Supporting 20 talented students to study music

In March 2020, Kampala Music School opened its doors to the public. In the time leading to this, students were trained by a few volunteers; Fiona Carr and Ulrike Wilson led this charge with piano and Vocal Students. In addition, a few other students were taught violin and cello.

 KMS is preparing to celebrate 21 years of existence in the coming weeks, and prudent to show how this legacy has grown. The bursary scheme was born, and the community here on this GlobalGiving initiative is a vital part of this KMS scheme in continuing to grow and develop talents. In this report, a few students are highlighted. However, much more directly benefit, and we shall bring them to the fore as part of our celebrations.

 As 2022 progressed, the students started to come into their own. Some, however, have had quite a few challenges. There is so much to report and speak to that it would be impossible to send in one newsletter. Some of the students will be highlighted here, with more to come. Some will be making performance Debuts in the upcoming concert to celebrate the anniversary.

 Benjamin, a piano student, is making steady progress through regular attendance for lessons during the school holidays. He shows enthusiasm, playing music from classical and contemporary styles. His commitment to learning is genuine and remains firm. He always reports for lessons during the holiday and continues to engage in musical activities at school and church.

Favour is quite an ambitious student, always ready for any opportunity to learn a new piece of music which he does quickly. Moreover, he does commit a fair amount of time to practise and listen to music. Therefore, always on the lookout for new challenges. In this respect, he does take on various challenges with relative ease and doesn’t seem to show much weakness.

He is currently working through the Grade 5 music theory, a requirement for performance examinations beyond the intermediate level.“Hopefully, in the upcoming school holiday, he could take a performance exam to underline his talent”, his teacher Mr Luggya Highlighted.

 Athanasius is a highly committed student. Has shown unrelenting commitment through regular attendance for lessons, resulting in steady progress. This term, a lot of focus has been on developing technique, namely independence and strengthening of the weak fingers through part playing and melodic projection. Finger scales and arpeggios remain a crucial part of his study in the quest to check on his consistency in this area.

Jimmy has shown continuity in progress unrelentingly through frequent practising and lesson attendance on the advanced end of the spectrum. He’s worked through grades to the current level via examinations, for which he passed with excellent marks. Currently exploring repertoire with the aim of a performance diploma in mind, he also does provide accompaniment for other instrumentalists and choir. This is to help widen his playing experience and command of the instrument to prepare for the Diploma performance exam early in 2023.

 As we continue the build-up towards the anniversary concert, we want to thank you for your gifts thus far. Still, as can be seen, mentioned in this report, we want to do more. So do let others know about what we are doing. We hope as we celebrate the 21^st anniversary, we will be able to get many more students to learn and gain a Music Education.