This year at The Music Place – An Odyssey
Summer time has arrived! We hope you’re all excited for the long holiday, we’re certainly ready for a rest after the year we’ve had, it’s been pretty busy… We started the academic year with a big ol’ bang with our 12 hour charity Buskathon, our first collab with...
Well cello there…
Here at The Music Place, we love to champion the underrepresented instruments, and we feel that one instrument doesn’t get enough hype for how cool and important it is! So, this week, we’re dedicating our blog to the marvelous, magical world of the cello! So, a few...
Kezia’s Swiss Sax Adventure
We always love to shout about the amazing musical lives our teachers lead outside of The Music Place and this week, we’re showing off again. If you’ve got it, flaunt it baby! Yes, this week we’re dedicating the blog to lovely woodwind and piano teacher Kezia and her...
Music Place students wow at The Spring Festival!
Well, it’s been just over two weeks since our first Spring Festival and we’re still on a major pride high! Every one of our students brought their absolute best and put on an unforgettable day of performances! So here’s how it all went down… First up, was The Spring...
Spring Style Guide:- Music Place Hoodies are the new black
Like all great fashion houses, The Music Place doesn’t follow trends, it sets them. That’s why this Spring, the new line of bespoke couture hoodies is set to be the next big thing. Music Place hoodies have hit the streets of the Trafford borough like a storm and, from...
New Kids on the Block
We always love welcoming new teachers into The Music Place family and with the turn of the new year, we welcomed three new faces on board! So this week, we’re dedicating our blog to getting to know our lovely new staff members a little better. Meet Natalie, Menna and...
Your D of E activity- sorted!
Here at The Music Place, we believe in studying music for the pure joy of it, but there’s no denying that instrumental/singing lessons don’t half look good on those pesky University applications. Not only do music grades come with lots of juicy UCAS points, but they...
The return of the 30-Day Practise Challenge!
Happy New Year everyone! We hope you had a lovely, restful break and are ready for 2022. Being the conscientious souls that you are, we know that all of our Music Place students will have made the same new year’s resolution: do more practise. A great choice of...
The Music Place Staff – Lockdown Projects!
Welcome back everyone! We hope you all had a lovely Easter break and feel ready to get back to lessons. I’m sure we’re all glad to see the back of this pesky lockdown and it has to be said that, for those in the arts and creative industries, it’s been one heck of a...
Stay Motivated Throughout Lockdown!
Happy New Year Music Place! I'm sure we're not the only ones glad to see the rear end of 2020 and, although 2021 hasn't kicked off to a roaring start, there's light at the end of the tunnel! We really hope you're all continuing to enjoy your sessions online but we...
2020 at The Music Place!
Merry Christmas everyone! Lessons are now done and dusted for this year and we're really looking forward to a relaxing holiday after a super tough (to put it politely) 2020! Yep, it's been an unmitigated disaster- Coronavirus has turned life upside down for families...
The Gift of Music
After quite a year, we’re finally closing in on Christmas (yey!) Whilst for many, the final week of Christmas is all about minced pies, mulled wine, scrabble and Home Alone, we know that for some, the dreaded Christmas shopping still looms. Gift-giving is a tricky...
When Life Gives You Lemons…
As winter approaches and the gloom of another lockdown looms over us, it's hard to deny that things aren't at their best right now. But you know what they say, when life gives you lemons, learn to juggle. So we thought we'd dedicate a blog to the opportunists among...
The Music Place loves local artists!
If we do say so ourselves, we’re feeling very pretty at the moment. During the summer, we had a little makeover and introduced a few new fixtures to The Music Place, and we totally LOVE them! So we thought we’d dedicate this week’s blog to shining a spotlight...
Corona-proofing a post-covid choir
We're really proud that, throughout lockdown, The Music Place was still able to run our weekly choir and Vibrant Voices sessions. By getting creative with video sing-alongs and live zoom sessions, Clare, Alison, Richard and Lucy (the dream team) kept our choirs...
The power of music through Covid-19
Welcome back everyone! We hope you all had a lovely Summer and feel rested and ready to get back to lessons. We're really pleased to have begun our phased reopening of The Music Place and reintroduced fortnightly face-to-face tuition. Although we're excited to...
