Into The Music is a unique immersive, tactile music-making environment where purpose-built string instruments allow participants to improvise music in a safe space.

The Scottish Government’s Youth Music Initiative (YMI) funding allows us to offer sessions tailored specifically to children and young people with learning disabilities and other additional support needs on a regular basis. Our core mission is to facilitate non-verbal communication and self-expression, fostering empowerment, relaxation, self-confidence, and the alleviation of isolation through the creation of harmonious soundscapes.

[The workshop] has given R the chance to express himself through music, and to actually be in charge of at least one thing in his day! It’s great that he isn’t told what to do and just given the freedom to make sounds and play in his time.

Parent of participant

At the heart of Into The Music is our innovative approach to musical instruments. All our instruments (purpose-built or adapted) are tuned to diatonic or pentatonic scales, helping overcome the barriers that are present when playing conventional chromatic instruments and setting the foundations for meaningful improvisation without the need of previous musical experience. In this setting, tempo and steady rhythm are welcome but not essential, as we understand that rhythm perception and physical limitations vary among participants. Instead, there are other elements that can solidify a group of improvising musicians such as pitch, texture and dynamics, and the use of diatonic instruments ensures that the players are always in tune with each other.

Our son P is autistic and has Down’s Syndrome with a severe learning disability. He responds to music. We have paid for so many different clubs only to have our money wasted as he refuses to try or return. I saw these music sessions advertised and as they were free we thought let’s try! We did and it could not have been a bigger success. The two young men followed P’s lead and allowed him to explore everything at his own pace. What’s more he stayed the course for a full session not his usual five minutes. Since that day, which brought tears to my eyes, P has announced every Friday that it’s ‘music day’. He is calmer after the sessions and more relaxed. I love he can access music making in a non-structured way which he really enjoys.

Parent of participant

From the beginning, we envisioned Into The Music as an environment where young people can explore music at their own pace with minimum demands and structure. Our approach is participant-led, meaning that as facilitators, we tend to follow the lead of participants and allow interaction to shape the resulting music.

^{_{Into The Music sessions are run by Giorgos Bouras and Pete Taylor at St Margaret’s House on 151 London Road every Tuesday evening and Friday afternoon for children and young people with learning disabilities living in Edinburgh and the Lothians.}}