheMusicHub, a new initiative to create an opportunity for our community to make its own chamber music. Our vision is to grow the potential of local players of all ages and skill levels into a community of connected musicians keen to play together in a friendly, supportive environment. We provide space, activities, occasional talks and professional guidance for people to play with others of their own standard, exploring a vast repertoire of great music. And even if it’s many years since you touched your instrument and you’re a bit rusty, don’t worry - we can help!
Meeting every Tuesday evening in Bearsden Cross Parish Church we set a group of enthusiastic amateurs loose with a selection of suitable chamber music, concentrating mainly though not exclusively on music for strings. Using at least three rooms we’re able to arrange players into several groups according to ability. We provide the music, advice and coffee, while participants bring their instruments and their enthusiasm!
There are special events too: last April we spent an enjoyable Saturday focused on the Schubert Octet. At the start of this season we’ll participate in a day of workshops with the Consone Quartet and in December we’ll host a Christmas-flavoured Milngavie Music Club party with music, refreshments and conversation to celebrate the value of amateur music-making.
Who can join in?
Adult amateur string players at around grade 4 and above, with a good sense of rhythm can start with easier music and progress from there. For the occasions wind and brass players join us, they will need to be more advanced.
Children over 16 can join us with parental consent. From October 2024 we hope to run extra sessions for younger children. Please ask about this.
When?
We meet on Tuesdays from 7pm to 9.30pm
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Our first weekly meeting this season will be on Tuesday 3rd October, 2023.
Where?
Bearsden Cross Parish Church, 59 Drymen Rd, Bearsden, G61 2SU.
How to register and pay for a session?
Please complete the online registration form to register with TheMusicHub to inform us of your interest. This will enable us to collect details for the purpose of organising the sessions.
Once registered and the sessions are running, players will be contacted by email each week to book a place for the following session.
Fees for playing participants: £5 per session. Pay when you attend, cash or card. Children under 16, no charge.
Further enquiries
If you are interested in coming to TheMusicHub but are not sure at what level or just want to know more, contact Pat Field by emailing: themusichub@milngaviemusic.org
PLAY MOZART
…the music, not the notes!
with the Consone String Quartet
Saturday, 30 September 2023, 9.30 am - 4 pm at Cairns Church Milngavie
TheMusicHub is hosting this event which is part of Milngavie Music Club’s season-opening Mozart in Milngavie weekend, a ‘mini-festival’ featuring the wonderful Consone String Quartet. The quartet will give two concerts (on Friday 29 September and Sunday 1 October) and on Saturday 30 September they will lead a day of chamber music workshops for amateur string players of all ages.
Mozart’s early chamber music for strings will be the focus for the day. These pieces bristle with youthful effervescence but are interwoven with hints of the extraordinary expressiveness that Mozart would develop in his later works. They are often taught to young learners and are relatively easy for many levels of players but how can the amateur group bring polish, pzazz and musicality to their performances without years of professional training?
The Consone Quartet will work and play alongside workshop participants. They will show that a shift in focus from the notes to the music can completely alter the activities engaged in during rehearsal, bringing new levels of energy and enjoyment for both players and listeners. The ideas and skills required to successfully play Mozart’s early music form the frame for all later chamber music performance and once these ideas are on board, later, more complicated repertoire can be approached with confidence and understanding.
The day will be made up of workshops, rehearsal opportunities and a final session where everyone will play Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusick. The atmosphere will be relaxed and fun but expect to work hard to get the full benefit from the day. Please bring a packed lunch; drinks will be provided throughout the day.
Pre-formed groups should prepare music from the period 1750 - 80. Places are limited. There may be some space for individual players so please apply and we will get back to you. Young players in pre-formed groups are welcome. Observers are welcome to come and see what we are doing; this is a day of learning so don’t expect a concert!
Signing up for the day
Please notify Pat Field of your interest by emailing: themusichub@milngaviemusic.org
You will be sent a booking form for return. Places are limited and we will let you know asap if you have a place.
The fee for participants, is £75
Under 18s and college students: £30
Observer fee: £10
Playing participants’ fees should be paid by Friday 15th September
Parents with children taking part, no charge.
Talks
Tuesday evenings at 8 in Bearsden Cross Parish Church - a series of informal talks and discussions, with recorded music. Talks last approximately one hour.
11th October - Why we’re starting a Music Hub – introductory talk and discussion
18th October - Steven Osborne’s recital on 21 October: pre-concert talk by Hugh Macdonald
25th October - The art of arranging: Derek Clark, Head of Music at Scottish Opera, talks about how to transform an opera score for full orchestra into a chamber ensemble version suitable for a small theatre.
1st November - 80 years of Milngavie Music Club: Hugh Macdonald traces the club’s illustrious history with recordings of some of the great artists who have performed for us.
8th November - Desert Island Discs
15th November - Michael Mofidian’s recital on 18 November: Pre-concert talk by Hugh Macdonald
22th November - Life in an orchestra: BBC SSO violinist Alex Gascoine, in conversation with Colin Suckling, takes us behind the scenes in a symphony orchestra and talks about the life of an orchestral musician.
29th November - Let’s Build a City, concert on 2 December: Pre-concert talk by Hugh Macdonald
