Long Overdue Updates!
Hi everyone,
It’s been a while since I’ve done a proper blog update, so here is everything that has happened over the last 6 months!
First for the biggest bit of work news-
I have taken the leap and will be going full time into freelance and CMFW work from November 2024. I am just finishing off my work with my current employers and handing over to my replacement and then I’ll be focusing 100% of my work time here. I have a few exciting projects lined up, and I’m in the process of setting up a couple of the CMFW groups so they are all ready to start in January 2025. I feel really excited about this next step in my career and look forward to broadening my skill set, by working within different demographics and settings.
CMFW news-
This summer saw the start of the ‘Be in a Band’ project. This was piloted with Cambridgeshire DSCN who took the lead with advertising, booking an appropriate space and supporting the group during the delivery of the project. We ran three sessions each lasting two and a half hours. Each session focused on writing a song as a group and recording it together. There were fun activities planned along the way, movement breaks, snacks, drawing activities and a sing-along section. The sessions received great feedback from the group members and their families/carers. We are currently looking into booking another session for the October half term and working to develop an online friendly version for those who cannot attend in person.
The Muses is still undergoing funding applications and fundraisers, but keep your eyes peeled for new updates in January 2025!
Harmony Groups are in the works as well. Harmony is another community group set up for those who have SEND and want to explore music and develop their social interaction skills. It is also really important to provide those with SEND different forms of communication opportunities and space to express themselves. Music is perfect for this and is hopefully something everyone will be able to connect with. We are looking to get a space in a community centre booked on a weekly basis, so we are currently scouting out all possible locations. Then we can look at getting some advertisement out there! The plan is to have both a childrens group (ages 4-17) and an adults groups (18+) up and running by January 2025.
Meret Bar Hill’s Community Choir is still thriving! We are starting to prepare for our winter concert which will be held on the 19th of December 2024. We will be welcoming the local community to come and listen to what we’ve been working on and get everyone singing some classic Christmas carols! There will be mince pies so make sure to put the date in your diary! We are also looking at planning a ‘Bring a friend’ event to a rehearsal to try and encourage a bigger uptake of members. Music is so good for the soul and we want to share it with you! More to come on that soon.
Private lessons and therapy-
I currently have 2 spaces left for instrument lessons or therapy sessions. So please do reach out before they’re gone! My books won’t open again until at least January 2025 once they’re filled. The CMFW Christmas concert might have some special guests in the form of some of my students, to perform a piece or two they’re working on and proud of!
Overall, it has been a busy few months, and it’s bound to get even more so with Christmas creeping up on us and the start of full-time work in freelance and self-employment!
Please do not hesitate to get in contact if you want to get involved! I’d love to hear from you J
All my love,
Rachael
