Armstrongs Social Club played host to some of the best young musical talent in the region on Friday night, with the Westwood Sessions Live. The event was sponsored by Folk Rising – a branch of the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS) that aims to promote young musicians looking to get involved in folk music.
Artists as young as 15 years old took to the stage, with the emphasis being on giving musicians a chance they may not otherwise have had.
“The evening was a showcase of some of the talent we discovered at the Beverley Folk Festival earlier this year,” said Nikki Airey, Westwood Sessions team leader. “We advertised slots on social media, and they were soon filled by young people keen to get their name out there.”
Meg Selway of the Velvet Dolls, one of the acts that performed both on the night, and in the summer at Beverley Folk Festival, was grateful for the opportunities that the concerts, in particular the Westwood Sessions has given them.
“It’s great to meet people who share our love for music. We’ve grown in confidence since performing at the Westwood Sessions, and it has even given us some great gig opportunities that would have been inaccessible otherwise.”
It wasn’t just the stage acts that got a boost, as budding photographers and technical crew also attended the concert. Alex Cook, owner of AFC Entertainment said;
“Being heavily involved in the technical crew at school, I wanted to see if there were any opportunities for young people interested in the technical side of things. I was put in touch with Denise Delahay (youth coordinator at the Folk Festival), we got together with Nikki, and the Westwood Sessions was born.”
He was delighted with the quality of the showcase, adding “It has developed into much more than we could have ever imagined given the limited time we’ve had.”
When asked about the future of the event, Ms.Airey replied;
“After the success of tonight, we hope to have more regular events over the course of the year, leading up to Beverley Folk Festival 2015, where the Westwood Sessions will run again. We aim to incorporate more recording into the Westwood Sessions in order to provide promotional help for artists, as well as a platform for the acts to showcase themselves on.”
