Page 368 - Guildhall Coverage Book 2020-21

segments from distinguished alumni, including composer Jonathan Dove. Further well-wishers
included guitarist Vincent Lindsey-Clark, cellist Vashti Hunter, oboist Amy Roberts, pianist John
Lenehan and jazz legend Django Bates. (The concert is available to watch in full via cym.org.uk.)

The celebrations came at a challenging period for music education. Head of CYM Geoff Harniess
was determined that, despite social distancing measures, the centre would fulfil its usual timetable:
‘The first thing we had to do was to finish off the one-to-one teaching for the end of term. A lot of
that happened on Microsoft Teams, before we moved over to Zoom. Clearly, we couldn't play
together because of the latency issue, so we had to adapt. The one-to-one teaching worked fine,
but for the orchestras, ensembles and choirs we had to be a bit more imaginative. I took the senior
brass ensemble and we spent a lot of time listening to music and talking about it, and then maybe
getting people to play to one another and things like that.’

In fact, every single class continued to run throughout the summer term. This included one-to-one
lessons, choirs, orchestras and ensembles within each department, not to mention the mixed
ensembles. ‘There's a lot of chamber music that goes on,’ continues Harniess, ‘and we also have
what we call “supporting studies” – general musicianship, in other words’. Everything continued –
some elements more successfully than others. Everyone shared ideas and found new ways of doing
things to keep the students engaged. We have had a very few drop-outs, which was encouraging.’

‘CYM wasn't just about music, it was a whole philosophy on life. Students do better across all
subjects if they study the arts as well, so, whether someone studying at the Centre became a
professional or not it didn't matter: CYM was making the world a better place. The greatest thing
about it was it taught us how to live in harmony with our world and fellow man. It was in my
thoughts as I stood in front of the London Chamber Orchestra waiting for Kate Middleton to arrive
for her wedding to Prince William. Without CYM, I would not be where I am today.’
Violinist and conductor Christopher Warren-Green, one of CYM's most distinguished alumni

Alongside all of this, Harniess had to plan as usual for the next academic year. Auditions were held
remotely and places offered in early June. Harniess anticipates a mix of in-person and remote
teaching – what has now come to be known as ‘blended’ learning.

‘A lot of our teachers found that some of the students made more progress and seemed more
comfortable in the one-to-one remote situation – where they can feel comfortable in their own
home environment. Some students who were not doing so well have actually picked up, which was
an interesting development. I can see that one positive outcome might be the possibility of
considering these methods even when we get back to teaching in person – having the option of
going online when you need to. If a child is away, rather than trying to reschedule a face-to-face
lesson, we could say, “well, you can do that one online this week”. Everyone will be familiar with it,
and therefore it may become part of what we do.’

The CYM is an auditioning Saturday music centre for students between the ages of 5 and 18. Since
its beginnings in 1970, it has seen more than 50,000 students pass through its doors at Morley
College. Currently, more than 400 students take part in its diverse range of programmes, from
classical and jazz to gamelan and musical theatre. Circumstances dictate that the CYM needs to
charge fees, but the centre aims, as Munchetty pointed out in her introduction to the gala concert,
to provide its services ‘irrespective of family background or the means to pay’.

The centre originally came under the auspices of the Inner London Education Authority, with the
local authority funding places for talented students. Things began to change in the new millennium,