UK’s Glasshouse Centre to Launch New Academy

The Glasshouse in Gateshead is launching a music academy in locations across England’s North East and Cumbria

The Glasshouse International Center for Music in England will be hosting a fundraising campaign later this year to invest £20 million into a new academy to develop and support the careers of the next generation of musicians.

Over the next two years, the academy will open four “music learning hot spots” in Middlesbrough, Carlisle, Sunderland, and Kendal. This news comes as The Glasshouse marks its 20th anniversary and confirms its goals for music education despite an 80% decline in public funding for this work. 

The aim is to initially raise £1 million each year to fund the program; the academy has already received £2 million from grant distributor The Foyle Foundation, which will be invested over the next two decades.

Additionally, The Glasshouse will be expanding the number of places available to young people wishing to learn music and increase its financial support to help people purchase instruments.

More initiatives will include a series of summer schools, an inclusive youth orchestra for both disabled and non-disabled musicians, as well as the opening of The Glasshouse Studios for artists to create works and projects. 

The academy is also aiming to be a unique place where young musicians “can access high-quality tuition across multiple genres, alongside a world-class live performance program,” BBC News reported. 

Glasshouse’s CEO Abigail Pogson added that the venue had worked for the last 20 years to be a place where people of all ages could make and experience music.

“The Glasshouse Academy builds on this foundation by opening up even more opportunities for young people,” Pogson said, “ensuring the North East remains a thriving centre for music learning and professional development.”