Movema perform on the Trinity curated Bristol Dances stage at Bristol Harbour Festival

We have partnered with award-winning dance charity Movema to deliver a programme of work with local schools and community groups.

The programme, made possible with support from the Coutts foundation, launches in Autumn 2022. Activities are planned throughout 2023 and will focus on children, young people and communities whose opportunity to take part in the arts is limited by background or circumstance.

“Dance is a powerful tool for communicating feelings and messages individually and collectively. Movema will explore dance styles and approaches that evolve from people standing up, pushing back and finding a physical voice in response to inequality and oppression”

Penny Caffrey, Director of Movema

Movema will work with schools local to Trinity (including Hannah More Primary and St Nicholas of Tolentine Catholic Primary) and a neighbourhood in Trinity’s immediate catchment.

The first schools-based project – ‘Dances of Resistance’ is inspired by Trinity’s Heritage Lottery project, Art of Resistance. Through a series of dance sessions the company will use their engaging learning tool ‘World In a Box’ –introducing children to places, people, festivals and cultures from around the world, helping to develop a greater understanding of the wonderfully diverse society we live in.

Children taking part in the school workshops will then be invited to weekly dance sessions at Trinity, hosted by Movema. Here they will take part in dance routines, make costumes and build connections - culminating in a Carnival Celebration.

The partnership responds to pledges we made following an in-depth community consultation in 2021 and aims to provide a continued offer of engagement – enabling and building connectivity with creativity and culture.

In the Summer the garden welcomed local children and families for activity days. Photo @Paul Blakemore

Local children, including Tate, received activity packs during Lockdown. Photo via Twitter courtesy of Tate's Mum

"@HannahMorePri huge thanks to you and @TrinityBristol for the fantastic kit for the windowsill grow challenge! Tate really enjoyed potting them. We will keep you posted on their growth" Charlene L. Twitter

Since the Covid-19 lockdown, we have been working closely with local primary schools and Up Our Street to find ways to reach out to young people in the community who can no longer access our community garden and may have limited access to green spaces during this time.

The first batch of activity packs, filled with simple DIY windowsill gardening ideas and craft activities for families, children and carers to get busy with at home, went out in May/June 2020. Activities include sowing seeds, making bird feeders, scavenger hunts and more. A digital version of the pack is downloadable from our website.

“I think the biggest benefit is that it gives children and families who might not be able to get outside, the chance to engage in nature-based activities. Being around nature and doing tasks like planting and looking after plants are great for mental health and well-being and get children engaged in the world around them!”

Natalie Barker, Deputy Head, St Nicholas of Toletine Primary, June 2020

The garden team are also creating videos on everything from handy gardening tips to fun activities you can do at home - keep up-to-date with these on our social media channels or catch up here.

Image Credit: Alastair Brookes

As part of our Children and Young People's programme we offer one to one or small group (up to three people) music sessions for young people aged 11-25yrs. These sessions are tailored to help young people develop skills, build confidence and support to take their next steps, whether it be to access further music-making provision or to re-engage with the educational system.

We work with professional music tutors who use a trauma informed approach to support young people to identify the areas they are interested in exploring in the sessions. This could involve anything from learning guitar or piano to recording an original rap track. Tutors facilitate and encourage young people to express themselves in whatever way they feel inspired to.

‘I love coming here, it’s a home away from home’ - Feedback, young person, 1-2-1 sessions

Sessions take part in our fully equipped studio rooms. Our live rooms feature two drum kits, a large electric piano and a collection of bass, electric and acoustic guitars. Our digital studio allows young people to access synthesisers, drum machines and a professional level microphone set up for recording, ideal for vocalists or those interested in music production. Both studios are capable of making high quality recordings which can be shared with the individual (or group) at their request.

If you are supporting a young person who would benefit from accessing our music provision please contact the Children and Young Peoples team for further information including prices for sessions on info@trinitybristol.org.uk.

These sessions are supported through funding from NIMBUS Sounds, a partnership between Creative Youth Network (CYN), Aspiration Creation Elevation (ACE), Basement Studios and Trinity Community Arts.

