Welcome to the start of the summer term!

Welcome to the start of the summer term.

I offer an especially warm welcome to our new students who join us this term. I also send our thoughts to Year 13 and to those other students for whom this will be their last term – not quite the end we intended – but just you wait, we will make up for it! 

This is the time when I would usually talk, in our first assembly together, of the wonderful opportunity Easter allows for us all to make a fresh start. We have the chance to ‘de-frag’ and unclutter our lives and get ourselves back in line. I say it every year because I believe it’s so true! 

Easter is the time when many religious communities proclaim that not even death will overcome us.  Light will overcome the current darkness and, as we all hold on tight to the joy and hope that Easter brings, people all over the world are taking time to consider how we all should, or will, live our lives when we are through these times. 

We will continue to do things differently! We value the most important thing that greatly enriches people’s lives and now, more than ever, we all need the power of music to bring us together.   

At the same time, we will continue to nurture the skills & attitudes we need for a successful and happy careers; skills that also help us become that little bit more resilient – a vital attribute for a professional musician! 

I remember saying to you all a while ago that never mind how hard you plan (or practise!), sometimes: “You will just have to build the bridge as you walk on it!” 

I explained that on occasions “you will have to learn the ‘job of life’ as you do it”; you can’t prepare for every eventuality – you just draw great strength from the experiences and skills you develop along the way throughout your Chets journey.  After all, as performers – you never want to nail everything down so tightly that there is no room to grow in performance. 

Little did we know – we are on that bridge!  

Regardless of our current situation, light is certainly overcoming darkness at Chets and we have some really exciting, innovative opportunities during the term ahead.  Tom Redmond will be in touch very soon to tell you all his ideas which will promote the wide ranging skills that you will no doubt be able to call upon for the rest of your professional careers. I look forward to seeing more pics of you all enjoying your 1:1 instrumental and vocal lessons and hearing of the incredible progress you continue to make academically. I just can’t thank the whole Chetham’s community enough – keep going everyone! 

I offer my personal congratulations to Tom Redmond and Nicola Smith on their appointment as Joint Principals of our school from September. I could not have wished better for the school community. I know you will be in incredibly safe and inspirational hands.   

Alun Jones,

Principal