The best ideas always stand the test of time and A Celebration of School’s Music, the only event of its kind in the UK, is one of Suffolk’s huge success stories. A collaboration between Aldeburgh Education and Suffolk County Council, Celebration brings children together from schools across the county (primary, middle, secondary and special) with a chance to be artists for the day and the opportunity to perform on stage at Aldeburgh Music’s Snape Maltings Concert Hall.

The idea was the brainchild of Philip Shaw, the County Music adviser, 25 years ago, and over the years has done wonders in bringing this very special place to the wider community and to those who ordinarily might never step inside it. Every night the auditorium is packed and the excitement and emotion is tangible as these young people (some as young as 5 years old) step out of the shadows onto the stage for the first time in their young lives.

I first photographed this annual week-long event  back in 2004 and over the years have been invited back to provide a photographic record again including this its 25th year.  My brief was to make a record of as many different aspects of the event as possible - the rehersals, the crew, back stage, those that organise it, and of course the experience that the children have from first arrival at the Artist’s entrance in the morning to performing that same evening in front of a full capacity audience.

I seem to get more sentimental as I get older but it is impossible not to be moved by this event.  Like my Wedding and Family photography work,  this is  about real people and real emotions and it’s why I love my job.

Here are some highlights from a full on but highly enjoyable week photographing backstage and the rehersals. In the next post I’ll showcase some images I took on the last night from the auditorium: