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The new Executive Director of the National Orchestra for All, Kate Wareham, names those who inspire her work.

Joni Mitchell – singer songwriter

I have had a love affair with Joni Mitchell’s music my whole life. It all started when my parents would sing/play her music in my kitchen, sun literally “pouring in like butterscotch”, and it grew from there. At the National Orchestra for All (NOFA) we’re preparing for our summer course by asking our players about their “music heroes”. Joni Mitchell is and will always be mine, but we’ve loved reading the submissions from the young people about theirs. They have ranged from famous musicians, from all genres, to their school or instrument teacher, from Marianna Hay – conductor and general mother hen of our National Orchestra – to students within their own schools and from our orchestra who they look up to.

Marianna Hay – Founder and Artistic Director, National Orchestra for All

I’ve worked for NOFA for two months now. We’re a small team – there are four of us (myself, Stuart, Anna and Marianna) in the office – plus an army of passionate, talented orchestral tutors, pastoral staff and events volunteers who inspire me with their dedication. Marianna has developed this troop over the last five years and now has a movement of genuinely brilliant people – young and slightly less young – all passionate about music and looking towards a future where more and more young people can access high-quality ensemble music making opportunities, no matter what challenges they face at home.

Marianna has a steely vision and there are tonnes of grit under the surface of this energetic, eloquent and amiable individual who has inspired all around. What a privilege to be working with such a wonderful bunch of people.

Armelle Rainjonneau – Front of House Manager, Bridgewater Hall

Armelle was the Front of House Manager at the Bridgewater Hall when I worked there as a steward in the early 2000s. She is small, French and stern, and has the ability to instil the fear of God into you, but also a passion for providing excellent care for all patrons that pass through the doors. It is from her that I learnt the essentials of customer service and this has transferred to my approach to supporters. It is from her that I learnt to treat everyone in a way that communicates how special and important they are to the organisation – whether in a one-to-one communication or a one-to-thirty-thousand.

Lily Caprani – Director of Strategy and Policy, The Children’s Society

I worked with Lily at The Children’s Society before I came to NOFA. She is fiercely intelligent and eloquent. Just this morning (as I write this) she was on the sofa of Good Morning Britain speaking up for sixteen and seventeen year olds who have found home too unbearable to stay, turned to the local authority for help and, in half of the 12,000 cases, have been turned away. The other half are too often treated like adults and placed in inappropriate placements, such as B&Bs or hostels, where they face other dangers. Lily works tirelessly for these young people and will not keep quiet when something needs to be said – and has the ability to say it in a way that makes people listen. She is one of those people you meet in your working life that you admire greatly at the same time as being pleased to call them your friend.

Amateur musicians everywhere

Many of us learn an instrument at school, even if it is just for a year. Many stop, but many never get the chance to even start. Recent research from the ABRSM tells us that for some, the reasons for this are financial, such as the cost of learning or acquiring an instrument being to expensive, or the school not significantly investing in music making opportunities.

NOFA exists to overcome some of these barriers. One of the reasons for this is we believe that music makes an invaluable contribution to communities. For me, growing up in orchestras and surrounded by choirs, my understanding of community is expressed most significantly in the form of a group of people who come together to make music. Each ensemble takes on the character of its community, and in turn influences the character of the community. It is in an ensemble that I learnt to listen, to be responsible for something bigger than me and to create.

To amateur orchestral musicians, choristers, brass band players, DJs, string quartet performers, band members – be it rock, folk, ukulele – and more, I salute you. To those who financially support these opportunities, I doff my cap.

Eric Maynard Wareham

My grandfather. At 96 he regularly emails me with information, a joke or the latest section of his memoir. He worked until he was 92 as a chartered electronics engineer. At the beginning of World War II he was a member of one of the teams that developed radar. He speaks several languages. He has a brain for systems that I hope I have inherited. And a work ethic that I hope has rubbed off too.

Kate Wareham is Executive Director of the National Orchestra for All.
www.nofa.org.uk

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Photo of Kate Wareham