the lullaby concerts autumn 2015 evaluation report

The Lullaby Concerts

Autumn 2015

“Never seen so many so enthralled, especially my 5 year old – she loved it!” “The best thing I have done with our son.”

Evaluation report by

Orchestras Live

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Contents Summary 2 The Lullaby Concerts 20135 3 Partners 3 Aims 4 Project structure 4 Profile and publicity 7 Financial partnership 8 Evaluation 9 Outcomes and recommendations 20 Appendix A – Feedback from workshops 25 Appendix B – Feedback from music training days 28 Appendix C – Audience feedback 32

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Summary The sixth annual tour of Lullaby Concerts, in autumn 2015, saw another highly successful series of activities reach many young children, parents and carers, and Early Years practitioners. Produced by Orchestras Live (OL) and City of London Sinfonia (CLS) in partnership with five local authorities and two Music Education Hubs, a programme of creative workshops, training sessions and public concerts was held across Suffolk and north east Essex. As in previous years, the essence of the project was about bringing inspirational first experiences of live orchestral music to young children and families, particularly in underserved rural areas, whilst developing the skills of Early Years practitioners and parents to encourage the sustained use of music as a means of learning and play. Between 23rd September and 30th October the following activity took place:

• 30 workshops were held at 9 nursery settings in 5 districts, involving 196 children, 29 practitioners and 42 parents

• 6 taster workshops were held at 6 community venues in 3 districts, involving 114 children, 9 practitioners and 102 parents

• 14 Early Years practitioners took part in 2 music training days, exploring the use of creative music techniques with young children

• 12 Lullaby Concerts were performed by CLS over 6 days, attended by 1,290 children and adults

• 6 young musicians took part in the concerts alongside the orchestra The project had very positive outcomes. Some 1,802 people engaged with the project as participants or audiences. The response at all events was extremely positive, and the partners plan to further develop the project in 2016. The key partners involved were Orchestras Live, City of London Sinfonia, Babergh District Council, Essex Cultural Development, Essex Music Services, Forest Heath District Council, Mid Suffolk District Council, Suffolk County Music Service and Suffolk Music Education Hub.

(Photo: Paul Coghlin)

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The Lullaby Concerts 2015 In light of the audience demand and positive outcomes from the Lullaby Concerts held in 2014, Orchestras Live and a consortium of partners collectively planned, promoted, financially supported and managed the delivery of the project through discussions, meetings and preparations over 10 months. Partners Orchestras Live

• Stuart Bruce, Partnership Manager • Matt Carwardine-Palmer, Communications Consultant • Caroline Porter, Funding Development Manager • Lisa Stonham, Partnerships Administrator

City of London Sinfonia

• Gillian Hunter-Gibbs, Education Manager • Pia Luck, Education Projects Co-ordinator • Claire Henry, music leader / concert presenter

Babergh & Mid Suffolk District Councils

• Zoey Banthorpe, Communities Officer – Arts • Kate Lowe, Communities Officer – Health & Wellbeing

Essex County Council

• Helen Griffiths, Cultural Access, Participation & Learning Officer Essex Music Services / Music Hub

• Charly Richardson, Lead Officer • Andrew Coles, Schools Instrumental Music Lead Officer

Forest Heath District & St Edmundsbury Borough Councils

• Lizzi Cocker, Families & Communities Officer Suffolk County Music Service / Music Hub

• Philip Shaw, Head of Service • Hilary Turner, Senior Manager

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Aims

1. To promote a series of interactive Lullaby Concerts designed specifically for young children and their parents/carers, particularly aiming to reach people in dispersed rural communities and hard-to-reach areas

2. To involve local young musicians in the concerts, acting as inspirational role models for the young audiences

3. To hold creative music workshops at nursery settings in each area where Lullaby Concerts are held, encouraging the use of creative music-making as a means of learning and play in the settings and making artistic links with the subsequent concerts

4. To develop the skills of nursery practitioners through music training days 5. To build on previous orchestral projects in Suffolk and further contribute

to the development of the county’s Early Years music infrastructure, whilst introducing the project to new areas

Project structure Workshops Following a recommendation from the 2014 project to ‘do more to engage with hard-to-reach and vulnerable people through profile-raising events….’ this year workshops were divided between nursery settings and community venues. All sessions were based on the project theme of Claire’s Musical Party and including singing and other creative participation as well as listening to instruments played live. As well as helping to prepare children for the experience of the Lullaby Concerts, the workshops encouraged the continued use of music by nursery practitioners, parents and carers. Each nursery setting received three 30-minute workshops led by Claire Henry. In the final workshop she was joined by three musicians from City of London Sinfonia, enabling the participants to see and hear orchestral instruments and make connections with the content of the subsequent orchestral concerts. A total of 30 workshops were held at the following 9 nursery settings: Babergh Kersey CE Primary School Forest Heath Colourbox Pre-school, Newmarket Little Buds Nursery, Newmarket Mid Suffolk Trinity CE Primary School, Stowmarket Stowmarket Library

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Suffolk Coastal Maidstone Infant School, Felixstowe First Stop Pre-school, Felixstowe Waveney Trinity Playgroup, Lowestoft St Margaret’s Primary School, Lowestoft The taster sessions at community venues were publicised to attract young families, and consisted of fun interactive music activities which involved young children and their parents and carers. A total of 6 sessions were held: Babergh Hadleigh Library Phoenix Children’s Centre, Hadleigh Suffolk Coastal Felixstowe Library Waveney Uplands Community Centre, Lowestoft Lowestoft Library The Kirkley Centre, Lowestoft Music resources Each setting received a specially made sound book as a resource to help practitioners and parents sustain music-making with their young children beyond the project. Each sound book contained photographs and digital recordings of orchestral instruments being played by CLS musicians, together with songs and other material by Claire Henry. Music Training Days Two music training days were arranged in order to make CPD more accessible for Early Years workers across Suffolk and north east Essex. 26 Sept Stowmarket Community Centre 3 Oct Uplands Community Centre, Lowestoft Advertised through the suffolkcpd website and the workshop settings, these practical sessions were designed to illustrate ways of using music as a means of learning through musical play and song, and links were made to the repertoire and creative ideas of the Lullaby Concerts.