Age Is Just A Number Baby…
Henry Ford once said, "anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young." We couldn't agree more Henry! Here at The Music Place, we believe that whether you're a young nipper or matured like a fine wine, learning...
Marooned on Music Place Island…
It’s November 2019. A Music Place staff bonding holiday has met with disaster, leaving thirteen staff members stranded on a remote island, with nothing but their wits and the clothes on their back to battle the elements. As the Music Place boat begins to sink in the...
Music Place Lonely Hearts: Could you be the woodwind beneath our wings?
Small but mighty flute group seeks committed new members! Meet Jo and Liz. Together with group leader, Michael, they make up The Music Place Flute Group. Small but fierce, Friday Flute group has met once a week at 7pm for a number of years. But now, this dynamic duo...
Festive fun with The Music Place Choir!
It's beginning to look a lot like ch...oir are getting extremely busy again. Yes it's coming up to that time of year again, and it's always lovely and busy for our wonderful choir! So we thought we'd give you a quick rundown of all the exciting things they'll be...
Halloween Takes over The Music Place!
What is a ghost's favourite instrument? - A spook-ulele Why do zombies hate funk music? - They got no soul Why did the ghost misbehave in his music lesson?- He was too ghoul for school! We hope you've all had a restful half term and are ready to begin the last half...
Practice- Top Ten Tips from Teachers!
Well, it’s week five already (how did that happen!?) and, amongst us professionals, it’s well known that this point in the term is prime time for the contagion of practice-phobia. Yikes. Yes, by week five, the fresh smell of start-of-term motivation is beginning to...
Total Eclipse of the Harfest
Here they go again! Following their stunning performance last September, our wonderful Music Place Choir are set to take to the Harfest stage once again for their third consecutive year. This time, they're taking a trip down memory lane, performing some feel-good...
A Big Congratulations!
This week, we wanted to dedicate our blog to celebrating Manni Geng who has just been awarded a place with the Junior RNCM! Junior RNCM is a community of musically gifted students, aged 8-18, who meet every Saturday to develop their skills at the Royal Northern...
A humdrum day in the life of the world’s coolest choir
The infamous Music Place Choir has got up to some pretty amazing things in recent years; from festivals and flash mobs to featuring on albums, they're always up to something enviable. And this week they've done it again! On Thursday evening, our choir was given the...
A Big Thank You!
Last week, the UK celebrated Volunteer Week 2019 and it got us thinking about the wonderful volunteers and carers at Vibrant Voices, and how much more we need to shout about how amazing they are! So here we go… OUR VOLUNTEERS ARE SO FANTASTIC AND WONDERFUL! Vibrant...
New Faces in The Music Place!
We've reached the end of this half term and it's certainly been one full of highlights, but welcoming our three newest staff members definitely tops the list! So this week we thought we'd dedicate the blog to getting to know our newbies a little better. Welcome...
JAZZ SUMMER SCHOOL 2019!
Summer is approaching and we know what you're all thinking... what happens if it's jazzless!? But never fear, Jazz Summer School 2019 is here! The Jazz Summer course runs from Sunday 11th to Wednesday 14th August 2019 at The Cinnamon Club, and is one of the highlights...
Annie Wows in Sweet Charity!
This week, we're dedicating our blog to the lovely Annie Stedman, and her work with the RNCM Young Company. As well as having lessons at The Music Place, we're lucky enough to have Annie behind the welcome desk on a Saturday, and she's the best darn Saturday girl we...
News from the holidays!
Welcome back everyone! We hope you've all had a fantastic Easter break and are ready for the summer term! For this week's blog, we thought we'd fill you in on all the exciting things that happened over the Easter break- our staff and students are always super busy...
Something Jazzy This Way Comes
As you might have heard through the grapevine, a new boutique jazz festival is coming to Altrincham this April and we’re super excited! We’re especially pleased to see a strong Music Place contingent taking to the stage to do what they do best. The Jazz Voices...
Meet The Music Place- Lucy!
If we do say so ourselves, our staff are pretty ace. So for our next few blogs, we're going to be getting to know them a little better, kicking off with owner and manager of The Music Place, king of the hill... Lucy McElhinney! Why did you start up The Music Place? I...
Singing for the brain with Clare!
