Donation hits the right note with young musicians
A community group in East Lothian has been gifted £1,000 to establish a regular youth music night.
The Walker Group, which is building homes in the area, stepped in with a donation to support the launch of the initiative by the Fraser Centre Community Trust in Tranent.
Based in the former Winton Picture House, the trust hosts a range of community events in its cinema, meeting spaces and café – from film screenings to cake decorating sessions and baby classes to exercise groups.
At the start of the year, the charity launched a Youth Music Night where young musicians and bands were given the opportunity to perform and share their talent on stage.
Alison Brown, development officer at the
Fraser Centre Community
Trust, said: “As a charity, we heavily rely on donations from organisations and individuals alike and are delighted that the Walker Group have given such a generous contribution.
“The regular event is a fantastic way for young people to share their passion with the local community whilst nurturing their talent and selfesteem. The night is also a great low cost evening out for local families to enjoy.
“We have had 14 young people take part in the performances already as both individual performers and as part of bands. The first night was really well received by the audience who left fantastic reviews too.”
Teenage punk-inspired band No Dirty Campers, made up of lead guitarist, Kaan, vocalist, Kieran, Daniel on the drums and Maciej playing the bass guitar, have been among the recent performers. Kieran said: “The Youth Music Night is a great opportunity for young people to perform to a live audience. It makes us feel more like a real band too.”
Jordana Young, Walker Groups’ community engagement coordinator, said: “When we learned about the plans to launch a Youth Music night where young people were given the opportunity to showcase their talents, build confidence and meet likeminded people as part of a local event for the community to enjoy, we were very keen to be involved.”