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Lullaby Concerts The project culminated in a series of 12 Lullaby Concerts at 6 locations, starting at 10.30am and 2.00pm. 24 Oct Clacton County High School, Clacton-on-Sea 26 Oct Stevenson Centre, Great Cornard 27 Oct Memorial Hall, Newmarket 28 Oct United Reformed Church, Stowmarket 29 Oct Trinity Methodist Church, Lowestoft 30 Oct Salvation Army Centre, Felixstowe The tour was preceded by a rehearsal session for the CLS musicians in London. The concerts were held during autumn Half Term, coinciding with the national Family Arts Festival. Programme for each concert:

Handel Arrival of the Queen of Sheba Riley In C Piazzolla Libertango Haydn Trumpet Concerto (3rd movement) Vaughan Williams Greensleeves Berlioz Un Bal from Symphonie Fantastique Strauss Tritsch Tratsch Polka Bizet Le Bal from Jeux D’Enfants

Alexandra Wood directed City of London Sinfonia, which consisted of the following instrumentation:

Violin 1, Violin 2, Viola, ‘Cello, Double Bass, Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon, Trumpet, French Horn, Harp, Percussion

As in previous years, the Lullaby Concerts were presented by Claire Henry, a specialist Early Years music leader and CLS Animateur in Residence. Having worked closely with Orchestras Live and CLS in planning the project and concert programme, Claire presented the concerts in a theatrical and interactive way, involving the audiences in singing, movement and listening. This included a call and response song based on Freddie the Frog, a large carved guiro which had become a well-known favourite for Lullaby audiences over the years. Based on the theme of ‘Claire’s Musical Party’, the entire programme lasted approximately one hour. During each concert, young instrumentalists from the local area performed in Greensleeves on stage with the orchestra, acting as role models for children in the audiences who might be inspired to learn an instrument and take a practical interest in orchestral music. Recruited by Suffolk County Music Service and Essex Music Services, six young musicians took part as soloists during the tour:

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Laurie Rothwell (clarinet) from Colchester Institute (age 16) Jack Culpin (violin) from St Benedict’s School, Bury St Edmunds (age 15) Hannah Littlechild (violin) from Culford Senior School, Bury St Edmunds (age 17) Katie Tomlin (violin) from Northgate High School, Ipswich (age 14) Layla Cooke (cello) from Alde Valley High School, Leiston (age 18) Elizabeth Carpenter (violin) from Northgate High School, Ipswich (age 18) The County Music Services in Suffolk and Essex provided a range of orchestral instruments for children to try at the end of the concerts. This Instrument Party was positioned in an adjoining room. Participation was facilitated by Music Service tutors, the young instrumentalists, and CLS players. Profile and publicity For the 2015 tour designer Becky Sheppard was commissioned to produce a new style of design image (below) for the printed and online publicity, incorporating the musical party theme. Thousands of flyers were printed and distributed by the district and county partners through their respective networks, including to all 255 Primary schools in Suffolk and many nursery settings in north east Essex and Suffolk. The project partners publicised the concerts through their media and community networks, including Suffolk Music Hub, Rural Arts Suffolk and the online national event listings of Orchestras Live and the Family Arts Festival. A Facebook page http://bit.ly/lullabyconcerts was created and used in 2015 for the first time, posting news updates, photos, videos and event listings for each concert. Twitter was used in the lead-up and particularly during the week of the concerts, with photos and updates ‘from the road’. At a local level, Orchestras Live produced publicity stickers for all children at the workshop settings to help them inform their parents/carers about the concerts. Tickets were sold in advance through Tourist Information Centres and other local outlets, as well as online through WeGotTickets.com. Professional photographer Paul Coghlin, based in Suffolk, was commissioned to photograph one of the concerts at Great Cornard.

http://bit.ly/lullabyconcerts

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Financial partnership The project budget covering all artistic costs (workshops, concerts, music training days, preparation, rehearsal, musical arrangements, etc), production of the resource books, venue hire, publicity design and photography amounted to approximately £60,000. The value of publicity printing, distribution and other ‘in kind’ resources as well as officer time given by the music service and local authority partners was significant, and essential in making the project viable. The ‘in kind’ support from Suffolk County Music Service alone, including provision of instruments and tutors for the Instrument Party over 5 days, was calculated to be £5,036. Through its role as producer of the project, Orchestras Live managed the budget and payments, contributing financial support from its own resources and through its partnerships with the Suffolk and Essex local authorities, as well as fundraising a total of £6,025 from 9 separate trusts, foundations and donations. Some earned income was generated through modest contributions from the workshop settings, the music training day delegates, and through ticket sales at the concerts. Pricing was kept low to minimise financial barriers and to encourage attendance especially in rural communities. Tickets were priced at £5.00 adults; £2.50 children; £12.00 family ticket of 4 people.


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Evaluation Methodology The partnership approach taken in developing this project had an integral level of ‘critical reflection’ by stakeholders so that plans and activity were shaped and refined as the project evolved, even during the concert week itself. In preparing this report Orchestras Live gathered feedback from partners by way of evaluation forms, a review meeting and through individual discussions. Feedback from nursery settings and the training day participants was gained by Claire Henry and local authority partners. Comments from young and adult audience members were taken using flip charts positioned at the venue exits. Evaluation of aims Aim 1 To promote a series of interactive Lullaby Concerts designed specifically for young children and their parents/carers, particularly aiming to reach people in dispersed rural communities and hard-to-reach areas

• Total audiences for two concerts at each venue were as follows:

Venue Children Adults Total Clacton 29 35 64 Great Cornard 70 67 137 Newmarket 195 74 269 Stowmarket 227 202 429 Lowestoft 81 79 160 Felixstowe 125 106 231 Total 727 563 1,290

• The response from audiences was extremely positive. A full set of the comments gathered can be seen at Appendix C. Here is a representative sample:

“The best thing I have done with our son. Thank you.” “I was amazed at how engaged the children were!” “Never seen so many, so enthralled, especially my 5 year old – she loved it.” “Brilliant fun! We loved the music and singing the songs and joining in.” “I liked the trumpet, it’s because they are very loud.” (Kayra, aged 6) “Amazing performance and great introduction to instruments from the orchestra.”

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“A beautifully professional performance, our 2 year old daughter loved every second.” “It was fun. I now want to play an instrument.” (Elsie, aged 6) “Brilliant idea, so great to give them a chance to experience an orchestra in a friendly way, thank you!” “The enthusiasm of ALL of the performers was infectious and the opportunity for children to try the instruments after was fabulous. A thoroughly enjoyable concert for the entire family.” “The whole concept was outstanding.”

• The concerts have stimulated demand for family-friendly music events in rural and coastal areas

“Great – brought music to life for my 3 year old - more in Suffolk please.” “My 5 year old nephew loves listening to orchestral music. This was the first available opportunity for him to hear a live orchestra and he thoroughly enjoyed himself. The lullaby concerts are an excellent idea.” “Brilliant to get top quality musicians out to us on the coast.” “Please keep doing these, they are wonderful.” “Audience feedback continues to be hugely positive and it’s clear to see how highly valued these concerts are, especially in terms of providing opportunities for people to see world-class musicians in their own localities.” (Zoey Banthorpe & Kate Lowe, Babergh & Mid Suffolk Councils)

• The concerts have relevance to family learning “Really engaging for all the children and adults! Fantastic.” “Wonderful experience for children and adults, lovely party atmosphere.” “Very special time with my daughters (1 year & 3 and a half). Totally captivating.” “Fantastic learning experience for the children (and adults too!!).” “Great for grown-ups too! Lovely afternoon. Thank you.” (Doreen Savage, Mayor of Felixstowe)

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• Lullaby continues to be successful in developing a family audience in Suffolk and Essex

“Fab!!! Great fun for all the family. Wonderful experience all round. Thank you!” “4th year running that I've taken my daughters to Lullaby Concert. Each year they've gained something new from the experience.” “Great to have Claire and City of London Sinfonia here again.” “So awesome, thank you so much! Will be back next year with our 2 year old as well!” “It's our third lullaby concert, and the performances get even better every year!” “I was pleased with how many return audience numbers we have – which seems to gather momentum year on year. So there is an appetite for this kind of family event.” (Lizzi Cocker, West Suffolk Councils)

• There was evidence that new people were attracted to the concerts as an outcome of the taster sessions, alongside regular attenders

“We enjoyed both the workshop and concert. You’ve newly inspired our little girl. It’s been an amazing opportunity when we live so far from London.” “First time to a lullaby concert - fantastic!”

