Peterhead Music School Helping Young Hopefuls

The emergence of television programmes such as X Factor, Pop Idol and Fame Academy has seen a meteoric rise in the number of people desperate to make it in the music business. These pop reality talent shows have created a new breed of popstars such as Will Young, Alex Parks and Steve Brookstein, who are now making their mark on the music charts. Budding young musicians and music lovers are now being given a helping hand to make it big in the music business by a new Peterhead music school. Set up by music lover Davy Legg, the school aims to help people of any age learn and develop their music skills with the expert help of Davy and his team of dedicated music teachers. Becoming a music teacher has been a lifelong dream for Davy, a dream that was made reality with the support of Enterprise North East Trust, via Business Gateway.

Davy’s love for music began at a young age, learning to play a range of instruments from guitar to keyboard at the age of nine. His musical talent continued to develop as he grew up, playing regular gigs at venues across Scotland for over 35 years. Davy saw a gap in the market for an educational music school for people in the Buchan area and decided to put his years of musical talent to good use by opening a music school in Peterhead.

Davy says, "Music has been a passion of mine since a very young age and it has always been my ambition to become a music teacher. Through in-depth research into the provision of musical education in the Buchan area, it was clear to me that there was a real lack of resources. In my research I spoke to a number of secondary schools in Buchan and found out that many pupils had to drop music subjects to make way for other activities. I discussed my plans to set up a music school with the teachers at the secondary and they felt that my plans were a great idea with many of them thinking that a lot of people in the area would greatly benefit from the music school. The results of my research made me confident that demand would be high for an educational resource like this so I decided to take the plunge and contacted Enterprise North East Trust for some advice on how to get things started.

"I was assigned my own business advisor – Alison West, I discussed my ideas and went through the research I had conducted with Alison; together we constructed a business plan to structure the implementation and development of the school. Alison helped me to do a three year financial forecast; this was very beneficial as it allowed me to see exactly how to budget for incoming and outgoing funds. I have really appreciated all of Alison’s help and advice and have found it really useful to sound out my ideas with her, knowing that I will get an honest and sensible perspective from her. She has also highlighted other issues that I need to be aware of when setting up a business, so her advice and support has been invaluable."

Davy placed advertisements for teachers for the music school and has recruited a team of nineteen teachers, all of whom have a great deal of musical experience and very high standards of teaching ability. As the only music school in the area, word is beginning to spread and more and more students are enrolling every day.

Davy says, "Since the school opened on the 12^th of September we already have over 50 students enrolled and numbers are growing on a daily basis. We run one to one tuition classes and group classes where people can take part in singing lessons, learn to play a whole manner of instruments including keyboard, guitar, drums, woodwind, strings and brass and practice their dancing skills in highland, cheerleading, hip-hop, line dancing and aerobics classes"

"The school will also help students who want to develop a career in music; the classes that we will be running can help them to prepare for auditions, exams and stage shows. We have a wealth of contacts in the industry and can provide students with good in-roads to the music business."

One of the main features of the music school is the musical theatre, employing the talent of Gordon McArthur a professional actor who has appeared as the Reverend Michael Ross in television’s Take the Highroad and in a number of West End plays. Gordon will be helping Davy and his team to produce professional shows which people from the Peterhead area can come along and watch.

Davy continues, "We are really excited about the music theatre as it gives a great opportunity for the students to display their talents to an audience and let the local community see how people are benefiting from the school. The students will work closely with Gordon, who will teach them how to perform on stage and teach them techniques to overcome nerves or stage fright."

Davy Legg’s music school is based in Peterhead and can be contacted on 01779 474373.

Enterprise North East delivers business support and advice through the Business Gateway service which is supported by Scottish Enterprise. Telephone 01467 672595 for any aspect of business advice or visit www.enetrust.com.

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