Everyone has a rhythm. We all heard our mother’s heartbeat
The Creative Connections Project sees a group of 10 people coming together for two hours a week over 7 weeks, making music and telling stories with professional musicians, and they are invited to perform in a concert at the end of the series.
Five musicians will co-curate the concert, sharing their favourite music from their cultures and their careers as musicians. The result is a captivating mix of music from plainchant by Hildegard of Bingen, to music by North American composer Kenji Bunch, accordion virtuosi Richard Galliano and Astor Piazzolla, violin music by Enescu and arrangements of pieces by Attab Haddad and Kuljit Bhamra – both of whom will perform in the concert.
The programme will also include solos from Kuljit’s latest album A Tablanaut’s Journey, delightfully woven together in a continuous 70-minute performance, telling stories of what brings us together in a joyful celebration of our shared humanity.
Alongside the concert performance are creative workshops with the St John’s Waterloo community. In these workshops, music, improvisation and storytelling will collide, culminating in a soundscape devised by the musicians and workshop attendees as equal creative partners.
NW Live Arts was started in 2018 by Caroline Heslop in Camden, with the mission of bringing world-class music to communities which have been historically marginalised or underserved. Each concert is intelligently curated around a theme, with a very diverse range of influences – from well-known classical music, new music, folk and music from around the world feeding into the programme.
Alongside each concert there is a series of music and storytelling workshops which help local people engage with the theme of the concert, meet and be creative with some of the musicians from the concert, and for those who wish to, perform in the concert.
Caroline Heslop of NW Live Arts says: “Sometimes just the smallest interaction with creativity, whether that’s singing a song or drawing a doodle, can open up a whole new world. We take huge pride in bringing people together and seeing them grow in confidence, learn more about themselves, form new friendships, and even just smile more.”
Rhea Parker, workshop facilitator says “I think it is easy to become complacent about the role of the arts as we are drenched in digital ‘content’ all the time. But just a couple of weeks ago I was running a session with some stroke survivors and I just sang a simple song as a warm-up and one of the participants immediately started to cry. In that moment I was reminded yet again of how many people don’t experience or have access to live music – music that is made with them and for them – and what a powerful moment it can be when it happens. Those moments are immensely nourishing and continue to motivate me to keep working in this field.”
Or this from Aga Serugo-Lugo: “everyone has a rhythm. We all heard our mother’s heartbeat. Making music doesn’t have to be complex, but is something that pulses within you. Anyone can make sound, and if you can make decisions about where that sound goes, you’re a musician. With this comes a sense of acknowledgement, inclusion, and meaning, as people delve deep into things that make their heart sing.”
The concert will take place on Wednesday 17 April 2024 at St John’s Waterloo, SE1 8TY. Time: 7.30 – 9.30pm.
Admission: £18, £10.
Tickets: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/nwlivearts/1131883