• The provision of instruments for children to try at the end of each concert again proved popular with the audience

“Brilliant performance that captivated my grandchildren aged 3-9. Really enjoyed trying out the instruments after the concert.” “Inspiring / creative / wonderful to try the instruments.” “Unique experience to hear each instrument and even to have a go – excellent!”

• The experience of seeing world class musicians performing inspired children to pursue their own music-making

“It was fun. I now want to play an instrument.” (Elsie, aged 6) “I have done these for years with both my children. Wonderful and inspirational. I now have a 13 year old who wants to study music and a 4 year old desperate to study violin!” “I learn the cello after coming to the concert last year.” (Jessica, aged 6)

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“We had a fab time. My 4 year old now wants to learn the timpani!!”

• There were a few comments about practical issues and the content of the concerts

“Great performance but we were packed in the venue like sardines. Kids would have liked more space to dance.” “Went to Enchanted Forest Concert last year and would say that was better as it had more of a storyline.” “Yoga / nature / singing / dance / 5 senses” [ideas for the next production] “Great concert. Suggestion – some standing activities for the little ones. ☺”

• CLS musicians demonstrated their artistic and personal commitment to the Lullaby project

“It is always a pleasure and privilege to be involved in the Lullaby tour - and this year felt like the best yet! All the venues were a good size, so we could create the party atmosphere without losing the intimacy. I thought the programme was super and worked brilliantly - even from the very first concert. It helped that the arrangements were very successful. I was also impressed by the young musicians, who were all well prepared and seemed to enjoy the chance to play with the orchestra. The post-concert instrument session appeared to work well, and the musicians enjoyed this interaction with the children.” (Alexandra Wood, CLS Leader) “Claire did it again, even better this time. One or two venues had light numbers, but that didn't matter - Claire managed to connect even more closely with the little ones, and found new ways to use the orchestra as her instrument in so doing. I think CLS too is maturing in this role, and we find it easier and more natural to contribute our part. But we always have more and more to learn from Claire!” (Mark Paine, CLS Co-Principal French Horn)

• Project partners were generally positive about the artistic quality of the concerts, although some felt the programme and presentation could have had a wider dynamic range as well as more visual elements

“The performance may have benefitted from more light and shade in places – not sure if the high energy approach is needed for the whole duration. Perhaps having softer, more melodic sections would have been more in keeping with the ‘lullaby’ theme.” (Zoey Banthorpe & Kate Lowe, Babergh & Mid Suffolk Councils) “I wondered if the larger than life presentation worked, particularly in the first venue when there were only a few children there. Could a lighter more accessible volume have made them feel more included as it could have been less of an ‘us and them’ performance and more of a conversation?” (Katherine Spencer, CLS Principal Clarinet)

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“I think the party theme wasn’t as strong as some previous concepts and perhaps some of the programme choices reflected that. Also I think maybe some of the children in the audience were less engrossed in the narrative.” (Lizzi Cocker, West Suffolk Councils) “The project would benefit from visual engagement (as per last year with the dancer) – it would be really exciting and innovative to have a performance that engages all the senses.” (Zoey Banthorpe & Kate Lowe, Babergh & Mid Suffolk Councils)

• The broader publicity approach helped to spread awareness, particularly through social networks in more culturally under-served areas

The Facebook page worked well, and by the end of November 2015 the page received 217 Likes. A targeted Facebook advertising campaign was set up to run from 28 September to 26 October 2015 to reach people in the 6 locations visited by the autumn tour. This reached 12,763 people and generated 151 Likes. A number of audience comments were posted on the Facebook page. Orchestras Live responded to each to thank them. These included: “I've lost count how many of your concerts I've been to first with my older one (now 13 and avid pianist who wants to study music) now with my 4 year old who fell in love with the violin today. Thank you. Please keep coming back to Suffolk. We love you.” “I'd been praying all week that my little boy’s chicken pox would go and they did so we could come yesterday. After meeting you all at the children's centre and seeing how much he loved it was the cutest thing. Thank you for doing it all again. Wish it was a weekly thing!!” “It was fantastic, thank you all so much. My little boy (aged 3) has spent the afternoon (we came this morning) saying 'at Claire's birthday party she tried instruments. She found flute best, I like tuba'!!” “We are planning to come to Stowmarket on Wednesday to see it again. My daughter wanted her older brother (20!) to see it and he wasn't with us today! I'll see if I can spread the word” 2015 also saw a much greater use of Twitter. Amongst those who Tweeted about Lullaby Concerts were:

• Orchestras Live c. 1,000 Followers • City of London Sinfonia c. 12,300 Followers • Classical Next c. 2,600 Followers • Suffolk Music c. 800 Followers • Visit Felixstowe c. 1,900 Followers • Jane Basham (*) c. 3,300 Followers

(* Jane Basham stood as Labour parliamentary candidate for South Suffolk) A Storify of Tweets was created after the concerts to provide a record of the main Twitter activity – this is on the Orchestras Live website.

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At the end of each concert the audience was invited to rate the event on the Family Arts Festival website. 27 people rated the concert they attended. The average scores were as follows:

1. Overall enjoyment of event: 4.9 out of 5 2. Suitability of event for families: 5.0 out of 5 3. Suitability of the venue’s facilities: 4.8 out of 5 4. Quality of advance information for families: 4.7 out of 5

How did you find out about the event? Was it your first visit to the venue or

organisation? Family ArtsFestival website

Event promoter

Social media

Local paper

Another website

Word of mouth

Yes

No

Aim 2 To involve local young musicians in the concerts, acting as inspirational role models for the young audiences

• Five young musicians from Suffolk and one from Essex were recruited to perform a piece with CLS. Supported by their Music Service tutors, the young musicians performed well and enjoyed the experience of working with a professional orchestra.

“I really enjoyed this experience! Working with professional musicians was amazing! I was quite nervous at first but everyone was so friendly and kind!! It was great to see so many young children there and playing a solo was really fun!” Katie Tomlin (violin) “The orchestra were very friendly and professional. I was slightly intimidated at first, but they very quickly put me at ease. My favourite part of the day was helping with the instrument workshops at the end of each concert.” Layla Cooke (cello) “I liked working with City of London Sinfonia because they helped me with every downfall and helped me not to get nervous during the performances. I also liked the opportunity to interact with the children and try to get them to experience what it is like to hold and play the violin as well as many other instruments. I found doing a solo performance in front of a professional orchestra very daunting but those fears quickly went when the members of the orchestra started to arrive. They were very friendly towards me and they made me feel very comfortable.” Jack Culpin (violin) “My experience with the Lullaby Concert this year was very pleasant, and I enjoyed it even more than last year. The level of acting involved wasn’t too much or too little, with a constant involvement throughout the concert. The company was very friendly as usual, and I found it easier to chat to more people having done it before. I felt the

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arrival time was still a bit early, as I waited around quite a lot beforehand. If the orchestra weren’t so great and organised with all the decorations and such I might have been able to help setting up! Overall a good organisation, and I always enjoy the workshops.” Hannah Littlechild (violin) Aim 3 To hold creative music workshops at nursery settings in each area where Lullaby Concerts were to be held, encouraging the use of creative music-making as a means of learning and play in the settings and making artistic links with the subsequent concerts

• Feedback from the workshop settings was very positive in terms of the experience for the participating children, nursery practitioners and parents. More details can be seen at Appendix A.

