A pioneering community music project in Falcon Lodge is helping locals hit the right notes – thanks to support from Sutton Coldfield Charitable Trust.
Live in the Lodge is a free intergenerational music programme with members aged 5 to 85, aiming to make quality music education accessible and affordable to all.
Producer Sam Slater, of Mubu Music, established the group in 2016, and it has since grown to include guitar, ukulele, keyboard, drum lessons and a singing group – all freely open to Falcon Lodge residents.
Sam said: “Before Covid we had over 100 regular members, and we’re steadily climbing back up to those numbers and hope to reach over 100 people each week later this year. We’re proud to have musicians of many ages, skill levels and backgrounds.”
Whether they come to the group to improve musically, socialise or give local children new opportunities to learn, attendees are greeted with a smile.
Sam said: "Virtually everyone who comes along is from in and around Falcon Lodge. The Lodge is an area which has suffered from a lack of investment and attention over many years, so we want to give everyone the opportunity to discover the strong social, health and creative benefits music brings, alongside building a lovely community of local people with the aspiration of brilliant music and shared connection, support and belonging.
“We adapt to everyone’s needs. We have people with disabilities and mobility issues, people in sheltered accommodation, people struggling financially and perhaps older people with health conditions or suffering from isolation.
“Whatever you’re dealing with, we’ll do our best to provide the best musical opportunities right on your doorstep.”
Alongside professionally led individual and group music sessions, Live in the Lodge lends out instruments so participants can practice at home, including guitars, ukuleles, and a few electric drum kits.
They also fund graded exams for musicians who would like official qualifications in their instrument – with some members currently having progressed as far as Grade 6.
Sam said: “I’m a musician myself, I’ve gone down many paths musically – producing, performing and programming. Everyone wants different things out of their music, whether it’s just pure enjoyment and the social aspect, or a qualification they can use in college or job applications.
“We give people the freedom to tailor their own musical experiences, knowing that we’ll handle the funding.”
One of the highlights of Live in the Lodge’s calendar is the Summer Concert, which invites anyone who wants to perform to hit the stage and perform without pressure, to any ability, alongside professional artists and teachers.
Sam said: “We have performances 2-3 times a year. It’s amazing to showcase the incredible talent and progress of our members.
“Our singers have even started arranging performances outside the group, in places like care homes, which is so beautiful to see!”
The group has been able to continue providing its brilliant services over the years thanks to generous funding from many different organisations, including Sutton Coldfield Charitable Trust. A recent grant of £40,000 from SCCT has set the group up to run for a further 2 years.
Sam said: “The SCCT funding is essential to us. We’ve had many grants from them in the past which kept us going, even through the pandemic – they give us the security and trust to continue, which we’re so grateful for.
“We’re so lucky to have the Trust in Sutton Coldfield – so many other places don’t have anything like that.”
The team at Live in the Lodge hope to continue for years to come, with their eventual dream being to have their own dedicated space.
Sam said: “There is massive talent in Falcon Lodge, and removing the initial financial barrier to exploring music is key to unlocking that talent.
“Whether they want to perform for the masses, gain qualifications or just play for the fun of it, we have so many enthusiastic and talented musicians.”
