Valley Music Festival making a difference

YOUNG people who have reaped the rewards of the Valley Music Festival gathered last Friday at Ponti’s Italian Kitchen in Fox Valley to celebrate their progress.

The festival is preparing for its third big annual event in the summer to raise more funds to help young people foster their musical talent and to support local schools.

More than 350 performers took part in last year’s festival which attracted approaching 1,000 people to the Fox Valley shopping centre and Stocksbridge High School over two days.

The festival’s success meant that four promising young people received scholarship awards to further their musical development.

Money raised at the festival was boosted by a donation from the Dransfield Foundation - the charitable offshoot of Dransfield Properties, owner of Fox Valley. Grants totalling £2,200 were made. Five local schools benefited.

The four young people who received grants were pianist Gao Roberts, aged 10 and of Oughtibridge Primary School; Flynn Rogers, who is 10, plays trumpet and attends Stocksbridge Juniors; 13-year-old singer Grace Hanson of Stocksbridge High School and Frances Holmes, also a singer, aged 15 and studying at Stocksbridge High School.

Festival director Hilary Osborn told the Ponti’s gathering that the progress and growing confidence of the youngsters who had received tuition grants at a time when schools struggled to find music funding showed what the festival was all about.

“We showcase the talent across the community, involving people of all ages, and promising young musicians benefit from the money raised,” she said.

Gao Roberts’ father, Martin, from Oughtibridge, said his son was making “rapid, amazing progress” with his piano lessons. Gao had started playing the guitar but was now devoted to the piano, enjoying classical pieces.

He commented: “I started learning the piano with Gao but gave up - I retained 5% of what was taught while Gao retained 95%. It is great that the festival encourages youngsters to develop their musical talent in this way.”

Frances Holmes said her lessons had been a huge confidence booster and she now had an ambition to become a musical theatre teacher. Her mum, Lesley, of Stocksbridge said: “I’ve seen such an amazing change in Frances. She is a different person.”

Sally Rogers, of Bolsterstone, said her grandson Flynn, who had been inspired to take up the trumpet by Sheffield Wednesdays’s Kop Band and the Disney Band, had passed his grade one exam with distinction. “It is so good that Flynn has been having one-to-one lessons.”

Grace Hanson’s mum, Hayley, of Deepcar, said her daughter had never had music lessons at school before receiving the grant. “I’ve made a lot of progress”, said Grace.

Cailean Simpson, aged 10, of the No Identity singing group, showed the gathering the Bolsterstone Male Voice Choir Raymond English Trophy which the group had won at last year’s festival for being the most promising young performers.

All four of the talented youngsters who received grant awards will be taking part in this summer’s festival in June which will be bigger and better with new events, including a Sheffield Music Academy concert, a Solo Singers Concert and a Battle of the Bands competition with the Big Festival Weekend taking place in Fox Valley on Saturday June 13 and Sunday June 14, hosted by much-loved Sheffield performer Shaun Doane, and other events at Stocksbridge High School.

Bradfield School was among the five local schools receiving grants. They bought a set of 40 ukuleles. And Deepcar St John C of E Junior School used their grant to visit the Royal Opera House in London recently to see the modern opera Alice’s Adventures in the Underground. They were so inspired that they made a video featuring their artwork and singing which was shown at the Ponti’s get-together.

Ponti’s will be the venue for a festival gala dinner on Friday June 12 when young professional musicians from the area “come home” to perform. The restaurant is giving a donation to this year’s festival, meaning that three more scholarships will be awarded.

The festival is presented by Bolsterstone Male Voice Choir and Inyerface Arts in partnership with the Fox Valley Food and Drink Festival.