"Your session supports our ethos in this nursery of child-led activities in a structured session." Practitioner, First Stop Pre School “Once again these workshops were wonderful. The parents and children who attended had nothing but praise for the sessions and I have had nothing but positive feedback from those who attended.” Manager, Stowmarket Library "I love to see [the children] like this - all focussed, all listening, all learning." Practitioner, First Stop Pre School “The children were enthused by Claire and the instruments she brought along with her to each session…. They really loved the underlying story and drama of the sessions.” Teacher, Kersey Primary School

• Through their own participation in the workshops, nursery practitioners and school staff were inspired to build on the activity introduced by Claire

“We will be including the rhythm pattern responses and songs that were used in the sessions at our own music sessions as the children responded really well to these.” Manager, Stowmarket Library [The project has given us] “a willingness to use instruments at circle time [and has] given staff the tools to be confident in using different approaches to helping those quieter children to engage through the power of music.” Manager, Trinity Playgroup, Lowestoft "I have been teaching for 30 years and you have inspired me to take a new child-led approach in my music making sessions.” Teacher, St Margaret’s Primary School, Lowestoft

• Practitioners felt the workshops were valuable in terms of child development and learning, with some surprising outcomes

"Ella has never spoken on her own before - we can't believe she sung to Freddie on her own!" Practitioner, Trinity Playgroup, Lowestoft

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“A child with ADHD at [one of the Primary schools] focussed and settled for the whole session. Staff said the normal attention span was 5 minutes.” Claire Henry, CLS Music Leader “At Colourbox Pre-School the ‘beat in my feet’ exercise had prompted a talk about children's bodies. This helped make music a cross-curricular activity, as is required in the Early Years curriculum 7 areas of learning.” Claire Henry, CLS Music Leader

• All settings were positive and supportive, although not all participants attended a concert. Ticket prices were felt to be a barrier, especially where parents did not come into contact with the workshops.

• The taster sessions at community venues were successful in engaging with young children and also adults, introducing creative music ideas whilst spreading awareness of the Lullaby Concerts

“Everyone really enjoyed the session; parents and children! Their attention remained with the activity all the way through, and they were all eager to take part and volunteer to try new instruments.” Practitioner, Phoenix Children’s Centre “It was wonderful to have the opportunity to increase my child’s knowledge and fun – just an amazing opportunity!” Parent, Hadleigh “Cool.” Jack, aged 5 “Nice for Rosie to see instruments that she hasn’t seen before.” Parent, Lowestoft “One of the elements that stood out this year for me were the taster sessions. The sessions at the libraries were well attended, and had been supported and promoted well by library staff. Parents/guardians/carers were able to speak directly with the musicians, Claire and me after the session, which prompted some really positive conversations about coming to the concert. Where the taster sessions were held at Children’s Centres the staff at each centre had very carefully invited a selection of families that they knew would be interested in and benefit from the content. These sessions felt particularly worthwhile and needed, and we had great feedback from staff and the families. A good number of the families who attended and enjoyed these sessions came to the concerts thanks to us being able to organise complimentary tickets.” Pia Luck, CLS Education Projects Co-ordinator “The stand-alone sessions were a huge success and felt substantial and exciting due to the large numbers of attendees and the fact that the story and my character were already developed and solid.” Claire Henry, CLS Music Leader

• The sessions inspired partners to refine and develop their own activity “I was able to think about how we hold our music session - perhaps we try to cram in a lot of songs into the time and it may be better for the children to repeat songs so they are able to remember the actions as well as the words.” Information & Advisory Officer, Lowestoft Library “We are keen to add some more music and singing sessions to our timetable, as they are always popular, but this gave us good ideas about how we can make them more interactive, e.g. incorporating them in to story-telling. It is the first time we have held a

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workshop such as this, and we would like to do it again. We don’t have access to many instruments, so it was great to be able to introduce some that the children may not have seen or heard before.” Practitioner, Phoenix Children’s Centre

• A good number of children and adults were involved in the workshops and taster sessions:

Workshops

Setting Children Practitioners Parents/carers Total Babergh Kersey CE Primary School 26 3 0 29

Forest Heath Colourbox Pre-school, Newmarket

30 5 0 35

Little Buds Nursery, Newmarket 21 3 0 24 Mid Suffolk Trinity CE Primary School, Stowmarket

27 2 0 29

Stowmarket Library 16 2 17 35 Suffolk Coastal Maidstone Infant School, Felixstowe

17 2 0 19

First Stop Pre School, Felixstowe

25 5 15 45

Waveney Trinity Playgroup, Lowestoft 10 4 10 24 St Margaret’s Primary School, Lowestoft

24 3 0 27

0

Total 196 29 42 267 Taster Sessions

Setting Children Practitioners Parents/carers Total Babergh Hadleigh Library 20 2 17 39 Phoenix Children’s Centre, Hadleigh

13 1 13 27

Suffolk Coastal Felixstowe Library 18 2 17 37 Waveney Uplands Community Centre, Lowestoft

13 1 11 25

Lowestoft Library 35 2 28 65 The Kirkley Centre, Lowestoft 15 1 16 32 0

Total 114 9 102 225

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Aim 4 To develop the skills of nursery practitioners and childminders through music training days

• Two music training days were arranged, at Stowmarket and Lowestoft, to be accessible by practitioners across Suffolk. Take-up at Stowmarket was relatively low, and as sessions have been held there in previous years it is thought demand for music CPD is now lower than might be the case in other parts of the county. Both training days were well received and delegates rated the quality and content highly. Further details including a full set of the comments gathered can be seen at Appendix B. The following comments illustrate outcomes from the sessions:

“I’m about to start a speech and language group and I learnt a lot of ways on engaging children, and ways of encouraging the parents to join in.” [The session gave me] “some fantastic tools to help with every area of my job; getting and keeping attention; numeracy; so many new fab ways to teach.” [I now have] “confidence to teach and run a music session in my Early Years setting.”

• All participants received a certificate of attendance from Orchestras Live and a sound file of songs used during the training day

[I have gained] “songs / structure of session; resources were great too; practical tips you can take away.” [With the resources I can], “starting on Monday, support other staff members to confidently deliver.” Aim 5 To build on previous orchestral projects in Suffolk and further contribute to the development of the county’s Early Years music infrastructure, whilst introducing the project to new areas

• The project flowed from the previous Lullaby projects developed by Orchestras Live in partnership with the consortium of local authorities, City of London Sinfonia and Claire Henry. It contributed to the developing pattern of Early Years music activity including the regional networks being facilitated by Earlyarts, Youth Music and the Bridge organisations. Partners felt the 2015 project had made a valuable contribution to their own priorities and cultural offer.