LOGO

Trinity are hosting a new series of Music Masterclasses for young people aged 16 to 25 interested in learning more about performing and working in the music and events industries.

Trinity have invited top industry professionals from Bristol and beyond to come and share their knowledge and insights in a series of exclusive workshops and classes. This series will feature a diverse range of guests whose jobs include performing ,producing and mixing music, as well as assisting musicians in roles such as programming, label management, radio, and much more.

Music Masterclasses form part of Trinity’s ongoing commitment to providing vocational training for young people in Bristol who may otherwise experience barriers to accessing the arts and music industries.

This series will provide young people with industry advice ,guidance and practical learning, as well as opportunities to connect and collaborate with other young people in the city.

Click the title of the event that you'd like to attend to register your interest:

Batu + Saffron Records (10 Aug)

Bristol-based DJ, Producer and Record Label

Laurence Walker (14 Sep)

Bookings and Promotions at Lost Horizon

Young Echo (12 Oct)

Music collective based in Bristol

t l k (02 Nov)

Improvisation Workshop

NSL (23 Nov)

Lighting and Sound Specialists

Noods Radio (14 Dec)

St Pauls-based Radio Station

Do you know someone who would benefit from our Music Masterclass series? Send an email to fleurw@trinitybristol.org.uk to register your interest.

This month, Trinity have invited Bristol-based emerging producer, vocalist and multi-instrumentalist t l k, joined by treasured live collaborators James Storm Otieno and Liam Twohig to deliver November's Music Masterclass. The group unravel their pathways to early careers in music, share their practice of translating t l k's recorded music from Ableton to the live stage, and reflect on their learnings as artists within an ever evolving music industry. They will also share the importance of improvisation to the music they play, holding a group workshop on listening and inviting participants to play together as a unit.

Although there is no charge to attend and no tickets are required, we do ask that you sign up for attendance tracking purposes.

This month, Trinity have invited the legendary Sinai Sound System to deliver July's Music Masterclass. The workshop will consist of a hands on look at the system, personal reflections, discussions and time for questions.

Although there is no charge to attend and no tickets are required, we do ask that you sign up for attendance tracking purposes.

This month, Trinity have invited lighting and sound specialists NSL to give an introduction to career paths in the live events industry, what types of jobs are available and what it's like to work in events, followed by Q&A and a hands-on demo of some live lighting equipment.

Although there is no charge to attend and no tickets are required, we do ask that you sign up for attendance tracking purposes.

This month, Trinity have invited DJ Neffa-T to deliver March's Music Masterclass. This will be focusing on experiences and skills developed over his 15-year career including; navigating ups and downs of the music industry, creating mixes and performances that resonate with listeners, different methods of career progression and advanced and core DJ techniques. The workshop will consist of live demonstrations, personal reflections, and time for questions.

Although there is no charge to attend and no tickets are required, we do ask that you sign up for attendance tracking purposes.

Although there is no charge to attend and no tickets are required, we do ask that you sign up for attendance tracking purposes.

Music Masterclasses are free workshops for ages 16 - 25, inviting top industry professionals to come and share their knowledge and insights in a series of exclusive workshops and classes, covering all areas of the music industry.

Although there is no charge to attend and no tickets are required, we do ask that you sign up for attendance tracking purposes.

This month, Trinity have invited ec2a label head honcho Dr Dubplate to deliver April's Music Masterclass. This will be focusing on differences between major and indie labels, how to market your label, typical working teams, how to make money from a label. The workshop will consist of personal reflections, discussions and time for questions.

Although there is no charge to attend and no tickets are required, we do ask that you sign up for attendance tracking purposes.

This month, we have invited Femke and Louise from Crack Magazine to deliver November's Music Masterclass. The workshop will consist of a insight into running a music magazine, personal reflections and time for questions.

Although there is no charge to attend and no tickets are required, we do ask that you sign up for attendance tracking purposes.

Photo @ Khali Ackford / KoLAB Studios

Max is a young man who has been coming to Trinity off and on for the past year. He started playing the drums at the age of 12 but in recent years had no access to a drum-kit so stopped playing.

