Leeds Conservatoire awarded more than £100,000 to develop music archive
Valuable music history is to be preserved by Leeds Conservatoire thanks to a £100,000 grant.
The Conservatoire has been awarded £116,000 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to help create, secure, and develop a sustainable and accessible musical archive.
The grant comes as Leeds Conservatoire - formerly Leeds College of Music - celebrates 60 years of delivering pioneering music education, and helping shape and support the musical landscape in Leeds and beyond.
The cash pot will allow the Conservatoire to formally create an archive to capture stories and materials since its beginning in 1965, and work with key stakeholders to surface and elevate musical memories from across Leeds.
A variety of activities will bring music practices to new communities and age groups, through volunteer training, music workshops and the capturing of oral histories.
Professor Joe Wilson, principal of Leeds Conservatoire, said: “We are delighted to receive support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund to secure and develop our archive. It will help to create some exciting outreach and engagement activities to share and surface important stories, and collaborate with the communities of Leeds.”
Helen Featherstone, Director, England, North at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “As Leeds Conservatoire celebrates its 60th anniversary, we’re thrilled to be supporting them to develop their archive. Thanks to National Lottery players the conservatoire can preserve this fantastic heritage and ensure that it will be accessible to all.”