“Still amazingly good value for partners and audiences….a great example of partnership working. [Major achievements were] reaching an audience in Lowestoft; community workshops; engaging with and upskilling Early Years practitioners; engaging with pre-school children both in their education settings and with their families at the concerts; offering an opportunity to young musicians to perform with a

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professional orchestra; building the Music Education Hub relationship with Orchestras Live and CLS.” (Hilary Turner, Suffolk County Music Service)

• The change of venue at Lowestoft coupled with more widespread awareness resulted in much larger audiences, emphasising the need to develop audiences over time in such under-served areas

• One important legacy from the 2014 Lullaby project was that St Mary’s Primary School in Hadleigh used the workshops to achieve Arts Award Discover with 26 of their children. Some partners felt there should be further long-term tracking of outcomes from Lullaby to evidence the impact more fully

“Not sure how successfully the project contributes to the development of the county’s Early Years music infrastructure. How are the practitioner training sessions followed up? Could more work be done to find out what sort of impact the sessions have had on day to day delivery?” (Zoey Banthorpe & Kate Lowe, Babergh & Mid Suffolk Councils)


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Outcomes and recommendations The responses from partners, artists, participants and audiences show this project to have been broadly successful. Particular achievements and learning points are listed below. Looking at specific outcomes of the project, the following statistics are drawn from the evaluation forms returned by local authority partners and reflect the average score against each question, on a scale with (1) being ‘not at all’ and (5) being ‘fully’.

Objectives and outcomes Score out of 5

No. of responses

To what extent did the project achieve its objectives?

4.0

3

To what extent did the project contribute to the following outcomes:

• Health and well being 3.3 3

• Skills development 3.7 3

• Cultural enrichment 4.7 3

• Raising confidence and self esteem 3.7 3

• Developing new audiences 3.7 3

• Professional and career development 3.7 3

To what extent did the project engage with the following groups:

• Young people 4.3 3

• Families 5.0 3

• Hard to reach groups 3.3 3

• Older people 2.3 3

• People in rural areas 4.0 3

• People in urban areas 3.0 3

To what extent did the project contribute to any of the following local or national strategies / plans?

• Cultural engagement 4.3 3

• Arts Award / Arts Mark 1.0 3

• Community Cohesion / citizen’s voice 3.3 3

• Health and wellbeing 3.7 3

• Music Education Hubs 4.0 3

• Learning and skills development 3.7 3

• Economic growth / inward investment 2.3 3

• Sustainability 3.0 3

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Activities Score out of 5

No. of responses

How relevant were the activities delivered by the orchestra to the participants?

4.3

3

Overall how did participants respond to the activities?

4.3

3

How satisfied were you with the quality of the musicians leading the project?

• Communication skills 4.3 3

• Leadership skills 4.0 3

• Performance skills 5.0 3 To what extent did the orchestra deliver the artistic and/or participatory aspects of this project in order to meet your needs?

4.3

3

To what extent has this project enabled you to reach new audiences or participants?

3.3

3

To what extent are you satisfied with Orchestras Live’s input into this project?

5.0

3

Were there any unexpected outcomes?

• Not unexpected perhaps, but I was pleased with how many return audience numbers we have – which seems to gather momentum year on year. So there is an appetite for this kind of family event.

Were there any weaknesses in the concept or delivery of the project?

• I think the party theme wasn’t as strong as some previous concepts and perhaps some of the programme choices reflected that. Also I think maybe some of the children in the audience were less engrossed in the narrative.

• Engaging with nursery settings in Babergh and Mid Suffolk proved difficult. Montessori Nursery in Newmarket enjoyed the workshops for a second time – the net for these workshops needs to be cast a little wider.

• The creative content of the performance could have been improved this year – the narrative seemed quite hard to follow in places and some audience members said that children lost concentration in parts which could have been avoided if the performance had provided more visual content or be more dramatic in places.

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• The performance may have benefitted from more light and shade in places – not sure if the high energy approach is needed for the whole duration. Perhaps having softer, more melodic sections would have been more in keeping with the ‘lullaby’ theme.

• Further information about Suffolk Music Service and their offer would have been useful to distribute as part of the instrument workshops.

• Not sure how successfully the project contributes to the development of the county’s Early Years music infrastructure. How are the practitioner training sessions followed up? Could more work be done to find out what sort of impact the sessions have had on day to day delivery?

• It was a shame the concerts didn’t attract a predominantly new audience – a lot of people were return visitors.

• The project would benefit from visual engagement (as per last year with the dancer) – it would be really exciting and innovative to have a performance that engages all the senses.

What do you consider to have been the major achievements of the project?

• Still amazingly good value for partners and audiences, and the rise in ticket price didn’t appear to be a barrier. It’s still a great example of partnership working.

• Reaching an audience in Lowestoft; community workshops; engaging with and upskilling early years practitioners; engaging with pre-school children both in their education settings and with their families at the concerts; offering an opportunity to young musicians to perform with a professional orchestra; building the Music Education Hub relationship with Orchestras Live and CLS.

• Audience feedback continues to be hugely positive and it’s clear to see how highly valued these concerts are, especially in terms of providing opportunities for people to see world-class musicians in their own localities.

• Many audience members return year on year and see it as a great example of introducing very young children to live orchestral music.

• The quality of the musicians is nothing short of excellent and every year they throw themselves wholeheartedly into the project.

• Claire’s enthusiasm and professionalism. • Orchestras Live are extremely well organized and helpful throughout the

entire project. • Including more venues on the ‘wegottickets’ website seemed to work well.

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Evaluation of recommendations from 2014 Orchestras Live to continue leading the consortium of partners in Suffolk, Essex and elsewhere to achieve a new series of Lullaby Concerts with CLS in autumn 2015

Achieved

Explore potential new venues in under-served parts of Suffolk

Achieved: Stevenson Centre at Great Cornard, Trinity Methodist Church at Lowestoft and the Salvation Army Centre at Felixstowe

Aim to increase the amount of pre-tour rehearsal time, and devote sufficient time to running and refining the theatrical dimension

Achieved: a longer pre-tour rehearsal enabled more detailed work on the presentation and flow of the show

Increase the skill-sharing opportunity for young musicians by involving them in the pre-tour rehearsal and increasing the interaction with CLS musicians

Partially achieved: young people unable to get to the rehearsal on a school day, although a short film was made by CLS and sent to the participants

Consult audiences about the timing and content of concerts to inform planning and marketing

Achieved: timing of the morning concert was adjusted in light of audience response to an email questionnaire

Consider the nature and balance of repertoire in the artistic planning of the concerts

Achieved: a contemporary piece was included for the first time

Ensure a consistent spread of CLS instrumentalists in each post-concert workshop, making it an integral part of their duties during the tour

Achieved: a rota ensured a consistent number of players took part in each session

Do more to engage with hard-to-reach and vulnerable people through profile-raising events, targeted marketing and incentives including a limited number of free tickets for discretionary allocation by project partners

Achieved: taster sessions held in 3 areas; free tickets made available to local partners in certain areas, e.g. Barnardo’s Family Centres in Clacton

Utilise a broader range of marketing communications including social media

Achieved: Facebook campaign used for the first time, stimulating communication and feedback by audiences

Send learning resources, including sound files of songs, to delegates in advance of the music training day

Not achieved: resources were sent afterwards

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Recommendations for the future

• Orchestras Live to continue leading the consortium of partners in Suffolk and Essex to achieve a new series of Lullaby Concerts with CLS in autumn 2016, at a scale according to financial resources available

