Outreach

Participation and learning are at the heart of the Music@Malling programme with a series of differentiated outreach projects that run throughout the year.

The projects are designed to inspire creativity and encourage young people to perform, develop their artistic skills and use their imagination. We aim to embed music and creativity in local primary and secondary schools and provide children, young people and marginalised groups direct access to outstanding arts practitioners through outreach and world class concerts.

Music@Malling work in partnerships with international, national and regional organisations to develop these projects which engage hundreds of people each year.

All our outreach is FREE to participants and all concerts are FREE to under 25’s to encourage inclusivity and engagement.

Outreach Projects 2026

Let’s Get Creative – a series of live interactive shows for pre-schoolers, parents and carers

Schools Workshops – primary and secondary schools are involved in whole-class composition and performance

Schools Visits – primary and secondary school classes attend Music@Malling lunchtime concerts, including a Q&A with the musicians

Side-by-Side – the opportunity to work with, rehearse and perform with outstanding professional ensembles in our September 2026 Festival

Music@Malling Scratch Orchestra – launched in May 2022, this ensemble is held outside of schools and brings young people of all ages and abilities together to make music alongside professional musicians. BOOK NOW for our 2026 sessions. Sessions are on Sunday mornings once a month at Malling Abbey and are FREE.

Young Artist Platform – run in partnership with Kirckman Concerts and The Fenton Arts Trust, this project offers highly talented ensembles and early career composers performance opportunities

Spadework – a series of workshops and informal concerts run in conjunction with local charity Spadework working with people with dementia and mental disabilities.  Our pilot project in 2025 was supported by The National Lottery Community Fund. We are currently fundraising to continue the project in 2026.

CPD – Continuing Professional Development for teachers to embed best practice into local primary and secondary schools.

Impact Statement

• Community Building – To bring people of all backgrounds and ages together through shared musical experiences. Over 3500 people attended our events in 2025. 13600 attended The Enchanted Garden at Ightham Mote – an installation of art by Ana Maria Pacheco; poetry by George Zsirtes and music by Zoë Martlew.
• Inspiring Creativity – To inspire people to be creative, learn instruments and compose. In 2025, 94.5% of our outreach participants said the workshops were “totally brilliant.”
• Supporting Contemporary Music – In 2025, Music@Malling commissioned 13 new works and hosted two European premieres of pieces by celebrated US composer, David Lang.
• Developing Audiences – in 2025, 24.5% of our audiences were new. Over 150 children attended lunchtime concerts at Malling Abbey and enjoyed Q and A sessions with the artists afterwards.
• Marginalised Groups – over 200 people at Spadework benefited from 8 weeks of workshops, playlists and informal concerts organised by Music@Malling. 90% said that they loved the activities and experienced increased wellbeing and confidence.
• Outstanding Artistic Resource – we aim to be outstanding resource for the local area with national resonance. In 2025, Music@Malling regularly appeared in the national press including The Observer, Classical Music, The Strad, The Artsdesk, BBC Radio 3, The Gramophone and BBC Music Magazine. An estimated 275k learned about our work online through press and social media.