Bones Apart visit the Academy for a Music Workshop

Bones Apart is a highly acclaimed English all-female trombone quartet, so we were thrilled when the group visited the Academy to run a workshop with our students. 

The quartet has rapidly gained international recognition as a leading ensemble in brass chamber music. Its members bring together a wealth of performing experience at the highest level, from symphony and chamber orchestra to early and contemporary music to brass band and jazz.

In the first session of the morning, students from all years performed in the workshop and received constructive comments and advice about their playing from the professional musicians. We were impressed with how the students took the advice onboard, and we were able to use it to enhance their interpretations of the music performed and allow their personality and flair as performers to shine through. Congratulations to Freddie, Jamie, Doug, and Jason for their superb playing.

The second session immediately engaged Year 7 with a performance of a Renaissance piece of music. The workshop continued with arrangements of well-known pieces and gave us a taste of some of the many instrumental techniques possible on brass instruments, particularly the trombone. 

Towards the end of the session, Bones Apart fielded many interesting questions from the students. This was a moment of pure aspiration for all of the students. We know that some of the students will have been enthused to consider taking up playing an instrument, and we look forward to discussing the possibilities with them. 

A huge thank you to Bones Apart for sharing their knowledge with the students, it was an incredibly enlightening workshop.