"Caroline’s musicality and sense of joy shines through in all of her musical offerings for children. She is able to really engage her young audiences with a sense of imagination, education and fun"
(Amy Bebbington, Director of Training at Association of British Choral Directors, 2020)
Harmony's Music Club's Story
In 2018, with a reputation as a local professional musician with a hands-on approach to music and passion for wanting ALL children to have access to music, I was asked 'to come in and do some music' at a local nursery school.
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I said yes immediately but explained that just 'coming in and doing some music' was never going to be an option! Instead I saw this as a chance to create something new and exciting for the early years.
Harmony the Hedgehog with Oliver and Sophie
What I wanted was:
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to poverty proof music provision at the early years infant school level;
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to create an academic year's worth of excellent musical material which anyone could deliver so that there could be no excuse for not getting the instruments out or listening to music through fear of chaos or not knowing what to do;
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for children's ears to be opened to the incredibly diverse range of music in our world which encourages inclusivity and reflects the world in which we live;
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for ALL children to be able to take part;
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for imaginations to be fuelled and music to be approached as more than black notes on a page;
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for children to PLAY both using the music as themes for play and to freely explore and play instruments, not to be told didactically what, when and how to play;
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for children to be able to express themselves;
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to create themed cross-curricular resources that could be dropped into all areas of the curriculum at a time when scheduled music is being squeezed out;
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to guide children in developing their listening skills without being told to sit still and pay attention;
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for children to unwittingly learn the fundamentals of music theory and musicianship through play;
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to inspire a life-long love of music.
Fast-forward 2 years, and Harmony's Music Club has not only achieved this but also written a continually growing catalogue of music and craft material for family use, created a video series and become a leader of interactive children's concerts .
Do I need to be a musician to use the material?
No - the material is deliberately written so that ANYONE can lead a session with children/your child with an easy-to-follow narrative and explanations and discussion points along the way. The children also get to take the lead with the material meaning that you'll soon find that they are leading you!
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