While Lake District Music is best known for its world-class summer festival, what many don’t realise is how deeply its impact resonates beyond the concert hall – especially with the next generation. Through dynamic education projects, LDM brings music into the heart of communities, championing creativity and accessibility in classrooms across the region.
One recent example saw young people in schools across Barrow take part in a vibrant, hands-on workshop series exploring the four elements: earth, wind, fire, and water. More than just listening to music, students were invited to become composers, instrument-makers, and performers, using the natural world as inspiration.
The workshops guided pupils through the world of programmatic music – music that tells a story or paints a scene – while introducing core musical building blocks. Working in groups, students created original compositions using their voices, classroom instruments, and even homemade soundmakers crafted from water, soil, and air. They composed songs and soundscapes, interpreting the elements through music and words.
The final pieces were performed live to their peers during school assemblies, where musicians from LDM also joined the stage. These assemblies became celebrations of creativity, with professional artists performing, demonstrating instruments, and leading whole-school singing sessions.
This project held particular significance in Barrow, a town surrounded by the elements it explored – from the sea and coastline (water), to the Lake District fells (earth), the wind turbines on the horizon (air), and the engineering might of BAE Systems (fire).
Alongside the in-person work in Barrow, schools from across the wider Lake District were also invited to take part in online Zoom sessions based on the same elemental themes, making the project both local and far-reaching.
Through these initiatives, Lake District Music is proving that its mission goes far beyond performance. By connecting professional musicians with young learners, and by bringing music to life in classrooms, LDM is helping to build a future generation of creators, listeners, and performers – ensuring that music remains a vital, living part of community life across Cumbria.
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