All schools in Wales given free access to rehearsal tracks for the Urdd Eisteddfod 2024

In collaboration with Charanga Cymru, National Music Service Wales (NMS Wales) and the Urdd Eisteddfod are announcing a new development that will pave the way for more Welsh children to participate in the festival.

As part of a new partnership – the first of its kind between NMS Wales and the Urdd Eisteddfod – rehearsal tracks for singing set pieces in the Urdd Montgomeryshire Eisteddfod 2024’s Year 6 and under category will be available on Charanga Cymru. All Welsh schools can access the Charanga Cymru online platform free via the NMS Wales website.

The project aims to increase the opportunity for children to learn and rehearse the set pieces while giving more young people and their teachers the chance to take part in Wales’ largest youth cultural festival. In addition to the rehearsal tracks, children can use YuStudio, our digital audio workstation (DAW), to support their entries in the festival’s Composing Music categories.

NMS Wales and the Urdd Eisteddfod plan to add to the offer over the coming years. After the 2024 Urdd Montgomery Eisteddfod, the tracks will remain available to all schools using Charanga Cymru to support their day-to-day music teaching.

Eisteddfod yr Urdd is proud to be working with Charanga Cymru and Wales’ National Music Service to ensure every child can engage with the arts and compete in the Eisteddfod. This is the first year of our partnership, and we hope it will grow so we can provide tracks and resources for all of our music competitions.

We hope you have fun practising with these fantastic resources. They were created especially for you, and we hope to see you on the Eisteddfod yr Urdd stage soon!

Mari Lloyd Pritchard, NMS Wales’s National Co-ordinator, added:

The Urdd contributes so much to music education in Wales and provides a valuable platform for many of our young musicians. I’m therefore delighted that this partnership allows us to remove a barrier for a child, teacher or school to learn these songs, increase intelligence from the musical requirements, and open the door to composition.

These resources offer support on many levels, whether you’re an experienced musician or want to enjoy singing or rehearsing without an accompanist. We are so grateful to the Urdd Eisteddfod for embracing this idea. Our thanks must also go to the Charanga Cymru team, which has created an area dedicated to the Urdd Eisteddfod on the digital platform in such a short time so that we can give this gift to children and teachers in early 2024.

Accessing Charanga Cymru and the new resources

Schools can access the resources by clicking the new Urdd Eisteddfod tab when they next log into Charanga Cymru.

Schools who still need to sign up for free Charanga Cymru access can do so here: www.musicservice.wales/site/charanga-cymru-digital-platform.

About NMS Wales

NMS Wales is responsible for implementing the National Plan for Music Education for Wales. The Welsh Government established it in May 2022. NMS Wales aims to ensure children and young people can access musical education and opportunities. It works with local music services and national and community musical organisations to provide more opportunities for children and young people, opening up diverse and beneficial musical avenues.
www.musicservice.wales

About Charanga Cymru

Charanga Cymru is a digital music teaching and learning platform launched in October 2022. All Welsh schools can access it free, thanks to investment from the NMS Wales. More than 800 schools and nearly 400 instrumental teachers from local music services are now using the Charanga Cymru platform to support their music teaching.
www.musicservice.wales/site/charanga-cymru-digital-platform

About the Urdd Eisteddfod

The Urdd provides a wide range of activities for its members across Wales – from sport to the arts, competition, adventures and socialising. The Urdd Montgomery Eisteddfod 2024 will take place in Meifod between 27 May and 1 June 2024.
www.urdd.cymru

Media enquiries

Members of the press can also access Charanga Cymru. For more information, interviews or photographs, please contact:

Tony Pinkham, Head of Marketing and Communications, Charanga
tonypinkham@charanga.com
Telephone: +44 (0) 7711 888 655