[G]uitarist from folk-rock legends Steeleye Span, Andrew ‘Spud’ Sinclair, is set to launch his own rock school in Carlisle this month.
Spud is launching The Rock Project Carlisle on Friday March 9 to teach young people aged 7-18 how to play in a band.
Students will be able to choose from guitar, drums, bass and vocals, taught by a team of professional, gigging musicians like Spud.
Along with playing three or four gigs a week, Spud has taught guitar for years and explained why The Rock Project Carlisle will focus on playing modern music.
“Children need to make fast progress, and the great thing about rock music is that we can teach them to play relatively quickly,” he said. “If they go away from the first session being able to play part of a song that they love, then that initial success builds the enthusiasm that really propels them forward.”
The after-hours rock school will be divided into two sessions – one for juniors, aged 7-11 and one for seniors from 12-18.
The students will have one hour of group tuition in their chosen instrument, followed by a second hour where they all play as a band. Having taught one on one and in group sessions, Spud believes that children progress more quickly when they are taught in small groups.
“One on one tuition can be intimidating for a child as they have all the focus, but in a small group the students tend to egg each other on,” he said.
“There’s also that element of ‘if he or she can do it, so can I!’ and that can really spur them on when they hit a tricky part.”
One of the most important parts of the sessions is that second hour of playing as a band as Spud explains it helps to build confidence and musicality.
“Rock music is about performance as well as musical skills, and this is where you see young people really grow in confidence,” he said. “All of our tutors are gigging musicians so they understand the element of performance and are able to pass that on, to the point that we will have them all playing a full-scale rock concert at the end of the year!”
The school will be held in Greystone Community Centre, off Botchergate, Carlisle every Friday during term time from March 9. It is open to students of all abilities and all instruments will be supplied. The junior session takes place from 4-6pm and the senior session is 6-8pm.
For more information, contact Andrew at Cumbria@therockproject.com, call 07803 268826 or visit www.therockproject.com.