• Orchestras Live and CLS to collaborate on fundraising for the project • Explore a new artistic format and presentation incorporating specially

composed orchestral material as well as existing repertoire • Continue to prioritise culturally under-served communities, including

taster sessions to engage children and adults together • Confirm details and the schedule earlier in the year to aid local planning

and publicity • Provide free tickets to all workshop settings to encourage maximum

attendance at concerts • Encourage Primary Schools which host Lullaby workshops to achieve

Arts Award Discover with participating children • Review the location of, and recruitment for, music training days with

Suffolk Early Years & Childcare and Suffolk County Music Service • Seek to involve young people as producers and/or event managers • Explore possibilities for practical support on publicity distribution from

volunteers based in the region, e.g. Making Music • Develop contact and skill-sharing between CLS and young musicians in

advance of the tour through digital interaction • Expand the use of social networks to publicise concerts, including a plan

for sustaining interest through a Facebook presence between tours and a specific Lullaby hashtag on Tweets

• Investigate potential high-profile advocates for Lullaby in the region


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Appendix A Feedback from workshop settings

Evaluation Questionnaire

Average score out of

5

Number of responses

1. The Music Leader

On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest, to what extent:

• Did the Music Leader communicate clearly? 5 3

• Was the Music Leader engaging? 5 3

• Was the Music Leader suitably informed and skilled? 4.7 3

• Was the Music Leader creative in her delivery? 5 3 2. The workshop content: On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest, to what extent did the workshops:

• Have clear objectives? 4.7 3

• Meet your expectations? 4.7 3

• Enthuse and engage the children? 4.7 3

• Give you good ideas and suggestions to assist your teaching?

4.3 3

• Improve your children’s response and confidence? 4.7 3

• Leave you and your children feeling inspired? 4.7 3 3. The resources On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest, to what extent were the resources:

• Of good quality? 5 2

• Attractive and engaging for the children? 4.5 2

• Likely to be useful and used at your setting in future? 5 1

4. What is the main thing that you will take away from the workshops?

• I was hoping the sessions would inspire the children’s inquisitive minds in musical terms, and I think this happened. It would be lovely to have some advice on how to develop this further.

• A willingness to use instruments at circle time. [The project has] given staff the tools to be confident in using different approaches to helping those quieter children to engage through the power of music.

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• Once again these workshops were wonderful. The parents and children who attended had nothing but praise for the sessions and I have had nothing but positive feedback from those who attended.

5. How do you plan to use the resources and what you’ve learned during the workshops in your setting?

• We look forward to receiving the resources. The games that Claire played

with the children were lovely. • We will be including the rhythm pattern responses and songs that were used

in the sessions at our own music sessions as the children responded really well to these. Many thanks once again.

6. Any further comments?

• The children were enthused by Claire and the instruments she brought along with her to each session. It would have been nice for them to have more opportunity to touch the instruments or have the opportunity to come into contact with some larger orchestral instruments. They really loved the underlying story and drama of the sessions. It would be lovely to have the KS2 children take part in a similar activity – catered for them. They would get so much out of it! Thank you once again. We really appreciated having the opportunity to take part in the sessions and would love to take part again!

Feedback from community settings



5

Number of responses

On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest, how would you rate the workshop:

• For the quality of the musicians and their work? 5 2

• For enthusing and engaging the children? 5 2

• For the level of participation in the session? 5 2

• For relevance to young children and their parents / carers?

5 2

• For enhancing your own work at the setting? 5 2

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How would you describe the response from the participants? Please include any quotes if you have them. Phoenix Children’s Centre, Sudbury

• Everyone really enjoyed the session; parents and children! Their attention remained with the activity all the way through, and they were all eager to take part and volunteer to try new instruments.

Some of the comments from the evaluation forms we handed out: ‘It was wonderful to have the opportunity to increase my child’s knowledge and fun – just an amazing opportunity!’ ‘It was a great way to introduce music to my child.’ ‘I liked the size of the group.’ ‘We had fun and learnt a lot. The interactive element of the session made it even more enjoyable.’ ‘We liked learning about the instruments and the sounds they made.’

Lowestoft Library

• All children and parents who came along really enjoyed the event, a week after the event we held our ‘Totrock’ session which many parents attended and we had so many lovely comments. ‘Great interaction with the children.’ ‘Brilliant music.’ ‘Cool.’ (Jack, aged 5) ‘Nice for Rosie to see instruments that she hasn’t seen before.’ ‘When are they coming back?’

What is the main thing that you will take away from the workshops? Phoenix Children’s Centre, Sudbury

• We are keen to add some more music and singing sessions to our timetable, as they are always popular, but this gave us good ideas about how we can make them more interactive, e.g. incorporating them in to story-telling. It is the first time we have held a workshop such as this, and we would like to do it again. We don’t have access to many instruments, so it was great to be able to introduce some that the children may not have seen or heard before.

Lowestoft Library

• How much children love listening to music, they all sat there transfixed listening to you all. I was able to think about how we hold our music session perhaps we try to cram in a lot of songs into the time and it may be better for the children to repeat songs so they are able to remember the actions as well as the words. Thank you for a wonderful morning and hope we will be able to hold a similar event with you next year.

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Appendix B Feedback from Music Training Days for Early Years Practitioners Stowmarket Community Centre – 26 September 2015



5

Number of responses

1. The Music Leader On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest, to what extent:

• Did the Music Leader communicate clearly? 4.8 4 • Was the Music Leader engaging? 5 4 • Was the Music Leader well informed and skilled? 5 4 • Was the Music Leader creative in her delivery? 5 4 2. The session content: On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest, to what

extent did the training:

• Have clear objectives? 4.8 4 • Meet your expectations? 5 4 • Increase your confidence in delivering music at

your setting? 4.5 4

• Give you good ideas to assist your teaching? 5 4 • Give you the opportunity to reflect on your

teaching? 4.8 4

• Leave you feeling inspired? 5 4 3. The resources On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest, to what

extent were the resources:

• Of good quality? 4.8 4 • Relevant to the training? 5 4 • Likely to be useful in your place of work? 5 4 4. Publicity, communication and venue On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest:

• How well was the event advertised? 3.5 4 • How good was the communication prior to the

event? 4 4

• How would you rate the venue? 3.8 4

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5. What is the main thing that you will take away from today’s training?

• Using more rhythm and percussion activities. • I feel I can take away some great and new ideas which I can feed back to

my setting. • To plan sessions and give clear instructions and break down activities age

appropriately. • Some fantastic tools to help with every area of my job; getting and keeping

attention; numeracy; so many new fab ways to teach.

6. How do you plan to use the resources and what you’ve learned today in your setting?

• Afternoon music sessions. • I need to go back and locate some resources which aren’t currently being

used to full potential. • I’m about to start a speech and language group and I learnt a lot of ways on

engaging children, and ways of encouraging the parents to join in. • Register / Circle Time; imagination / confidence building; I’ll find so many

ways!

7. Where did you hear about today’s training session?

• suffolkcpd website (x3) • My Co-ordinator saw the course and asked who wanted to go.


• Brilliant course. Thank you. • Thank you so much. Feel much more confident encouraging music and

imagination into my setting! Exciting! • Great course, thank you.

