Hello!
Welcome to the May edition of our Bridgewater For All Playback, where we look back at the highlights of the Learning and Participation programme at The Bridgewater Hall for this month. From sailing away in yellow submarines to showcasing home grown talent, May has been a month celebrating the best ways live music can bring us together. We hope you enjoy reading!
The L&P Department
Live at Lunchtime 2023
May saw the return of our Live at Lunchtime series at the Hall, and the talent showcased this year has been truly amazing. Live at Lunchtime is a series of free lunchtime concerts, which run on various Fridays throughout May-September, and this year they have been as popular as ever!
At the start of the month students from Chetham’s School of Music kicked off the series with a bang, wowing the audience with clarinet, cello and vocal solos. Featuring music from Mozart and Broadway, it was a very special day for these talented young musicians. Our next two concerts were equally as crowd pleasing. Roots Reggae and Sega musician Golty Farabeau brought the Seychelles to Manchester with his rich voice and unique baselines, whilst Dr Butler’s Hatstand Medicine Band got us all clapping and toe tapping with their ragtime tunes. Ellen Beth Abdi then stole the show with her own brand of wonky, soul infused pop in a special duo performance with Jamie Davis. Our latest performance by Northern Reeds, the UK’s first established reed quintet, featured fresh music from talented young composers who joined us for the concert. We’ve welcomed over 600 people to Live at Lunchtime so far – so thank you to everyone who’s joined us, we hope you enjoyed as much as we did!
Why not see what the fuss is all about and pop by to our next concert on 23 June? This performance features the soulful sounds of the one hundred stringed Indian Santoor along with the Tabla, performed by Kaviraj Singh and Kousic Sen. Doors open 12:30, and all concerts start at 12.45pm and last 45 minutes, perfect if you fancy some entertainment on your lunch break – More Info
BWH Singers – 17 May
After the success of their performance on the Castlefield Viaduct in April, our Singers met for rehearsal at the wonderful Central Library this month. Led by the lovely Simply Singing, our Singers warmed up with some breathing exercises and tricky tongue twisters, before learning Lily Allen’s beautiful rendition of Somewhere Only We Know by Keane. As always, our Singers sounded lovely! We’re excited for all the performances and projects they have lined up for the summer!
Live Music Now, Songs & Scones – 15 May
Our ever-popular Songs and Scones concert featured guitarist and vocalist Ste Forshaw, who brought the laid-back vibes to our Monday afternoon. Ste took requests from the audience, and performed a range of hits from Springsteen, Elvis and Bob Marley. As always, a homemade scone and cup of tea made this afternoon concert extra special. For more information on concert dates and how to book a place for your group go to www.livemusicnow.org.uk
Live Music Now Schools Concert – 11 May
This month we welcomed over 70 pupils from specialist schools around Manchester to our Live Music Now Schools Concert and had so much fun jamming with guitarist Ben Gorb and percussionist Ali Mac from Live Music Now. We sailed away in a Yellow Submarine with a lovely Beatles medley, and then finished with some great dance moves to Pharrell’s hit, Happy. These 40-minute concerts are highly sensory experiences, providing children with access to live music in a relaxed setting. For more information on concert dates and how to book a place for your school go to www.livemusicnow.org.uk