Alva pupils on musical journey to Boston, USA

Jamie MacDonald Jamie MacDonald - 1598 • Published 11 Jun 2008 12:00 0 Comments

TWO talented Alva Academy pupils are looking forward to the summer holidays so they can go back to school - in Boston, USA.

Christie Scott and Martin Mullady will be heading across the pond next month to spend their days off studying at Berklee College of Music, one of the world"s top music colleges.

Christie, who plays the drums, told the Advertiser, 'We can"t wait to go. It will be great. The trip seems like it has taken ages to come round but it"s not too long to go now.'

The boys - who have just started sixth year - will spend five weeks at the college taking part in workshops and ensembles designed to improve their technique. There will also be visits to the college from famous musicians.

Martin plays guitar and has previously spent one week at the college.

He said, 'The course is really in-depth and we won"t just be playing the guitar or drums.

'There are different electives where we can find out all about the music business and how it works.

'Even though we are going back to school for the holidays we won"t be bored as we are learning new things about a subject we are interested in.'

Both boys have been involved in local bands and they have recently started a new group through the Glasshouse Loan Project.

Christie is also involved with Hillfoots Music For Youth - the local orchestra for youngsters from across Clackmannanshire.

Christie said, 'I play the timpani and percussion with Hillfoots and it has helped me with reading music.'

The boys are grateful for the help provided by Alva Academy in supporting their musical development - Martin even changed schools to take advantage of the musical teaching provided at the school.

Christie said, 'The teachers here have been really good. They have given us a lot of help technically with how we play.'

Martin added, 'It is good having teachers who are guitarists themselves. All the music teachers try to push you on and make sure you keep improving.'

One of the school"s music teachers Mr Clifford believes the boys can only benefit from their trip to the States.

He said, 'In terms of their performance they should enjoy it and thrive on the programme.

'Berklee will draw on any existing knowledge and skills and build on it in further depth.'

Home to the Red Sox baseball team and the setting of the 1980s TV series Cheers, Boston is known as the Athens of America due to the number of colleges in the area.

Martin said, 'It will be a lot of hard work but we do get weekends off and even though we will still be practicing hopefully there will be time to go and see the sights.'

The trip comes shortly after the boys" school exams finish - something which they found even harder to study for than usual.

Christie said, 'It was a struggle to get through this year"s exams with the trip to Boston round the corner. Still, we are nearly there now.'

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This article appeared in Alloa & Hillfoots Advertiser 12 Jun 08

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