YAMAHA EDUCATION NEWS

Yamaha Presents Quality & Breadth at LIMS Education Day

Yamaha's core aim of broadening access to music, across a wide range of musical activites, was strongly in evidence at Education Day, 13th June, at the London International Music Show (LIMS) in London's Docklands, with educators and pupils enjoying a range of activities instigated by Yamaha and its Education section.

The event saw record numbers of educators applying to join Yamaha Education Friends, Yamaha's online network which encourages peer-to-peer support between professionals working in music education. An enthusiastic audience of adults and children attended the electronic drum workshop for beginners, where Yamaha Music School drum instructor, Ken West (pictured above during the session), taught some simple drum kit patterns on Yamaha drum pads before letting the eager new drummers loose on Yamaha's DTX electronic drum kits to drum along with a CD.

Yamaha was delighted to be able to support the European String Teachers' Association in a superb presentation, led by string teacher member, Sarah Drury, on the benefits of teaching with Yamaha electric strings. She explained how the use of amplification and effects on Yamaha's Electric and Silent Strings can attract some difficult pupils, allowing string players of all abilities to contribute well in rock and jazz bands, for example, adding breadth to the more usual classical repertoire played on the acoustic instruments.

The music exam board, the ABRSM, gave a wonderful session on improvising, led by Pete Churchill, a Professor of Jazz Studies at Guildhall, in which Yamaha was delighted to supply a CP300 Stage Piano for the event.

Yamaha's Bill Martin commented: "At this kind of event the breadth of Yamaha's musical instrument and equipment range is plain to see and was reflected at LIMS' Education Day in the broad range of activities we are involved in, spanning classical, rock and jazz on just one day! We do what we do because we have a great passion for music - of all kinds - and our future plans will help us share the fun and rewards of music making with more and more people."

(Posted 16/6/08) (ends)