£2m anniversary boost for The Glasshouse to benefit young musicians
£2m anniversary boost for The Glasshouse to benefit young musicians
The Glasshouse has announced a £2m donation from The Foyle Foundation towards expanding its work with young people under the banner of a new Music Academy for the North East.
Gateshead’s international music centre turns 20 in December and in 2025, its 20th anniversary year, will officially launch a new £20m fundraising campaign – kickstarted by the donation – to support its ambitions as it moves into its third decade.
One of its principal aims concerns young people and The Glasshouse, a music charity, is also launching a new campaign called ‘Music makes me feel’ which celebrates the transformative impact of music education.
Already The Glasshouse reaches more than 50,000 young people through its activities each year but under the New Music Academy it aims to grow that number.
Plans include increasing the number of places available for young people to get involved, reducing financial and socio-economic barriers, creating opportunities across the region and supporting emerging professional musicians by connecting music education with artist development programmes.
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In recognition of the donation, the 25-room music education centre at The Glasshouse has been renamed the Foyle Music Centre.
The Foyle Foundation was formed to implement the will of the late Christina Foyle, daughter of William Foyle who, with his brother, founded the famous London bookshop, Foyles.
It has been awarding grants to cultural and learning organisations for 25 years and has given almost £150m overall since its inception.
It has long been a supporter and partner of The Glasshouse (formerly Sage Gateshead), contributing in different ways, including upgrades to music-making facilities, education and Royal Northern Sinfonia.
The £2m donation will take the form of a contribution to The Glasshouse’s endowment.
Abigail Pogson, managing director of The Glasshouse, offered thanks and said: “The Foyle Foundation has long shared our ambition to create opportunities in music for everyone across the North East.
“Our international centre for music will soon celebrate its 20th birthday and this gift will kickstart one of our most ambitious and vital fundraising campaigns in our history.”
David Hall, chief executive of The Foyle Foundation, said it was delighted to celebrate and help kickstart The Glasshouse’s anniversary campaign by providing long-term funding for its Music Academy.
“This will enable many more young people, and others, from across the entire region to benefit from increased music-making, training and routes to career progression within the newly named Foyle Music Centre,” he said.
The ‘Music makes me feel’ campaign gives a platform to young people like Etania who says: “If you don’t feel the music, you’re not getting anything across.
“One thing I’ve learned is that it’s not just about singing the words - you have to feel them. When you feel what you’re singing, others feel it too. It’s like you radiate something.
“When we’re all together and the audience is toe-tapping, it’s like a wave, an explosion of feeling that everyone joins. You just have to feel something.”
You can find out more about the campaign on The Glasshouse website.