Intern Diaries: Sanaa

I’ve never been one for sunbathing.  Whenever on holiday, I like to fully absorb how the locals live, work and play.  I like to leave feeling like I know the area and, as cheesy as it sounds, a little patch of the world.

When I first arrived at Spitalfields Music, I was carrying with me a wealth of wonder, keen to pick up all manner of things related to London life on the way whilst delving into as much work and opportunity as possible. The feeling I get when I go on holiday ties in with how I’m left feeling towards the end of my time at Spitalfields Music: knowledge has been successfully accumulated indeed.  Walking down the street to the office every morning has been quite the visual treat – the stomach observes this too.  I will miss hearing the hustle and bustle of the market right at our doorstep but most of all,  I feel that really getting to the know the area has been key to understanding Spitalfields Music place and importance in the wider community.

Gaining insight and hands on experience of the working world is invaluable for any intern. Thanks to the Spitalfields Music office layout being with all departments situated in one room, there is a lot available to soak up and take in. My biggest piece of advice would be to observe and report.  Listen and note everything down and you’ll find that you have learnt light-years beyond what you have imagined and expected to. Being able to see and hear about all of the staff’s efforts and upcoming projects whilst you’re busy working away really is special.

Maybe it’s because at the age of five I would imagine Robert Englund going back home at the end of his working day on set from playing Freddy Krueger, tucking his kids to bed and then practicing his lines in his bathroom mirror, the magic of film, theatre and music performances has, for me, always lain ‘behind the scenes’, the makings of as such. I’ve always wanted to be a part of an organisation that delivers something exciting to an audience, but where I could still feel amazed backstage by the production process. One of the great perks of being an intern with Spitalfields Music has been assisting with the run up to the Winter Festival programme.  Being truly welcomed and involved in the process right from the moment you walk in – though it may seem overwhelming at first – allows you to understand what it takes to put on the events.

I’m so thankful for all the responsibilities that were assigned to me after being offered the Marketing and Box Office Assistant position, because being behind the scenes of the forthcoming Summer Festival 2013 has given me great appreciation for the kind of work I’ve been involved in and in its own way, the world I want to be a part of.

Intern Diaries: Laura goes East

Laura recently joined us as our new intern working with our Learning & Participation programme. She took some time out to tell all about what she’s been getting up to in the run up to our Musical Rumpus tour and Women sing East’s Vivaldi extravaganza.

As I sit immersed in finances from the first Women sing East rehearsal, I overhear a little voice reminding me I need to complete my first blog entry as the new Learning & Participation Intern at Spitalfields Music. I smile, nod and try to carry on with what I was doing however, I find myself trying to figure out whether I am new or old… surely I haven’t been here for less than a month? I quickly remember I am in fact new and continue struggling to locate a file I have misplaced.

From the moment they buzzed me in; I have felt welcomed by this fantastic organisation. With a small but varied team, everyone was friendly and inviting. I slightly embarrassingly said when leaving the office on my third day, “I’m going to miss it here” knowing I wouldn’t be returning for 4 days. This statement was genuine; I whole-heartedly enjoyed being in the office and was sad to leave.

During my first week I spent some time getting to know the team.  Encouraged to set up one on one meetings with everyone, I got to learn what he or she contributed to Spitalfields Music. I also got to understand how they came to be where they are today. As the job market gets tougher and you are constantly battling between getting a job in something you love and settling for something that pays the bills, it is great to remember that nobody landed where they are without a bit of interning, struggle or worry.

In the past month I have dived head first into all that is Spitalfields Music. As someone who has a history of predominantly working outside the office, I revelled in the opportunity to sit at a desk (this usually works the other way round!). I send introductory emails to Women sing East, made maps for the Musical Rumpus: A Fairy Queen in the Forest tour, booked venues for our Trainee Music Leaders scheme and much more.

As time has progressed, I’ve spent more time out of the office taking my learning of Spitalfields Music, and the area it commits itself too, much further. In my first week I attended the audition workshop at the Brady Centre for the new Trainee Music Leaders scheme and got to voice my opinions of which individuals I thought would be most suitable for the posts. I went to Barking Learning Centre to meet the representative from six Libraries in Barking & Dagenham that we will be touring the magnificent Musical Rumpus: A Fairy Queen in the Forest to next month. I even visited five tour venues on my own which was a great moment for me to feel confident in my knowledge of what is going on. I experienced my first Women sing East rehearsal of the Autumn Term which is a project I shall be taking a leadership role in over the next few months.

On the whole I have had an immersive, enjoyable and exciting first month at Spitalfields Music.  Four weeks in I still miss it when I’m not there.  This is down to the people, the fantastic work they do and the amazing things I am learning along the way. I love it already and I am only one month in. Who knows what the next five months will hold!

Laura Fensom
Learning & Participation Intern

Intern Diaries: Bethan

I can hardly believe it has been almost three months since I joined the team as Marketing and Box Office Intern. It feels like yesterday I was walking into the office a bit nervous and wobbly-kneed to have my office induction with Office Manager Helen. Now I feel like a fully-fledged member of the team! With all the Summer Festival action over for another year and the office in reflecting mood after evaluating all the festival activity, I thought I’d take a moment to reflect on what I’ve been up to, and share a few random highlights…

Now that I try to write up everything I have done during my time as intern I realise I have actually been up to rather a lot! Writing copy for e-bulletins, designing programme books and e-flyers, working on reciprocal marketing relationships, distributing publicity, liaising with press and securing listings (in national papers!), updating the website and one of my favourite tasks, ordering 500 florescent Spitalfields Music branded balloons. A couple of these incidentally managed to cross the channel and end up on a beach in Holland!

