Youth Music - BongoClub.org.uk

Bongo Club Interview: Playmusicplay

Bongo Club talks to Linda Bance

Linda Bance, founder of 'Playmusicplay', specialises in early years music making.

Here, Linda tells Bongo Club about her background, her views on why involving young children in music making is so important and offers some advice to early years settings about how to get started.

Please can you give me an overview of Playmusicplay? What are the benefits of your organisation?

Playmusicplay aims to communicate, share and inform people about community music in the early years happening locally and beyond. We provide a great deal of quality music workshops, music sessions and training concerned with music in the early years.

What is your current role and what does it encompass?

My current role involves a mixture of teaching, and leading projects that encourage music making activities with families and their young children.

How did you first get involved with early years music making?

I started using music with young children when I was 16 working in a nursery as part of my NNEB training. 

What specific training have you had?

My training began with school music education, learning to play the violin, piano, guitar and an early childhood training gaining an NNEB. Later, I returned to Trinity College of Music to pursue further training, and received an MA in music education. My research was dedicated to music in the early years.

What are the children’s reactions to music making when you first work with them?

Children and babies respond well to singing and playing with sounds.  Both children & their families develop a repertoire of songs/games and experiment with new ideas. Children’s positive reactions to music making are what make me so passionate about this whole idea.

How do you see early year’s music making fitting in with other arts activities?

Music, art, drama, role play and dancing are all interlinked when it comes to young children and we should make provisions for all of these. I would like to see music play being encouraged and as accessible as the art easel.

What do you think are the difficulties for early years practitioners when they are setting up a music making project?

Practitioners often feel unequipped to deal with subject of music. It is essential to seek advise and help from specialists at the beginning stages. The training should be well planned, encourage their own professional development and teach the practitioner how to increase the amount of music they use in the workplace.

Do you think that it is necessary for early years practitioners to have formal music training?

It is unreal and unnecessary to expect all practitioners to gain formal music qualifications. With good training and partnership support music can be included in the day to day running of the nursery. It is much more important to have the experience and skills to encourage children to develop their own make music making.  I have helped many teachers and nursery nurses deliver effective music plans into their curriculum.

Do you have any advice for early years practitioners on recruiting and working with a musician?

This can be really fun. Developing relationships with other community members is a great way to share skills, especially within the new children’s centres.
It is imperative that both practitioner & musician really get to know each other. Listening and understanding each others needs and concerns is paramount to gaining respect for each persons work and place with in the project. None of the work  listed above is possible with out great communication and sharing . To move forward we need to be broad minded, ask questions, be prepared to learn and share. That goes for children and adults.

Funding for music activities

If you're a practitioner looking for funding for music activities, your project could be eligible for funding from Youth Music's First Steps programme.

MusicLeader