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Insider Solutions
Case Studies 2004 - Pump Up The Jam
Summary A free music club providing one to one and group tuition in guitar, keyboards, drums, singing and songwriting with established professional musicians.
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In 1998 Stirling Council's Community Services did a major community consultation exercise for their local authority Cultural Strategy. One part of this was a Youth Report by the Council's Youth Services. This included community workers talking directly to young people and to youth workers which highlighted the links that could be made between music and young people locally. The Council's Heritage and Cultural Services Department then put in place a a 4-year programme of new and traditional music activities called 'Sound Tracks'. This began in June 2000 and was linked to the opening of the new Tolbooth. The Tolbooth is an inspired re-development of an historic jail and courthouse. This new centre for music and arts opened in Stirling in March 2002 and provides performing, workshop and recording facilities within the 'Top of the Town', a social inclusion partnership area. "My wee brother told me about this really good place where you can have a shot on the drums, guitar and everything for free" Existing clubs in Raploch and Cultenhove which had been opened as part of the 'Sound Tracks' projects joined together to meet at the Tolbooth and formed the new club - 'Pump up the Jam'. The project was developed and is now run by Stirling Council's Heritage and Cultural Services. It is a key element of the 'ladder of opportunity' offered by the Tolbooth.
'Pump up the Jam' was initially funded through the 'Sound Tracks' Project, which is supported by the National Lottery (Access and Participation Fund) and Stirling Council. The development of 'Sound Tracks', took about two years. The work was done by Heritage and Cultural Services and Youth Services staff. Sound Tracks cost £250,000 and 75 per cent of this was met by the National Lottery Access and Participation Fund. Heritage and Cultural Services incorporated the remaining 25% into their core budget as it met an identified gap in arts provision for young people in the area. 'It was really good fun and I learnt about chords and stuff' Budget 'Pump up the Jam' : 1 night/week x 8 weeks = approx. £2,500 Running from 5pm - 8pm, this includes: 3 x professional music tutors @ £65/ night Also additional preparation and meeting time, venue and equipment hire, publicity and booking arrangements. There is already a large resource of musical instruments available to participants from 'Sound Tracks' so buying musical instruments is not part of this budget.
The planning for an eight week 'Pump up the Jam' slot takes about two and a half months. You need to advertise in the Tolbooth Arts & Events Guide and book music tutors, venue spaces, equipment and instruments. "The club would be even better if it was on twice a week" How is it run? 'Pump up the Jam' runs three x eight week blocks per year. These eight week blocks fit with school terms. It runs for one night a week between 5pm - 8pm for those eight weeks. It is usually on Tuesday nights so it doesn't clash with the local youth club night. A maximum of 30 participants can be involved. They book tutorial sessions in advance, usually for a half hour slot. Tutorials are either one to one, or in small groups. All sessions are free of charge and musical instruments are provided. There is also the opportunity to jam either before or after you have your tutorial. An intensive two-day 'Pump up the Jam' session has also been piloted during school holidays last year and will be repeated this summer. How is it monitored? The project is monitored informally by the Music & Arts Development Officer. Reports on Pump up the Jam have been provided to The national lottery monitoring officer as part of the larger Sound Tracks Programme. 'Pump up the Jam' runs three x eight week blocks per year. These eight week blocks fit with school terms. It runs for one night a week between 5pm - 8pm for those eight weeks. It is usually on Tuesday nights so it doesn't clash with the local youth club night. A maximum of 30 participants can be involved. They book tutorial sessions in advance, usually for a half hour slot. Tutorials are either one to one, or in small groups. All sessions are free of charge and musical instruments are provided. There is also the opportunity to jam either before or after you have your tutorial. An intensive two-day 'Pump up the Jam' session has also been piloted during school holidays last year and will be repeated this summer. All the music tutors are established musicians and are experienced in working with young people. They include Taj Wyzgowski, a player with Deacon Blue and Brian McAlpine, a traditional multi-instrumentalist and various guest tutors. The Arts Development Officer or Music Development Officer are usually present for the evening slots to support the music tutors, to respond to any needs and to get informal feedback. At the end of each eight-week block there is a review meeting with the music and arts development officers and all the music tutors. "Its helped us put some of our own songs together. Taj wanted us to have a go at writing love songs but I ain't into that I like punk" The project is monitored informally by the Music & Arts Development Officer. Reports on Pump up the Jam have been provided to The national lottery monitoring officer as part of the larger Sound Tracks Programme. 'Pump up the Jam' has run for three x eight week blocks between March 2002 and February 2003. There was also a two-day intensive session during the summer holidays of 2002. Achievements - participants 'Pump up the Jam' currently has a membership of 30 - the maximum allowed. This shows how the project has captured the imagination of the local community. Most participants are 'young people' from Social Inclusion Partnership areas, however, the project is not restrictive and actually includes people aged between seven and 45 from a range of backgrounds.