Anyone who saw the choir’s stunning performance at Harfest, their flash mob at Altrincham Market or their Christmas performance at Manchester Cathedral will have caught sight of the myth and legend that is Clare Morel. If The Music Place were a country, she'd be a...
Neil Rocks The Oscars!
Last night, former Music Place bass teacher, Neil Fairclough, took to the stage at the 91st Academy Awards (cue internal squeals) to open the ceremony with Queen and Adam Lambert. Just a run of the mill Sunday eh? Since first meeting Brian May as a member of the house...
Classical Music…Too Hot to Handel
This Monday, Altrincham Market welcomes The Stamford Orchestra to perform a special concert at Market House. The event will offer a relaxed way to enjoy classical music for all the family... and apparently there'll be hotpot! Reading about the event got us thinking,...
The New Girls In Town…
We’re busier than ever here at The Music Place so we’ve brought some new faces into the fold, and they’re pretty special! So, for this week’s blog, we’ve decided to get to know these gals a little better… EMMA- Woodwind Emma grew up in West Sussex and started playing...
Let music help you beat the blues!
January blues... It's a thing. Christmas is ancient history, the excitement of the new year is beginning to die down and it's just a bit too cold. But , once again, music is here to save the day. The health and mental well-being benefits of singing and playing music...
Cheery Theory!
As any Grade 6 instrumentalist will tell you, the prospect of the Grade 5 theory hurdle can often seem like a daunting one. With all those dots and lines and phrases like 'doppio movimento' (sounds like something you might learn at Hogwarts) and 'estinto' (sounds like...
Not all heroes wear capes…some wear festive hats!
Happy New Year everyone! We hope you've had a lovely break and are excited for 2019! We thought we'd use the first blog of the year to say a huge well done to one our wonderful singing student, Freya Douglas, who this Christmas used her singing talents to raise £140...
A Busy December!
Why did the choir have to cancel their carol concert ? Because they had tinselitis. What do Baroque musicians do if they don't like their Christmas presents? Hand them Bach. Why are Santa's helpers lacking in musical discipline? They're elf-taught! Merry Christmas...
Dates for the diary!
It’s shaping up to be a very busy December for us here at The Music Place so here are some dates for the diary- come along and catch our students getting their festive on! This Saturday, we’re kicking off a very busy December by running a special Christmas Singalong...
Four generations of music – a family affair!
Learning music is for all the family and we’re always super keen to encourage music-lovers of all generations to get involved. That’s why we’re so pleased to introduce The Gracie family who, boasting a Music Place student per generation, really are the poster family...
Introducing the Val Howells Scholarship Fund
Here at The Music Place, we're keen to make sure that potential gets recognized and hard work rewarded. As such, we're really pleased to be able to announce the introduction of The Val Howells Scholarship Fund, which enables us to reward one of our most promising or...
What do teachers do…when they’re not teaching you?
Here at The Music Place, we're very lucky to have some of the best musicians in the UK...nay...the world on our timetable, and they get up to some pretty exciting stuff on their days off teaching! From Donny Osmond to Queen to Lily Allen to Tom Jones to Tito Jackson,...
Friends in Artistic Places
As the observant amongst you may have astutely noticed, we have recently welcomed a couple of new friends into The Music Place! Whilst we were busy undertaking a good old revamp of the office over the summer break, we commissioned Hannah Dagnall (friend of The Music...
Stage fright!
Stage fright can be a crippling thing; so many musicians, despite their incredible talent, just can’t find it in themselves to step on a stage. But like any fear, facing it is the challenge and the cure- as Joey Tribbiani once wisely said, ‘Face your fear. You have a...
It’s Never Too Late to do what you Love!
Since March 2011, ‘Vibrant Voices’, led by choir-leader extraordinaire, Clare, has met every Wednesday at The Cinnamon Club. Vibrant Voices, supported by the Alzheimer’s Society’s ‘Singing for the Brain’ movement, is a weekly choir dedicated specially to those living...
HARFEST 2018!
Following the success of last year’s musical extravaganza, Harfest, this September, it’s returning to Altrincham… and it’s bigger and more Music Place-y than ever! Yes, there will be fun, there will be food and most importantly, there will be music! Harfest will take...