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Uplands Community Centre, Lowestoft – 3 October 2015



5

Number of responses

9. The Music Leader On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest, to what extent:

• Did the Music Leader communicate clearly? 5 11 • Was the Music Leader engaging? 5 11 • Was the Music Leader well informed and skilled? 5 11 • Was the Music Leader creative in her delivery? 5 11 10. The session content: On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest, to what

extent did the training:

• Have clear objectives? 5 11 • Meet your expectations? 5 11 • Increase your confidence in delivering music at

your setting? 4.9 11

• Give you good ideas to assist your teaching? 5 11 • Give you the opportunity to reflect on your

teaching? 4.9 11

• Leave you feeling inspired? 5 11 11. The resources On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest, to what

extent were the resources:

• Of good quality? 5 11 • Relevant to the training? 5 11 • Likely to be useful in your place of work? 5 11 12. Publicity, communication and venue On a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest:

• How well was the event advertised? 4.9 10 • How good was the communication prior to the

event? 5 10

• How would you rate the venue? 4.2 10

13. What is the main thing that you will take away from today’s training?

• Creating a new way of introducing music into setting. • Be enthusiastic – inspired. • To not be so nervous singing in front of adults. Confidence is key! • I will take away some fantastic ideas to use and how to keep the children

engaged fully with the session I teach. • Increase my confidence; be inspired; useful in my workplace.

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• New ideas to contribute to already set Music Time. I love the new songs and ways to focus the children using familiar beat and songs.

• Activities and skills to take to the classroom. • Learning about beats and to sing without music; help children to understand. • Songs; sitting and listen to beat without music. • Confidence to teach and run a music session in my Early Years setting. • Songs / structure of session; resources were great too; practical tips you

can take away.

14. How do you plan to use the resources and what you’ve learned today in your setting?

• More enthusiasm and in more inventive ways. • You can use any instrument to make a beat. We will be doing a session for

our next staff meeting so so-one will feel they can’t have a go. • Using songs learnt for our music and movement sessions, and new ways to

get children to focus. • I will make a new plan for my Rhythm & Rhyme session to include these

songs and activities. I will be looking to purchase a ‘Freddy the Frog’. • Small group activities starting on Monday. • Use them in every way. • Continue to use current resources already, and make use of the fantastic

ways of creating a beat. • Bringing my instrument into the classroom. I now have activities to use to

tie into the session rather than just playing ‘at them’. • Starting on Monday, support other staff members to confidently deliver. • Share them with my fellow colleagues and practise in my setting. • Teach fellow colleagues; use structure for Circle Time.

15. Where did you hear about today’s training session?

• suffolkcpd website (x6) • At work, member of staff asked me to take her place. • Mt Deputy Head booked me on the session. • Early Years Lead in my setting.


• Just great and good fun. Well done. • Lovely!

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Appendix C

Audience feedback Clacton • Wonderful way to learn about all the different instrument. • Loved every moment. Nice to see real music. • I really enjoyed the muceik [music]. (Charlotte, aged 6) • Thank you. (Marta ☺) • Fantastic! Emie would have liked to hear ‘Frozen’ theme tune. • Really engaging for all the children and adults! Fantastic. • It was amazing. (Lola ☺) • Very good. • Great to have Claire and City of London Sinfonia here again. • Real music. Pleasurable. • Awesome. (Elliot, aged 11.) • Fantastic morning. Thank you. (Love, Ed x) • Really enjoyable, enthusiastic performance. Brill! • I like it all. (Will) • I liked the viylin [violin]. • Really good fun. Thank you. • Great. • I loved it. (Nicole) • I liked the drum, the candle song and playing the instruments. Great Cornard • Was great fun – we really enjoyed it • My boys loved the music • Good time • It was really good fun – a good way for children to experience music – thank you • It was great fun (Hugo) • It was so noisy, brilliant – kids loved it! • Brilliant fun! We loved the music and singing the songs and joining in • Enjoyed playing the instruments • Would like forest and/or superheroes theme • Had lots of fun (Annabelle) • I think that the horn was perfect (Amelia) • I like the trumpet (Thomas) • I liked the violin (Jessica) • We enjoyed both the workshop and concert. You’ve newly inspired our little girl. It’s

been an amazing opportunity when we live so far from London • Thank you (Louise and Phoebe, aged 2, and William, aged 5 months) • My favourite bit was the horn (Jake) • I think the violin’s perfect for me (Aiyana)

33

• Great to try so many instruments • Amazing performance and great introduction to instruments from the orchestra • It was great, I thought the drums were incredibly fast • I thought it was brilliant • Very good, thank you • Brilliant as always • Lovely! Thank you! • I loved the music • The best thing I have done with our son – Thank you • I love it • Absolutely fantastic • Never seen so many, so enthralled, especially my 5 year old – she loved it • I want to play the violin (Ramana) • I thought it was good (Imogen) Newmarket • Wonderful experience, we loved it! Very engaging. Will come again for sure. • Loved it! • It was very good. • Lots of fun! Thank you. • Instruments after big success – fab for them to get their hands on. • Loved it, incredible, hope I come next time. • I loved it. • Harrison loved the double bass. Great concert. • It was super thanks you. I loved playing the instruments. I played the drum. • Really great. We all enjoyed it. • Lots of fun. Thank you so much. • It was great! • Brilliant idea, so great to give them a chance to experience an orchestra in a

friendly way, thank you! • Great! Thanks you. A great learning experience. • I love it. It was brill. • I liked trying the instruments. (James, aged 4) • Wonderful experience for children and adults, lovely party atmosphere. • We loved trying ourselves. • We loved the clarinet, cello. • I liked the kettle drum. • I like the trumpet. (William) • Magic. • We loved the big drums, violin and trumpet. • The singing. • It was lovely. • Amazing, Thank you!! • The Flute! (Molly) • Really, really lovely. • I liked the flute. • I liked the hats. • All of it – I liked the instruments.

34

• Very special time with my daughters (1 year & 3 and a half). Totally captivating. • Encourage dressing up to theme of music when you advertise or give a colour theme. Love

your concerts thanks you so much. • Loved access to instruments. • I liked the presents. • We loved the party especially the birthday hat. • Love the wind instruments and playing on them. • I liked all the music. • I like all the instruments. • Thank you for letting us come. • It was brilliant. • Fun and educational. • Excellent. Nice way to introduce children to classical music. • She really loved it. • The flute was my favourite. • The harp was my favourite. • 10 out of 10. • Amazing. • I like the harp. • Great Thank – u! • A brilliant introduction to instruments and music. • So awesome, thank you so much! Will be back next year with our 2 year old as well!

Stowmarket • What a great morning! • We like Clare and the sleepy music and dancing. • Wonderful – our grandsons loved it. • Don’t change anything! • Loved Claire. • Inspiring / creative / wonderful to try the instruments. • Super – would have liked titles of music in writing for memory at home after. [all

pieces were listed on the ticket postcard] • Brilliant. • Great performance but we were packed in the venue like Sardines. Kids would

have liked more space to dance. • Fantastic – would not change a thing. • Yoga / nature / singing / dance / 5 senses [ideas for the next production] • It was good! I liked the castanets! I loved singing! (Lola aged 4) • My 5 year old liked “all of it” • Brilliant – perfect length. • Amazing! • I like the oboe the best. • As always, brilliant. (Diana) • Good! The actions were very fast. (Gilbert) • Great for Suffolk. • I want to play a saxophone. (Hosanna, aged 3) • Had lots of fun. (Isla, aged 7) • Wonderful – do you do anything for slightly older children?

