Students make music ‘Come Alive’ with charity single

Students make music ‘Come Alive’ with charity single

Berkshire Maestros are delighted to announce the release of ‘Come Alive’, an original song created by young people, raising money to support vital local youth work.

For the first time, students from every corner of Berkshire have come together to write, perform and record the track, across a year-long programme of workshops. The song celebrates the very best of youth music making in Berkshire, bringing together musicians from Berkshire Youth Choir, Berkshire Youth Symphony Orchestra, Reading Soundstage, and more!

With lyrical themes that reflect on the power of music to guide us all through difficult times, they hope to raise awareness and funds to support Berkshire Youth, an inspirational local charity that are supporting and empowering young people in the county.

Joe McCormack, Berkshire Maestros Teacher, said: “As an ex-Maestros student myself, even from an early age I had been really interested in learning about the process of creating original recorded music. I knew that there would be many students in our network that are also passionate about this kind of music making, so I felt I had to put together a project where we could provide our young musicians the opportunity that I never had”

Proceeds from the release will also support accessible and creative music activities at “The Music Lounge”, a new contemporary music centre based at The Waterside Centre in Newbury.  This exciting partnership between Berkshire Maestros and Berkshire Youth aims to support disadvantaged young people in West Berkshire through regular music sessions based at this new space.

The Music Lounge offers a safe space for young people to explore and develop their creativity through music. There are many opportunities to create and record in the studio, and it can also be booked as a rehearsal space for bands from just £10 per hour.

Please contact Bookings@berkshiremaestros.org.uk if you would like to make your music come alive.

David Seward, CEO of Berkshire Youth, commented: “We are really grateful to Berkshire Maestros for choosing us as their charity partner for this super single; it’s brilliant that Berkshire Maestros share our passion for supporting young people. The past couple of years have been particularly challenging for local young people, and we have seen a large increase in the number of requests for our help. The money raised will help us to help local young people to access engaging and fun activities where they can feel safe and make friends, whilst also accessing support from our qualified youth workers. These include the upcoming Youth Music Nights which we’re launching at Waterside Centre in Newbury on Saturday 23 July in partnership with Berkshire Maestros. We should never underestimate the talents and potential of our young people, and we would encourage everyone to buy this single!”

Dawn Wren, CEO of Berkshire Maestros, said: “I am incredibly proud of what our students have achieved with this single.  It is a testament to each and every one of them and the fact that they have been so involved in the creating of this song only enhances the messaging that the song contains.  I am also proud to support our friends at Berkshire Youth who do such amazing work with young people.”

Please consider supporting the single by paying what you can for an audio download on Band camp, or streaming on your preferred music streaming service. If you would like to download the charity single or donate, please click here