It was a mild October morning when I got in the car, bright and early, to travel from York to the Music & Drama Education Expo in Manchester, arriving at around 9.15am. I didn't attend last year's Expo but previous London Expos had given me an idea of what to expect. My review is based on my own experience, as well as discussions that I had throughout the day with delegates and exhibitors – many thanks to all who took the time to talk with me.
TRANSPORT
On arrival, I found that it was easy to park, thanks to the 5,000 free and wide parking spaces. The traffic to Old Trafford was heavy but not horrendous and I would drive again in future. A number of delegates travelled using public transport and almost everyone that I spoke to had managed to find the event quickly and easily but the mile walk from the nearest tram station wasn't great.
VENUE
I didn't attend last year's Manchester Expo, but the feedback I gathered was that Old Trafford was better suited for the Expo. In particular, everyone said they thought Old Trafford's staff were superb.
There was adequate seating throughout the venue and refreshments were reasonably priced. Lunch was limited to sandwiches and light snacks but having space to socialise and eat meant a great deal to delegates. The exhibition layout was similar to London, though the theatres were spread over three levels. The delegates I spoke to liked the fact that there were different areas to explore.
There was a problem of background noise in the Workshop Theatre but the Rhinegold theatre was mostly contained, with some noise from the people talking at the bar behind the theatre space. A number of fingers on lips and disapproving stares were witnessed!
EXHIBITORS
As already mentioned, the exhibition was similar to the London Expo, however there were only 85 exhibitors compared to the 150 plus in at the main show. The exhibition place felt more relaxed and less crowded than London, with only 85 exhibitors to the over 150 at London. A number of exhibitors had taken smaller stands compared to London but the majority of big names were all there, including the ISM and the MU. There was a nice spread of representation from exam boards, charities, online resources and publishers. Drama was also represented, but by fewer exhibitors. Some delegates noted the absence of Music Sales but I put this down to its recent acquisition by Hal Leonard Europe, who was in attendance. Others were pleased to see Chetham's School of Music and the Royal Northern College of Music representing northern music schools.
SESSIONS
There were only 20 sessions, some were panel discussions and 6 were Drama specifi c. Overall, I would say the sessions were practical with instant take-aways. I really enjoyed participating on the glockenspiel in Victoria Jaquiss's session, ‘Including students with additional needs in your mainstream music lesson’, using her Foxwood Song Sheets (published by Lindsay Music).
The MU provided a taster of some of its research into the current state of music education. It was interesting to hear about the issues faced by head teachers in recruiting good music teachers and the problems with reduced curriculum time. The effect of zero hour contracts and self-employed teachers in music hubs also was highlighted – bleak times.
Trinity's ‘Get creative’ session was huge fun, as was the ABRSM's ‘Group Loops’ – do visit the ABRSM's website to download the free resource. I loved seeing children performing in this session! There was a political flavour to some of the sessions, which seemed to be of great interest to academics and managers but several music teachers appeared less keen – you can't please everyone. The drama teachers I spoke to loved the sessions they attended, mentioning how well suited the sessions were for their audience.
CONCLUSIONS
I think it was an excellent success, the venue worked well and most teachers I spoke to saw the Expo as a valuable resource. Perhaps more needs to be provided for instrumental teachers? As one said to me, it seemed there was a bias was towards classroom teachers. In her mind, it was more costly for her to attend because she had lost income and had to come at her own expense. As both a classroom and instrumental teacher, the balance was just right for me but I can see the perspective. With the odd exception, everyone I spoke to planned to return. As for me, I actually preferred it to London so I will be back!
COMMENTS
- Katie, drama teacher, Manchester The Drama warm-ups were really simple but effective. I can use them in my next lessons for Key Stage 3, maybe even Key Stage 4.
- Tim, music teacher, Humberside It was worth coming. The tambourines and triangles workshop was huge fun with lots to take away.
- Heather, piano teacher, York The ISM session about performance nerves included things I've not thought about before. As an ISM member I will be downloading the related material from its website – excellent practical stuff.
- Amy, instrumental teacher I found the talks unappealing, focusing primarily on classroom education and the politics surrounding arts education. I've just looked at the London timetable and it looks much better in terms of appealing to peripatetic teachers.
