Students work with talented musicians

Catherine Ayres and Calum McIvor

Eight students from Rochdale Sixth Form College have been making music with experienced musicians currently working with the Manchester Camerata – the city’s world-class chamber orchestra.

Composer Kate Pearson and performer Helen Quayle, both musicians for the orchestra, worked with Year 12 and 13 students from the College to help give them a better understanding of musical composition, a topic which is an important element in their final exams.

This is the first of three events the Sixth Form  has lined up for its A Level music students. The second will involve another workshop to build upon what they learned in the first session, while the third will see music students working alongside experienced composers and a professional orchestra at the renowned Royal Northern College of Music in March, putting their new-found skills into practice.

Rochdale Sixth Form College Music & Music Technology teacher James Reevell, said: “This is a great opportunity for our students to learn more about a topic, the understanding of which is vital to perform well in final exams.”

Student, Jack White, added: “I found the workshop really worthwhile. As well as learning more about musical composition, we were given a really useful insight into the types of things we can expect from a music degree course, should we decide to continue our music studies after College.”