35

• My favourite bit was when they did calm music. • Preferred last years Enchanted Forest – seemed more to it and music more

relaxed to the story. We did enjoy it though! • Fantastic and good! (Izzi, aged 3) • Just perfect. • Great – brought music to life for my 3 year old - more in Suffolk please. • Great thank you! Tuba. (Ben, aged 4) • Super as usual – engaging pieces for the children and good introduction to the

orchestra for children. • I loved this concert. My favourite. (Sarah) • Enjoyed the cello. (James, aged 7) • Absolutely brilliant – such a fab opportunity to hear and experience orchestral

instruments. • Thank you for letting us play the instruments. (Jed, aged 6) • You were all fab, our family would love to see you again – everyone loved it. • I loved the performance and mummy might let me play the flute. • Cool. (Ben) • I loved the instruments and had a great time playing them. I love you. (Rebecca

aged 4) • Thank you for a great show. • We have had a great, fun time, thank you. • Fantastic. (Elsie) • Exceptionally talented musicians – thank you. (Julian) • I liked everything. • I thought it was good. (Imogen) • Went to Enchanted Forest Concert last year and would say that was better as it

had more of a storyline. [x 2] • I liked the violin. (Caroline and Poppy) • Fun. (Benjamin and Elijah) • I liked the flute because it sounded graceful. (Milly) • I liked the cold [brass] ones. (Emily) • Trying the instruments and listening to the orchestra playing. • I liked it but maybe it could have included 12 year olds in it because it was mostly

for kids aged 2-8 and not over. (Eva, aged 12) • Liked the birthday song. (Alanna, aged 4) • Liked the drums. (Isaac, aged 3) • I liked it all. Thank you. (Millie, aged 7) • We really enjoyed today, especially the violin. (Tallulah and Nanny) • I like the violins and the trumpet. (Art, aged 7) • I liked trying the trombone.

Lowestoft • Had a lovely time with my little boy. He really enjoyed it. Thank you. • Very fun and different. Both children enjoyed (age 5 and 11 months). Very

exciting to try lots of different instruments. Thank you. • Brilliant! Thank you. • Birthday song was good and catchy! Enjoyed playing instruments after. (Max,

aged 5)

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• Very good. Some nursery rhymes would be lovely. • It was really good. (Maya, aged 5) • Fantastic fun! Thank you for a lovely morning ☺ • Was brill. Had a fab time. Ethan enjoyed the after show. ☺ Keep it going. • A great event. Thanks for organising it. • I think it was really good and interesting but a bit too long for little kids! (Max, aged 10) • Brilliant time, thanks. Lots of fun. Come to Yarmouth please. • I really loved the music. (Jessica, aged 4) • I think the instruments were very good. (Daniel, aged 5) • Brilliant opportunity for children to experience instruments and classical music. • It was really good. Loved the fact that my daughter could try all the instruments.

(Tracy) • I loved it. (Ella, aged 5) • Fantastic opportunity to hear all the instruments. Brilliant time. Thank you! • It was awesome. (Erin, aged 7 & Jack, aged 8) • Lots of fun. • Brilliant. Great chance for little people to see and hear orchestral instruments.

Wonderful to have the opportunity to have a go too. • Thank you for the lovely music!! (Charlie x) • Freddie (aged 2) loved it! We especially liked blowing the trumpets at the end –

brilliant! • Fab!!! Great fun for all the family. Wonderful experience all round. Thank you! • It was fun. I liked the harp. (Jack, aged 9) • Wonderful!! Beautiful music and musicians! I hope you will be able to keep doing

this. ♥ • More of this please, so good to introduce little ones to instruments and music. • I liked the cello best. (Oscar, aged 5) • It was lowd [loud] but it was fun. (Gergia xx) • Very good. (Tobias, aged 4) • Thank you so much, that was wonderful. Thank you for letting me try to play a

trumpet. • I liked playing the instruments. (Alf, aged 11) • Unique experience to hear each instrument and even to have a go – excellent! • I really enjoyed it. (Poppy, aged 8 & Jadem, aged 9) • I liked the instruments but there was one missing – Berimbau [Brazilian musical

bow] Felixstowe • Please come again! We love it! X • I want to join the orchestra! (Esmei) • Sam (aged 4) really enjoyed the show. • I loved it, but I’d like it to be different next time. (Elodie, aged 4) • I love it. Don’t change it. (Kate, aged 6) • So glad we came. It was pitched perfectly for both my children (age 4 and 6). • Can you come nearer to Woodbridge or Framlingham? • I loved playing the violin and the flure. (Billy, “aged 7 – almost 8”) • Thank you. (Lily, aged 4) • Fantastic learning experience for the children (and adults too!!).

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• Fab. • Beautiful music! • Thank you, lovely fun show. • I want to do it again tomorrow! (Vinnie xxx) • It was good, thank you. (Cassie, aged 6 & April, aged 7) • Brilliant!! ☺ • Great fun for all the family. Thank you. x • It was the best. (Lily-Rose) • Something original – highly recommend. (Libby, aged 34) • I liked the trumpet, it’s because they are very loud. (Kayra, aged 6) • We enjoyed the concert lots, thank you. • A lovely fun and enriching experience! Great value too. Thank you. (Rowan &

Florence) • I liked it a lot. I want to come again. Thank you. (Elliot, aged 6) • I liked the violins. (Alice, aged 4) • A great concert, thank you! • I learn the cello after coming to the concert last year. (Jessica, aged 6) • Very entertaining. Thank you. • Cool, I got to play instruments I might not get to play. (Jacob, aged 10) • It was very good. I liked the harp, it was awesum [awesome]. (Elena, aged 6) • I liked all of it. )Kate, aged 5) • Fantastic! • Great. (Fraser, aged 5) • It was brilliant and I will come back soon. (Joseph, aged 6) • Really enjoyed the whole experience. (Ellie, Theo & Bryony) • I liked the music. (Kate, aged 5) • Great concert. Suggestion – some standing activities for the little ones. ☺ • I want to come back because the sound of the music was astounding. (Logan,

aged 8) • It was fun. I now want to play an instrument. (Elsie, aged 6) • Inspiring, joyful, funny! • Great fun for kids and Granma’s alike. Thank you. • Excellent! ☺ • Great especially for a 2 year-old’s enjoyment! • I really liked all the instruments and I wish I could play one of them. (Allegra, aged 6) • So taken with the Birthday Song we had to return [to the afternoon concert] to

check the words and music. • Great for grown-ups too! Lovely afternoon. Thank you. (Doreen Savage, Mayor of

Felixstowe) • First Class. Loved all of the enthusiasm. • Fabulous. • It was really good for littler children. (Eleanor, aged 8) • He [my son] liked it at the Library but this [the concert] was a bit loud! • Excellent show as always. Thank you for bringing music out to us. • Brilliant! Loved every minute. Music fabulous. I especially loved the violins.

the lullaby concerts autumn 2015 evaluation report

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