Administered by Creative Scotland, YMI is the main funding programme for youth music projects covering tuition in and out of school. It enabled over 360,00 children and young people in Scotland to access free music tuition last year, and over recent years has distributed around £9m of public funding, 86% of which specifically targeted areas of socio-economic deprivation.
Pulse of the Place is a drumming programme in Edinburgh and Lothian, formed in 2006, serving 10–17 year olds. Today it serves 14 or so schools and it's always been free to access, with no audition process. It delivers after- and out-of-school sessions, as well as taster sessions in schools.
Crucially, Pulse is a way of developing confidence, social skills and aspiration in young people regardless of background. In focussing on mental health and providing a safe, supportive environment, it represents YMI's emphasis on engagement over musical excellence.
The project is led by Rohan Seilman, a community worker and passionate advocate for open-access music-making, and Sally Kelly, a long-time drummer with the project and now its musical director.
Beginnings
Seilman brought me up to speed with how it all began. He's quick to acknowledge Kelly's central role. Aged seven, Kelly was part of a samba class that Seilman saw while working for Edinburgh city council. Seeing these classes as a fantastic way to engage young people, he persuaded the group and its leader, Matt Clements, to do something similar at a community centre he ran. It was during her teens that Kelly and a couple of her friends approached Seilman and asked if they could form a youth-led band. He agreed to support this and within three weeks the band went from 10 members to 25 – reflecting, he says, the power of youth networks.
Taking to the streets
It wasn't long before Pulse was performing in carnivals and at impressive venues. In 2012 it performed at the Paralympic Games in London. Since 2017 it's appeared at fashion shows, at events at the Scottish Parliament and Usher Hall, and for the World Fair Trade Tartan launch. Earlier this year, as part of World Fair Trade Tartan, it participated in the 25th Tartan Day Parade in New York City: 30 drummers, aged 8–19, sporting tartan, played samba through the streets of Manhattan. The Grand Marshal of the parade that day was Gail Porter, a powerful advocate for mental health, diversity and creative opportunities for young people. A good friend of Pulse, she's now also its patron.
Access and inclusion
Pulse of the Place focuses ‘on areas of high deprivation, often receiving referrals from schools of those struggling with social anxiety, among other mental health challenges’, explains Seilman. On top of this, there was COVID: ‘The negative impact has been severe, and, as we come out the other side, we're placing huge importance on creating new opportunities for socialisation to prevent longer-term damage.’ It's well known that CAMHS and similar services across the country are struggling to keep up with the increased demand from young people.
The project also recruits a high number of young people from ethnic minorities, who make up 17% of the group (from a city in which the population is 2%). As someone from an ethnic minority himself, Seilman feels a personal connection here and thrives on setting an example.
Youth-club vibe
Much of the project's success is undoubtedly down to being outside formal education. ‘It's not like lessons they receive in school’, says Seilman; ‘our approach is very different, informal. We always use first names for participants and tutors.’ It's also clear that there's a good amount of friendly banter that wouldn't exist in schools, because of different priorities.
Nor is it like other settings from the young peoples' lives. ‘The kids sometimes say, “oh, it's like being a family”, Seilman explains. ‘But it's not, because with a family you rarely have a choice; here, you're making a choice whether to come or not.’ This example of agency, particularly when there's no pressure to attend sessions, creates its own type of bond and loyalty.
Seilman's own background is also relevant. He admits he's no master-drummer, that players soon outplay him, but he's comfortable with this and finds it ‘brilliant’ when they do. The important point is access, maintaining free lessons and avoiding the type of experiences he had at school. ‘Being chosen for clarinet meant completing a 10-minute test of blowing down different mouthpieces. Some kids got it, some kids didn't’, he explains. ‘There were maybe five instruments over two classes that were going to be shared out. How do you say “no” to those other children?’ This early exclusion, he maintains, leads children thinking they're not good enough for music.
Seilman trained as an electronic engineer before retraining and becoming a community worker. He worked with adults with learning disabilities and taught maths to adults returning to the workplace. This, he feels, is where he learnt how to teach.
Safe space
One the most important things Pulse does is provide a safe environment for young people bullied at school. Building a relationship comes first, Seilman explains, through a mutual interest in being part of the drumming team. When someone joins the beginner class, there's little time or space to care what others think; it's designed that way – they just drum. When feeling relaxed enough, newcomers will share how they're coping.
I ask how big a problem bullying is, in his experience. Seilman thinks around half of the young people he sees experience it, but acknowledges the important work that schools do. Presumably, there's a process to this, I ask, beyond giving them sticks to work out their frustration? There is, but it's a question of steps, he says. First, a young person needs an avenue (an environment) though which to express some of the things they're challenged by, and then one of the team persuades that person to speak to a teacher or adult they trust. However, there is always a follow-up with school or parents.
Interestingly, the referral process works both ways. Is the communication with schools as good as it seems? ‘I try and make it so’, he explains, ‘though most of it's informal. Some headteachers place considerable trust in me. I'm thinking of a headteacher who has known us for around 17 years. She’ll come and speak to me at a group meeting and say, “We’ve got this young person who's struggling a bit – I think drumming might be good.”’
It's not difficult finding a school to corroborate this, or videos that show the confidence-building. For some schools, however, the impact lies deeper. ‘The work that Pulse do has been immeasurable at times’, explains Chris Kay, deputy headteacher at Windygoul Primary School. ‘Our learners find it to be not only a creative outlet but a powerful vehicle for self-expression. This then feeds back into the classroom and through their increased mental and emotional wellbeing, and resilience. We have measured the impact this has on their ability in other areas of the curriculum, such as literacy and numeracy. We also have several learners who will now be lifelong participants in the expressive arts, and this is solely down to their experience with Pulse of the Place.’
Music and movement
Pulse is no less serious about its music-making. It's essentially a samba group with ‘plenty of rock-samba and the occasional piper’, according to Seilman; but there's progression and differentiation, too, thanks to Kelly, who is largely self-taught and leads the non-beginners – with impressive expertise. ‘Music taught within the drum clubs covers a range of styles and grooves from around the world’, she explains. ‘We have Brazilian styles and explore batucada, Afro-bloco music, samba-reggae, maracatu, maculelê, afoxê and coco; but we’ve also played hip-hop, drum ‘n’ bass, or Indian dhol grooves and funk.’
She also encourages older players to move around the instruments and learn new techniques. The advanced bands focus on funk grooves, she adds, ‘taking a more in-depth look at these and how we transpose them onto samba drums using traditional Brazilian techniques.’ In between times, the project relies on peer education: younger players learning from experienced ones.
Like all good percussions, Kelly also understands the importance of movement and knowing the tradition. For the New York parade, ‘we put together formations of stepping and moving around the floor space as a traveling unit. Each different groove/rhythm had a different movement associated with it, some creating moving shapes.’
Drumming, explains Seilman, is a great equaliser. Samba drumming at Pulse of the Place, it seems, also requires superb foot- and team-work.
