New music classes aim to inspire young maestros
A local composer and author is hosting cognitive development music classes for children in Bath.
Gabrielle Ridgeon is a composer, author and creative director of the musical picture book series Monty the Maestro and his Marvellous Magical Orchestra.
With two books from the series published and two more in the pipeline, Gabrielle is bringing her characters to life with music classes based on the picture books.
Making Music with Monty are music groups that aim to instill music confidence in children aged four to seven. These fun and creative classes will be launching in the Bath area in the next couple of months.
Gabrielle delivers bespoke one-off workshops and book readings for families at book festivals, bookshops and libraries and this has previously included delivering events for Foyles and Waterstones.
Gabrielle believes that a child’s introduction to music should always be fun and entertaining. She said: “All too often you see children being taught initial musical skills with an instrument in their hand.
“In the past I have seen this approach overwhelm a great number of children and sometimes it puts them off music altogether.
“A ‘Monty’ class is that in-between step. It subtly teaches children everything they need to know about music before they start learning a musical instrument.
“So they don’t need to worry about how their instrument works or having to do practice every night – they can just enjoy being immersed and fascinated by music.
“The focus for Making Music with Monty is based on discovering creativity. Each week the children will be encouraged to explore their imaginations and experiment with musical ideas through storytelling.
“The classes give children the opportunity to listen, play, create and collaborate with other children. They teach children all the initial musical skills they need and expose them to all of the musical instruments. By the time the children reach the end of their journey with Monty, they will be fully prepared for their next musical chapter – learning an instrument.”
The classes will take place on weekdays after school in Bath and Bradford on Avon. Class bookings are open now – visit: www.bitly.com/ making-music-monty-register
For further questions about the classes please email: sayhello@ montythemaestro.com or visit the website www.montythemaestro.com