Guildhall Young Artists in the studio

On Saturday 31 May, students from Junior Guildhall got the chance to record a new collection of music by composer and multidisciplinary artist, Nwando Ebizie. Playing side-by-side with members of the Docklands Sinfonia, the young musicians were conducted by Creative Director of Guildhall Young Artists, Spencer Down. 

Nwando Ebizie's new work She is a river has been commissioned by Estuary Festival 2025 and the final recording will be part of an immersive show taking place on Windrush Day, 22 June, celebrating and commemorating the contribution African-Caribbean migrants and their families have made to the UK. The performance takes place during the opening weekend of the festival at Tilbury Docks, where the ship, the Empire Windrush, arrived in 1948.

For many of the students, this was their first experience of a professional recording session and the skills involved. With musicians of the Docklands Sinfonia, also teachers at Junior Guildhall, the students were able to play alongside their own teachers, as well as working closely with the composer who was present throughout the recording session.

We caught up with Rebecca, a double bass player who attends Junior Guildhall, to hear more about the experience:

"The day started off with meeting the sound engineering team and the Estuary Festival leaders. Milton Court was covered in microphones and wires, and on our stands there were one sided headphones which many of us hadn’t seen before. We were introduced to using a click track, as the strings, brass and woodwind were being recorded separately.

It took us a few takes to get into the swing of things! We were given many useful tips and pointers from our professional colleagues as the session got going. It can be quite hard to hear other players in your section when half of your hearing is taken up by clicking and you can’t get away with much when you are surrounded by microphones!

We went through the music enjoying various styles and influences, a particular section sounded like music from James Bond. While recording we received feedback from the composer herself which was a privilege.

During our break many of us got to speak to the musicians from the Docklands Sinfonia a bit more, taking the opportunity to hear about their careers and where they studied. I found out the double bass player studied at Guildhall School, so I got to ask her about her experience which was amazing, as I will be studying there myself.

After the break we returned to finish the last few pieces and managed to get everything done in time! We all gained so much from the day and look forward to hearing the project as a whole when it's completed."

This project was just one of many brilliant and varied performance opportunities available to students at Junior Guildhall. Find out more about Junior Guildhall here.