The Music Workshop Company Blog

Each month the Music Workshop Company publishes two blogs. One blog, written by the MWC team addresses a key issue in Music Education or gives information about a particular genre or period of music. The other blog is written by a guest writer, highlighting good practice or key events in Music Education. We hope you enjoy reading the blogs.

To contribute as a guest writer please email Maria@music-workshop.co.uk

Posts tagged “SPOONS”

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Get Creative with The Spoons

Posted on 20th September 2021 at 19:25

Experimenting with Rhythms Using the Spoons – with Percussionist Jo May

Jo May loves to play percussion. And she loves to teach it too. As a professional percussionist, she has learned to perform on a huge range of orchestral instruments. Here she teaches some creative techniques for music-making using a humble pair of spoons.

Jo recorded a series of 5 mini videos for Music Workshop Company all about playing the spoons. If you missed the first two, check out her introduction to the spoons, and the first “proper” lesson. Now it’s time to learn how to play using some more complicated rhythms and techniques.

Let’s get creative!

Image by Monika Grabkow, Unsplash

How to Play a Simple Rhythm on the Spoons

Posted on 26th February 2021 at 10:55

Beginner Spoon Playing with Percussionist Jo May: Lesson 2

In this series of five mini-videos, Jo May teaches us how to play the spoons. As a professional percussionist, Jo has access to all sorts of different instruments. But she still enjoys making music with a simple pair of spoons. In fact, she’s even had special pairs of spoons made for her to play.

A Musical instrument in your Kitchen - Playing the Spoons

Posted on 19th January 2021 at 11:12

A Musical instrument in your kitchen? A Beginners' Guide to Playing the Spoons

Is there an instrument you can play at home, without buying special equipment? Can you make music from items already in your house? The answers are yes, and yes. You can make sounds and rhythms with a percussion instrument that you'll find in your kitchen.

MWC at the Expo – Maria’s Story

Posted on 15th April 2015 at 14:00

The Music Workshop Company Artistic Director and Founder Maria Thomas and the MWC team enjoyed a productive and inspiring time at the 2015 Rhinegold Music Education Expo. The Expo, which was held at London’s Barbican Centre on March 12th and 13th, gives music educators, teachers, workshop leaders, musicians and practitioners and all those involved in music education a chance to come together and share ideas and information.

Pass the Spoons

Posted on 13th October 2014 at 14:30

We love unusual instruments at the Music Workshop Company. This month’s blog is by professional percussionist and workshop leader Jo May, who specialises in workshops teaching the spoons. Jo trained at the Royal College of Music and has performed with orchestras including the BBC Symphony Orchestra. She explains how she came to play the spoons and why a Spoons workshop offers an easy introduction to music for any child.