Guitar Circus – London, Birmingham, Manchester

by Helen

At the fantastic final student concert at WYGF09, Director Helen Sanderson announced the launch of GUITAR CIRCUS, a new guitar ensemble scheme for young players aged 12-18 years old.

The first three GUITAR CIRCUS ensembles will begin in January 2010 under the musical direction of Gary Ryan (London), Mark Ashford (Birmingham) and Craig Ogden (Manchester). It will be an unmissable opportunity to train throughout the year with these inspirational artists.

We think that GUITAR CIRCUS is going to be something very special and we’re looking for young guitarists with bags of potential who are Grade 5 or above. You’ll need to be committed as each GUITAR CIRCUS will meet once a month during term-time, and rehearsals will last much of the day – it will be something to really get your teeth into!

So, why join? Well, we think that playing as part of an ensemble is one of the most important ways you can develop your core skills as a guitarist. It’s not just the ‘dreaded’ sight-reading that will benefit – your general musicianship and technique will be given a huge boost and you’ll be a part of something that is really creating a musical impact. Some of you are lucky enough to have access to a local ensemble that meets regularly, but GUITAR CIRCUS is designed to supplement everything else you are involved in and give you an opportunity to experience the expertise of these top UK guitarists.

If you think you are just the player we’re looking for then you’ll need to sign up for an audition. Don’t fret! We try very hard to make this as relaxed and informal a process as possible. You’ll need to prepare a short solo piece of Grade 5 standard or higher to play to our panel, and then you’ll have a 2 hour ensemble trial with all the other applicants so we can evaluate how you react and integrate musically under the expert guidance of one of our musical directors. (This is where the sight-reading bit comes in!)

You can apply on-line so visit our website at www.guitarcircus.org Deadlines for applications are 25 October and auditions will take place in November. There’s plenty of further information on the website about the scheme, but if you have questions that aren’t answered there then please contact GUITAR CIRCUS direct on info@theartscircus.com or call 01962 860192.

If GUITAR CIRCUS sounds just right for you, but you can’t travel to one of our first 3 venues, don’t despair. Plans are underway to widen this scheme to other areas of the UK and Ireland in the future. Be the first to know where we are going next by signing up to our free Guitar Circus newsletter. You can register your email address on our website and get the news as it happens.

GUITAR CIRCUS is organised and supported by The Arts Circus (UK registered charity 1116396)