APO begins partnership with the John Madejski Academy

Members of APO have been talking about the role of music in their lives in music during special sessions with pupils at the John Madejski Academy (JMA), in Whitley, South Reading. Since January, we’ve been holding most of our rehearsals at JMA, as part of an arrangement which has seen pupils getting free tickets to our concerts in February and May. Recently, APO Music Director, Andrew Taylor, has been leading special sessions with JMA performing arts and year 7 pupils, with leader Mel Le Breuilly and other members of the orchestra.

We’ve been demonstrating our instruments, talking about the different moods and emotions that characterise the music we play, and talking about the way music has affected and shaped our lives, both in terms of how it’s affected our professional lives (as although some of us are music teachers, many of us have made our careers outside music using the transferable skills we’ve learned as musicians) and personally.

The response from the pupils, both at the concerts and the school sessions, has been enthusiastic and encouraging, and the APO players have found the work we’ve done with the pupils very rewarding. We’re looking forward to developing our relationship with JMA further in the coming months and years.