On Wednesday 27 April pupils studying a BTEC in Music organised and hosted a Charity Gig evening, in order to raise money for the charity Gap Africa. Marcus Bagshawe and Quin Wagner-Piggott modelled every single attribute of the Shiplake 7, from the open-mindedness evident in the diverse repertoire, to the independence of arranging and running a gig of this magnitude. Held in the Tithe Barn, the charity gig saw both Year 12 pupils play a variety of different pieces to a packed audience.
The pupils were given the brief to organise and execute all aspects of the gig themselves, from ticketing and marketing, to arranging refreshments and logistics. Despite having a great deal of responsibility, the boys handled the challenge exceptionally well. Marcus, on guitar, played a diverse range of pieces, including a toe-tapping solo jazz arrangement of Isn’t She Lovely by Stevie Wonder. Quin performed an acoustic, folk-inspired guitar solo to Acid Jazz, accompanied by the Shiplake Jazz Ensemble. Heavy Rock was played to close the gig, which was performed by Marcus and his band made up of visiting musicians.
The atmosphere in the Tithe Barn was friendly and positive, with friends and family out in force to support the players, as well as pupils and staff of the College. Both Marcus and Quin possess a strong work ethic, demonstrating pride and a drive to produce high quality work. The project was character building, and provided an excellent opportunity for the musicians to get to grips with the logistics of organising and running large scale events. Director of Music Mr Richard Curran was thrilled with the evenings and performances, stating that ‘Marcus and Quin are outstanding role models for their peers and younger pupils, not only musically but in the way they conducted themselves generally. They tackled this challenge head on and produced a fantastic gig, of which they should both be very proud. A thoroughly enjoyable evening!’ The pupils raised over £130 from ticket and refreshment sales, which will sponsor a child in Kenya to go to school for an entire year.