Rather excitingly in the past week I have seen the brochure for the upcoming Winter Festival begin to take shape.  I’m afraid I can’t tell you any more though (other than it looks great of course) – you’ll have to wait and see!

The proximity of my desk to the biscuit supply is probably a good reason as to why many of my non-musical highlights of the internship are edible ones! I’m thinking in particular of fellow intern Alex’s moreish ‘blondies’ or cinnamon brownies and the afternoon milkshake rounds…

So at this stage after completing three months of the internship, I should be wrapping up with a final blog post before packing away my post-it notes and bidding goodbye to the rest of the team. However, the good news is my post-it notes and I will be sticking around for another month to man the fort with Michael whilst Rebecca is away on holiday. So there’ll be plenty more highlights to come for sure!

Click here for more info on our vacancy for the next Marketing and Box Office Intern

Bethan White
Marketing & Box Office Intern

Intern Diaries: Alex’s Metamorphosis

Sadly we had to say goodbye to our Learning & Participation Intern Alex yesterday. But before the cake and thank yous she reflected on the last two months here with us. Read on to find out more… 

Two months have passed since my last Intern Diary entry, and as corny as it sounds, I feel like I’ve undergone a bit of a metamorphosis. Through all the madness leading up to the festival, I was transformed from a measly intern, furiously scribbling notes during team meetings, to an integral co-ordinator in the execution of events attended by hundred of guests. I feel incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to help produce and assist with a festival of such high standards and with such dedicated and passionate folk.

One of the most incredible parts of the experience was being able to see the immediate results of all our hard work. Unlike other jobs, our sure sign of a successful event was in faces of the audience members attending it. I was able to see little babies laughing with joy, families and friends cheering for their loved ones, and whole audiences brought to contemplative silence by beautiful music. People came up to me and thanked me for providing them with an amazing musical experience; performance artists thanked me for my support throughout the entire process. And all of this invaluable feedback only fuelled my desire to work harder and more diligently at producing the best two-week festival we could possibly create.

Alex with Music Animateur Apprentice Bimbi Urquhart and Programme Manager: Learning & Participation Cathy.

More than that, I also had the opportunity to bear witness to a lot of remarkable music myself!  Despite the fact that every day and every performance with which I was involved was unique and exciting, there are definitely some highlights that stand out in my mind. My personal favourites include:

• Musical Rumpus: A Fairy Queen in the Forest - The most spectacularly beautiful set and singing a room full of babies could ask for! I loved how everyone was fully encouraged to muck in on the mat and be part of the magic.
• Women sing East - It was unbelievably gratifying seeing the 40 women I had managed all term have their moment to shine in Shoreditch Church. Laka D was as charismatic as always, and I even got a shout out in their last song!
• Platform - This abundance of talented youth reminded me of the years I spent growing up with music. I especially enjoyed watching my beloved line manager, Cathy, get all teary-eyed over her Phoenix School’s performance – a mesmerising composition they collectively wrote.
• Double bill Britten Sinfonia and the Royal Holloway and Matthew Barley: Protecting the Veil - I found the powerfully melancholic Baltic music of the accompanied choir completely captivating, and then, to suddenly see the lights dimmed, candles lit and a church transformed for the moving cello music of Matthew Barley afterwards made for a truly amazing evening.

Musical Rumpus: A Fairy Queen in the Forest

As I tidy my things and empty my desktop recycle bin, I only wish I had bit more time to fully digest the scale of what I helped accomplish in these last few weeks. For that, I’d like to wholeheartedly thank every member of this extraordinary team for welcoming me into the Spitalfields Music family and making these past three months unforgettable.

Alex Lepinski
Learning & Participation Intern

Intern Diaries: Meet Alex

Alex is our brand new Learning & Participation Intern who joins us for next few months and for the excitement of our upcoming Summer Festival. She tells us what she been up to during her first few weeks as a part of the Spitalfields Music team. 

Despite having just passed the one month mark, the initial week of my Learning & Participation internship induction seems awfully far away. But I suppose that’s what happens when you join an organisation with less than two months to go before the annual Summer Festival…

For the most part, my first week was dedicated to getting acclimatised to the office and the upcoming festival events. In purposely withholding a wave of Learning & Participation tasks, I was free to explore the area, the ongoing projects with community members and neighbourhood schools, and ground myself in the vibrantly eclectic culture of Tower Hamlets. As a Canadian living in a new city, this was a perfect opportunity for me to integrate myself into a rich musical community, engage with some remarkable local residents, and familiarise myself in an amazing city.

Now, after five weeks of ongoing project sessions – some for toddlers, some for children with learning disabilities, some attended mostly by seniors, to name a few – I understand the breadth of involvement and presence that Spitalfields Music has in this community. Almost instantly, I became aware of the importance of catering to as many local music lovers as possible and offering anyone and everyone a chance to explore their creative potential, and every single project session I’ve attend has reinforced this objective.

Alex has been working with our all-women choir, Women sing East

In terms of my responsibilities, I seem to have struck a balance between shadowing various organisation members and managing specific Learning & Participation projects myself. One community choir in particular, Women sing East, is sort of my baby. Over the past month, I’ve overseen choir practices and cared for the singers, and during the Summer Festival concert itself, I’ll actually be project managing the event! I’m really looking forward to experiencing its full development – from initial choir practice to polished performance.

As we gear up for the annual Summer Festival kick off in a matter of weeks, the office is buzzing with energy. Everyone is busy, but ready and willing to dedicate their time and energy to producing the best series of festival performances possible. Everything that Spitalfields Music does – from office meetings to community workshop sessions to choir practices to festival planning – is grounded collaboration and interplay.  I feel incredibly lucky to be involved in such a dynamic process.

Alex Lepinski
Learning & Participation Intern