Adopt a Music Creator pairings 2024

The Adopt a Music Creator project, formerly known as the Adopt a Composer project, has inspired over 120 wide breadths of works and performances by music creators and leisure-time music groups since its beginning in 2000.

The collaborative project is run by Making Music and funded by the PRS Foundation, Philip and Dorothy Green Trust and Creative Scotland.

Adopt a Music Creator matches leisure-time choirs, bands, orchestras and ensembles with a music creator for a year, leading to a premiere performance and professional recording. Meet this year's pairings!

2024 Adopt a Music Creator pairings

• Glasgow Community Concert Band and Finn McLean
• Harpenden Barbershop Harmony Club and Charlotte Botterill
• Northern Rose Voices and Carla Michal Sayer  
• Uckfield Concert Brass and Emily Hazrati

Glasgow Community Concert Band and Finn McLean (funded by Creative Scotland and mentored by Ailie Robertson) 

Glasgow Community Concert Band (GCCB) are a fun, friendly, and enthusiastic group who enjoy playing music together, as well as socialising and supporting local events. The band has members of all ages, backgrounds and abilities, and there is no audition process to join. Whilst they are a traditional concert band in name, some of the music they play are far from stuck in the past. gccb.co.uk

Finn McLean is a musician writing and playing for themselves and others, living in Glasgow. Their practice revolves around an embrace of their entire musical life – from starting in traditional Scottish music in their Gaelic primary school, teenage angst represented through an electric guitar and bad riffs, to graduating from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, studying composition and guitar. Visit Finn McLean’s Soundcloud account 

Harpenden Barbershop Harmony Club and Charlotte Botterill (mentored by Jenni Pinnock) 

Harpenden Barbershop Harmony Chorus (performing as The Kings of Herts) are a mixed but mainly male chorus singing four-part a capella. The group focuses on barbershop arrangements of popular songs, ranging from the traditional up to present day classics. They also sing in other styles such as folk, sea shanties, country, and more. The group place a strong emphasis on fun but aim to achieve a high standard of singing and to compete nationally. kingsofherts.co.uk 

Charlotte Botterill is a composer of contemporary music. She is influenced by her surroundings, the metaphysical, and abstract ideas. Her music blends classical and jazz harmony, while exploring the contrasting timbres of extended techniques and traditional playing. Her compositions aim to conjure an atmosphere, capture a fleeting moment, or portray the evolving and uncertain nature of life. charlottebotterill.com 

Northern Rose Voices and Carla Michal Sayer (mentored by Emily Crossland) 

Northern Rose Voices was founded in 2018 and their singers are drawn from East and North Yorkshire. All their members have extensive choral and performing arts experience with several leading their own vocal groups or performing as solo artists. The group enjoy singing in a variety of contexts, delivering an accessible programme of both a capella and accompanied pieces. northernrosevoices.co.uk 

Carla Michal Sayer is from Glasgow and wants music to be part of everyone’s life. She hopes her music can speak to people directly, with feeling. She’s in the process of weaving together her ideas about building community and playing music. She has worked in community development, clinical, and social care settings, as a project coordinator and a musician. carlasayer.co.uk 

Uckfield Concert Brass and Emily Hazrati (mentored by Fraser Trainer) 

Uckfield Concert Brass enjoy producing top-quality performances across Southern England. Their Musical Director and players enjoy delighting audiences throughout the region and trying something a little different. They regularly collaborate with singers and sometimes dancers. They put on themed concerts and spectacular events. The group is based in Uckfield in East Sussex and attract players from a wide area. uckfieldconcertbrass.com 

Emily Hazrati is a composer-performer based in London. Her music is spacious, immersive, and environmental with a focus on storytelling, collaboration, and global politics, as well as ideas around ritual and circularity. She has worked with ensembles and organisations including the BBC Singers, Royal Opera House, Ligeti Quartet, Britten Pears Arts, National Youth Choir, Oxford Song, Psappha, and CHROMA Ensemble, amongst many others. emilyhazrati.com   

Meet the mentors

Ailie Robertson
Ailie is a multi-award-winning Scottish composer who has been commissioned by the BBC Proms, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Bang on a Can, Cappella Nova, Exaudi and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra amongst others. She is currently composer-in-residence with Sound Festival and Glyndebourne Opera. She was the winner of the ‘Achievement in New Music’ prize at the Scottish Awards for New Music. ailierobertson.com 

Jenni Pinnock
Jenni’s music combines quirky time signatures, soaring melodies and classical forms. Her works focus on science and nature and are regularly performed worldwide. She frequently collaborates with creative practitioners across the arts, alongside delivering projects in multiple settings. Recent works include the touring installation Deception Island (Story Machine) and Snapshots (collection of standalone musical theatre pieces). jennipinnock.com

Emily Crossland
Emily is a composer and community musician. Her work is often theatrical and interactive, and she is influenced by folk and traditional music (she is a keen Javanese gamelan player and currently directs youth and student ensembles at the University of York). Her compositions have been performed at Gaudeamus Muziekweek, National Concert Hall Dublin, Late Music York, and as part of Hull City of Culture. She delivers educational music projects in schools, communities and criminal justice settings across the UK and frequently works as a guest lecturer at the universities of York and York St John. emilycrossland.com

Fraser Trainer
Fraser teaches at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. A composer with a vivid and direct musical language, Fraser has five London Sinfonietta commissions to his name and has also written music for the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Proms, Netherlands Chamber Orchestra and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. Fraser leads many creative, collaborative projects in a wide variety of contexts and regularly trains musicians and teachers. Learn more about Fraser

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