Meeting new people, learning new creative skills Pump up the Jam participants meet new people, work with professional musicians in a professional creative environment and develop skills and/or learn new instruments. They have also had the opportunity to jam with each other, as well as, receiving tutorials and performing in front of each other. A young band from McLaren High School called Recc was formed at Pump up the Jam. "I just wanna play the drums - it's brilliant" Flexible and Responsive Pump up the Jam tutors are able to respond directly to individuals' interests and skill levels because tuition is either one to one or within small groups. The tutors are all highly experienced and can access additional expertise and equipment if needed. Participants are told about other local opportunities by tutors and staff such as Top of the Rocks and Feedback, as well as college courses and other formal educational routes. "We got the opportunity to see how stuff in the recording studio works" Performing The chance for participants to perform for each other or to perform at Top of the Rocks provides a focal point for experimenting with and demonstrating new skills. This part of the project is not structured but informal and relaxed. Pump up the Jam gives young people the chance to link into other opportunities including performing at 'Top of the Rocks' - a monthly gig night showcasing local bands in a professional venue with professional support, to a packed house. Recc, have performed there. There are also monthly feedback sessions where music industry experts talk about particular aspects of the business. This could be the role of the A&R man and PRS or the difference between major and indie labels or how to negotiate a contract. "It learns you more about music" Continuation of the project Pump up the Jam is a unique project that has grown from music clubs in youth clubs. The music clubs began as a guitar class and now Pump up the Jam is a highly valued aspect of local cultural activity, contributing to the vitality of the Tolbooth and local communities. The National lottery funding for the Pump up the Jam has now finished but it has been so successful that Heritage and Cultural Services wants to integrate Pump up the Jam into core Tolbooth business. They are currently looking for partnership funding for the project from other service providers. The project has been evaluated through informal feedback from participants and musicians, as well as questionnaires to participants and review meetings with musicians. This evaluation process feeds in to Heritage and Cultural Services development plans. "it should be on longer" Building on experience - involving youth workers They intend to continue building on their experience. The timescales, structures and tutorial system all work very successfully. However, an opportunity to develop existing working relationships with youth workers has been identified by having youth workers working alongside the musicians to deliver the weekly club. This would provide an important exchange of skills, information and experience that would benefit everybody, but most of all the young people involved in the project. Whilst participants have undoubtedly left with positive experiences there's an opportunity to improve on this by cutting down on 'hanging around time' before or after their tutorials. They could be jamming, experimenting, listening to music, discussing music etc. This could be facilitated by youth workers collaborating with the musicians. This is a potential that Heritage and Cultural Services are exploring.
Key issues / Questions to consider in developing a project like this :
"Dreams" by Recc - mp3 format (click here) - to play, right click your mouse then select "save target as" to save on your computer "Shadow Master" by Recc - mp3 format (click here) - to play, right click your mouse then select "save target as" to save on your computer |
There is a five year history to the development of "Pump Up The Jam".
Pump up the Jam aims to provide: 
Pump up the Jam is co-ordinated by Alasdair Campbell - Music Development Officer. His post is funded through the Sound Tracks lottery award. Dave MacDonald - Stirling Council's Arts Development Officer manages the overall project. There's also an advisory Steering Group made up mainly of music and performance specialists. 
"I'm much more confident than I was before"