Learning an instrument is wonderful, but making music with others is where the magic happens. Here's why group music making matters, and how to find the right YMM group for you.
Ask any musician about their most memorable moments and the chances are they'll tell you about playing with other people: the first time a band locked into a groove, a choir landing a chord that made the hairs on their arms stand up, or the final bar of a concert ringing out around the hall. Practising on your own is essential, but music is, at heart, something we share.
At YMM, group music making sits at the centre of everything we do. Here's why we think it matters so much, and why we'd love every YMMer to be part of a group.
🤝 Music Is a Conversation
When you play in a group, you stop just playing the notes and start listening. You notice how your part fits with everyone else's, when to lead and when to support, and how to respond in the moment.
- Listening: group playing trains your ears like nothing else. You learn to hear balance, tuning and texture, and to adjust as you go.
- Timing and rhythm: keeping together with others builds a shared sense of pulse, whether you're in a samba band or a string ensemble.
- Responding: in jazz and Innovate groups especially, you learn to react to what others play, trading ideas and building music together on the spot.
🚀 You Improve Faster
It might seem surprising, but playing with others is one of the quickest ways to get better.
- A reason to practise: knowing your group is counting on you gives practice a real purpose. Your part matters!
- Learning from others: sitting alongside someone a little further along the path is inspiring, and you pick up an enormous amount just by listening to them.
- Keeping going: rehearsals build sight-reading, playing by ear and the ability to carry on when things don't go perfectly, which is perhaps the most important performance skill of all.
- New music and styles: groups open up music you'd never meet in a lesson alone, from big band charts to Cuban grooves to choral harmony.
💪 Confidence, Friendship and Fun
Some of the most important things a group gives you have nothing to do with notes.
- Confidence: performing as part of a team is far less daunting than playing alone. The vast majority of our groups perform at least once a term to a supportive audience, and it's the perfect stepping stone to solo performance.
- Friendship: shared rehearsals, shared nerves before a concert and a shared sense of achievement afterwards make a powerful bond. Many lasting musical friendships begin in a Saturday group.
- Belonging: being in a group means being part of something bigger than yourself: a team, a sound, a community.
- Fun: simply put, it's a joy. There's nothing quite like the feeling of a whole room of people making one sound together.
🧠 Skills for Life
The benefits reach well beyond music. In a group you learn to cooperate, take responsibility for your part, follow direction, give and receive feedback, and stay focused for a whole rehearsal. These are skills that serve young people at school, at work and in life, and here they're learned in the most enjoyable way possible.
🎶 Creativity and Collaboration
At YMM, we want our students to develop creative and collaborative skills alongside technical ones. In our groups, that might mean improvising a solo in a jazz group, composing and arranging together on the Innovate pathway, or exploring the context and meaning behind a piece in a classical ensemble. Excellence is always on offer, but above all we want young people to fall in love with music and keep it in their lives for good. Groups are where that happens.
🎸 There's a Group for Everyone
Whatever you play, whatever your level and whatever your musical taste, there's a group at YMM for you.
- Early years: Music Box 1 and Music Box 2 introduce our youngest musicians to singing, rhythm and musical play.
- Singing: Choir 1, Choir 2 and Community Choir.
- Creative musicianship: the Innovate pathway (Beginnovate and Innovate 1, 2 and 3) and Groove Orchestra.
- Classical: Junior Strings, Junior Flutes, Chamber Group and Advanced Classical Guitars.
- Jazz: Jazz 1 and Jazz 2 (Big Band).
- Rock and pop: Rock & Pop 1 and Rock & Pop 2.
- World music: Salsa Group and Samba Drumming.
- Adults: Adult Flute Ensemble, Adult Rock and Pop, Adult Jazz Ensemble and Adult Recorders.
Have a look at all of them on our Groups page, where you'll find age ranges, levels and full details for each one.
👨👩👧 A Note for Parents
If your child currently has one-to-one lessons only, a group is the perfect complement: lessons build technique, and groups put it to use. Many children find that joining a group transforms their motivation, because their instrument stops being just homework and becomes the way they spend time with friends. If you're not sure which group would suit, or whether your child is ready, ask their teacher or get in touch with us. We're always happy to help.
🎵 Over to You
Ready to join? Browse our groups and email us at admin@youngmusicmakers.co.uk to sign up or ask any questions. We can't wait to welcome you to one of our inclusive groups!
John 🎷