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End of a special arts partnership
After nine years, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire graduate Iain's time as a visiting musician for children with special needs at Green Park School has drawn to a close.
Iain first began working in the Black Country through Creative Partnerships as an arts partner in Bilston in March 2007, delivering weekly creative activities for staff and students at Stowlawn Primary School. Some children and staff from neighbouring Green Park School took part in Iain's workshops as part of inclusion. A wonderful and enduring rapport was established, with many 'wow' moments!
In 2011, both schools became one - The Willows campus - and Iain delivered weekly activities in both schools and providing piano accompaniments. Iain worked with all pupils across all classes in his role in Bilston! Weekly activities focussed on communication, enjoyment, participation, diversity and social development.
Iain left Stowlawn in October 2019 after 12-and-a-half years to make way for a piano teaching role with the Arthur Terry Learning Partnership, but continued to provide special needs music input until the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Iain is sad to be leaving, but leaves with wonderful memories to treasure. Long may creativity continue to shine. 👏👏👏
Onwards and upwards!
Royal Birmingham Conservatoire graduate and community musician Iain Masson will be delivering a sixth year of whole class music curriculum enhancement and practical music activities on the eastern side of Wolverhampton, working with year 3, 5 and 6 staff and students as visiting professional musician. Since March, Iain has been providing music activities for children of Key Workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. It will be Iain's 14th year of delivering music education support in Wolverhampton.
Rock on
Iain has been coaching students on their first ever RSL Rockschool Piano exams for Shades Music via online tuition for the Moseley-based music tuition centre across lockdown. RSL was founded on an ethos to provide innovative, contemporary qualifications for music and the arts. Being at the forefront of the industry for over 25 years, RSL's operations include Rockschool Graded Music Exams, Professional Diplomas, Vocational Qualifications (VQ's) and Performance Arts Awards (PAA). The exams assess students on their command of instrument, sync or pulse, accuracy and understanding and style and expression as well as providing them with a performance platform. It is hoped the students will undertake their examinations later in the year.
Dragon world! A creative classroom composing project with a Y1 bubble in Wolverhampton
Iain has been working with a bubble of Year 1s on creating a dragon composition with an emphasis on recording, editing techniques and recognising a link between shape and pitch using physical movements. Socially distanced, the children have improvised and watched each other's mimes as unique dragons, exploring physical movement and images as a creative stimulus. The children together have used a small number of thoroughly disinfected musical instruments, as well as body and vocal sounds mixed with ICT to create their own immersive and evocative dragon soundscapes together. Some children have recorded their own short poetic fragments and narrative to enrich the soundscape and everyone has learned how to record and change sounds onscreen. It is fun to explore sounds and music through mime activities, and children have practised joining in and start/stopping, following a dragon conductor! Pupils' dragon artwork will appear with their integrated soundscape as a video presentation.
Iain Masson's concertina band waltz 'Frivol' broadcast has been broadcast live on Black Country Radio
Iain Masson's concertina band waltz 'Frivol' broadcast has been broadcast live on Black Country Radio, performed by the West Midlands Concertina Group.
COVID-19 - Iain has been supporting children of Key Workers
He has been delivering music activities at a primary school on a housing estate in Wednesfield every week across the COVID-19 pandemic.
Online lessons
Iain has been delivering online piano lessons for his Shades Music students since March, over 70% moving to weekly lessons online during the national lockdown.