Southampton Centre End Of Term Gig
It was a sell out show for the End Of Term Gig!
What a great end to the year! Our Southampton Centre BTEC years 1 and 2 performed songs from their course material, these are the same songs that they are taught in their instrument specific lessons and have been rehearsing weekly. They are tutored every week in a Live Performance Workshop at The Joiners (voted the UK’s best small venue) to give them feedback and ways to improve. Each band then selected their favourite 4 songs and performed them at The Joiners in front of an audience of peers, friends, family, and Academy Staff. All of the staff in attendance were stunned by the quality of the performances.
All of the students played exceptionally and should be proud of their performances. Nick Cooper and the other BTEC tutors are reviewing the footage to assess. Nick says – ‘I am very impressed with how professional and well-rehearsed all of our BTEC students were, well done all!’
Academy of Music and Sound Exeter Charity Showcase
Live performances in the city centre..
Exeter Charity Showcase: On Friday night our Exeter Centre students and staff wowed Princesshay’s late night shoppers with some stellar performances and epic live jam’s.
The FdA Yr 1 students raised £145 for Macmillan Cancer Foundation South West as part of this Exeter Charity showcase. Their performance was part of their Foundation Degree in Music Performance. These first year undergraduates undertook organising the performance from its original concept, through liaison with the venue, the charity and performers, to the performance itself. The students had booked musicians from other courses running at the Academy and they also performed themselves along with vocal and songwriting tutor Alex Johnstone (Instant Karma/Pattern Pusher).
Through this assignment, the students will be assessed on their ability to organise an event, deliver it successfully and to evaluate the process. It was a great evening, the atmosphere and music quality was excellent. We’re very proud of our student and we all think they did very well!
AMS Scotland BA hons Performance Industries January Start
The last opportunity for applicants to apply for full financial student support.
AMS Scotland has long been associated with training excellence, with many successful students now working in the music industry. The BA (hons) Top Up in Performance Industries is designed to prepare musicians for professional life and to formalise and add a qualification to professional experience.
Due to changes in SAAS and Student Loan funding, this cohort of students will be the last to be able to apply for £5995 support for course fees.
The BA (Hons) Top-Up is a one-year programme in partnership with the University of Wolverhampton. The BA (Hons) Top-Up programme can be tailored to the interests and career aspirations of each individual student including music performance, music production and music business.
Through a variety of exciting projects, students can develop their practical musicianship, sound recording, composition and songwriting skills. Students will have an enormous amount of creative autonomy and freedom to tailor their degree to suit their needs. Academy of Music & Sound and AMS Scotland Director Kevin Harding says: “The really great thing about our BA (Hons) Top-Up programme is that it gets musicians out in the industry, creating music and earning a living a year earlier than following a traditional two-year Scottish Top-Up programme”
Entry to the BA (Hons) Top-Up can be through successful completion of either an HND/Foundation Degree programme or through Recognised Prior Learning (RPL) for professional musicians and music teachers already working in the industry. Due to major funding changes, this February start for the BA(Hons) top up at AMS Scotland will be the last opportunity in Scotland for musicians to study on this course with significant financial support from SAAS.
If you would like to apply for a place on this course, you must apply to the University of Wolverhampton directly by following this link:
http://courses.wlv.ac.uk/course.asp?code=LI019M01BAD
Select the location and course you would like to apply for. Please note, if you want to apply for a £5995 loan from SAAS/SLC you must select the course starting 26th January 2016.
If you would like any further information, please contact your AMS Scotland centre on the details below:
Glasgow: 0141 221 4458/ [email protected]
Edinburgh: 0131 656 0600/ [email protected]
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A Masterclass with British producer/song-writer Nat Powers!
A fantastic masterclass with legendary producer Nat Powers!
This month AMS Exeter hosted British producer/songwriter Nat Powers for a fantastic masterclass!
He shared with students his own personal journey into the music industry and some of the challenges he has faced over the years, as well as offering advice and encouragement for all budding musicians and producers.
Nat has Produced for the likes of Snoop Dogg’s record label, Dizzee Rascal’s imprint, EMI, Virgin, Professor Green, D Double E, Skepta, The Pharcyde, Wu Tang, Three 6 Mafia, Death Row Records artists, The Stylistics, Maxi Priest, Omar and many more. He also became the first British producer to extensively work with the iconic Run DMC. Nat began his career in the USA, and his since been active across the US, Europe, UK and other locations globally.
Nat is also working on a Magazine and Publishing venture and an independent documentary film with SKY TV in Malawi (Africa) on the side of his music career. He debuted his magazine venture at TEDx with his own talk.
Another great Masterclass from Zuri Aura at our Exeter Centre
Zuri Aura, Professional Musicianship
After a great Masterclass at our Swindon Centre, Zuri Aura were invited back to host another class at our Exeter Centre! The band covered song writing and arrangement to band management and organisation as well as playing tracks from their ep! Valuable advice from these industry professionals.
Exeter Centre Studio Session Giveaway – Music Mill Studios
The Music Mill Studios
Win a gift voucher (current value £60) for a Studio Taster Session at The Music Mill Studios, Newton Abbot
During your session you can lay down a track, have a go at mixing it and bouncing to audio file ready for cutting your own CD copy.
Professional studio engineers will guide you through how to use studio recording equipment and to mix your track.
“How can I win this fabulous prize?”
Go to the link below, and write: STUDIO SESSION in the ‘subject’ section and then write us a message (in the message section) to tell us why you should win this prize.
Link: https://www.academyofmusic.ac.uk/exeter/contact/
The winner will be contacted and then announced on our website on January 8th 2016 by 5pm.
Apply now!
Please be sure to enter all of your contact details in case you win, and let us know if you want to find out more about our courses. Good luck!
Swindon students feedback from Phil Braithwaite's Masterclass!
Phil Braithwaite, Guitar Legend heads to our Swindon centre, and impresses our students!
Phil Braithwaite is a session guitarist, songwriter, producer, musical director, composer, teacher and author based in London. He currently is the touring guitarist for Vanessa Mae and has worked with Westlife, has written songs for Rhianna and Kelly Clarkson, has composed music for the American Horror Story TV series and is the author of two books on guitar techniques – just to name a few!
Students really enjoyed the masterclasses and he passed on a lot of great advice and knowledge about employability in different sectors of the music industry.
Some feedback from our students:
“Very interesting and informative”
More ‘real world’ information and knowledge. Gave a good insight into the music industry.”
“Super cool guy. Really like him!”
“Very useful class, lots of tips and so interesting.”
“Extremely good information and provided drive
and motivation to get up and do something with
music and not sit around. Really enjoyed it.”
““Really informative and really relaxed masterclass.
I have learnt loads and have come away with a
Whole bunch of ideas. I think that I will be able to
take the stuff I have learnt away and apply it to my
music. He has also given us a whole load of
advice.”