Making Tracks has provided Max with weekly lessons, teaching him the rudiments of drumming for the first time and creating opportunities for him to realise songs he had written in his head for years.

“I've never really had the facilities and encouragement to do this before, but I'm making these steps, and although they're not speedy they’re at a pace that I’m comfortable with and I'm really enjoying the journey.” Max

During the course of the year Max has found it easier to retain musical information, and both his confidence and musical ability have improved significantly.

He shows great insight into the value of projects like Making Tracks and the benefits they offer to young people like him who may suffer from anxiety or self-doubt and therefore not push themselves forward: “I think it's important that that's what these places do, they try to encourage people who aren't fully out of their shells or fully know what they want to do, to explore things and just have fun with it, because it shouldn't be a stressful thing, not knowing what you want to do.”

The first Steering Group meeting was held on Thursday 15th October. The Steering Group gives Making Tracks participants a chance to share their opinions to help shape the programme and opportunities to connect with others on the programme.

The meeting was led by Steering Group Producer, Amber Watsonn, who is on a work placement through BE IT - a radical leadership programme run by Rising Arts Agency.

Amber is dedicated to improving representation in thearts sector and is bringing her passion for empowering and championing young people's voices into the steering group.

With the help of project intern, Thomas Meadley, Amber invited four young people to take part in this meeting that aimed to be an accessible space and allow for all voices to be heard.

The first part of the session focused on understanding the purpose and aims of the steering group. The session was briefly joined by Dave Thomas, Trinity’s Youth Activities Manager. His contagious enthusiasm for Making Tracks and Youth Music helped spark young people to share their love for the programme.

Young people shared their thoughts on how the Making Tracks project is accessible to them; how it caters to everyone no matter their skill, home life or musical interests. The group shared how much taking part in the project helps support mental health and confidence building. They also commented on the supportive staff that show how much they want to be there and help in any way they can.

Amber then supported the group to share how they may want to shape the project in the future. This included:

- an online forum for young people to network, share their music, and see news and project updates

- more studio access to record music

- more online resources

- how they can help support the project

The meeting ended, as all good meetings should do, with pizza and an opportunity to discuss the next meeting's agenda.

Want to get Involved?

The steering group is always open to new members. Please email amber@trinitybristol.org.uk if you would like more information or have any questions.

Making Tracks is supported by Youth Music and using public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England, as well as support from match funders.

Sunkern Circus perform to crowds to open up our Festival of Light photo @ Khali Ackford

Young people from our Making Tracks project performed at our Annual Festival of Light and, they were great.

Making Tracks is our collaborative music making project with ACE and Basement– giving young people the opportunity to learn new skills in music creation. Trinity offers 121 and small group music sessions alongside industry workshops and opportunities to perform at Trinity events.

Xyzelle, Sealvia and Chantaleaze - students from project partners ACE performed first to a packed room. Photo Khali Ackford

Xyzelle, Sealvia and Chantaleaze from project partners ACE (Aspiration, Creation, Elevation) performed two songs, followed by Trinity student Louis Stone who performed his original songs using both his acoustic and electric guitars.

Great to welcome Trinity student Louis Stone who played tracks he is working on as part of Making Tracks. Photo Khali Ackford

Playing to an energetic and supportive crowd the students performed cracking sets and roused the crowds ready for local dub DJ Dutchie and the ever fantastic Bristol Reggae Orchestra – well done to them.

Dub DJ Dutchie gets the crowd ready for Bristol Reggae Orchestra photo @Khali Ackford

Bit of a squeeze for Bristol Reggae Orchestra on the stage in the main hall! @Khali Ackford

Onj's firework display was a treat for all the family. Photo @ Khali Ackford

This year we welcome over 800 people through the gates who came to watch the aerial performances, the fantastic firework display from Onj, a very warm bonfire from Woodsy, and the live music in our main hall.

Thanks to everyone that makes the event happen, from staff; to volunteers; to artists; to traders and of course all of you who attended.

The Festival of Light is a free event supported in part by public donations. This year we raised over £1100 in donations meaning that we can continue to run events like The Festival of Light so everyone can enjoy.