ABC Concerts Hampshire

One thing I learnt very quickly after having my first child is how much of what you love doing has to be sacrificed in the short term. Outings you maybe took for granted that were so easy before children became totally impossible overnight. An evening meal out, a trip to the theatre, going out for a run, whatever your passion or hobby it has to be put on hold for a short while while you focus - rightly so - on the new life you have welcomed into the world. 

It’s a tough, steep learning curve and at times it can be frustrating that we can’t freely enjoy and experience everything as we used to. So when you discover something that brings together your little people with something you love and turns it into an experience for you both to enjoy, quite simply put - it’s magical. 

ABC Concerts do just that. When I say to my friends and family I’m taking the little ones to a concert a look of instant panic crosses their faces. I’m not sure what they are imagining, my 2 year old being forced to sit still on a red velvet seat in the stalls? My newborn being whisked outside into the foyer if he makes the slightest of sounds? Surely, some say, that’s quite a grown up experience for them. Yes, indeed it is, and they love it. 

Neil’s concept for the ABC Concerts is that they provide unique experience for the entire family - music for all. As soon as you walk into the performance space at the Winchester Discovery Centre you know you are in for a treat. There is a large area at the front where you can sit comfortably with your little ones, and rows of chairs in semi circles behind with plenty of space for everyone. Carefully thought out, there is a buggy park and a changing station meaning everything you need is right there with you in the room. As Neil announces, we want to teach our children to be respectful music lovers so he asks that adult conversation is kept to a minimum. Children, however, are welcome to sing, dance, move around the space, eat, feed, interact with each other and respond to the music however they wish. True freedom. 

Now I’m fully aware classical music is not everyone’s cup of tea, but have you ever tried just switching over to Classic FM in the car to help sooth your little one? It’s amazing the response you might get. Any musical experience your little one has is a positive one as listening to music helps strengthen your baby’s cognitive and sensory development.  Dancing to music allows self expression whilst building motor skills. The physical, emotional, and intellectual development of babies and children is nurtured through exposure to music, any music! ABC Concerts explore a range of musical genres, folk, jazz, opera, classical, something for everyone.

It’s not just babies who benefit from music, adults do too! It can help improve your mood - great if you’re having ‘one if those days’. Studies show that listening to music can benefit overall well-being, help regulate emotions, and create happiness and relaxation in everyday life - sound like just what you need right now??

I know what you’re thinking... what if I don’t know the music? Trust me, each concert is well thought out, the programmes cleverly span an eclectic range of nursery rhymes, Disney songs, school hymns, traditional pieces, film music, opera, well known classical pieces and music from around the world. You don’t need to know all the music to be able to gain something from the experience. Singing, dancing, listening, whatever you and your little one want to do is respected during the concert at all times and you are encouraged to move around the space and see the performers close up, and from all angles. 

ABC Concerts seek to produce a varied programme of performers to provide a varied schedule of concerts throughout the year. We’ve been lucky enough to experience so many of their concerts and have seen a wide range of different instruments including the flute, oboe, saxophone, piano, recorder, clarinet and the harp, the list goes on and on! At the end of each concert is my favourite time, when the children are invited to explore the instruments! What an experience! Making sounds, feeling the vibrations of the guitar strings, exploring through touch pressing the keys on the piano, closely observing the sparkly valves on the trumpet, it’s a unique opportunity and seeing the joy on everyone’s faces at this point is heart warming. Oh yes and get ready for I’m inevitable ‘please can I learn to play the double bass’ questions from the bigger ones... time for that estate car purchase??!

I was lucky enough to be introduced to music at a young age, I learnt to play instruments in and out of school, I joined choirs, I learnt to read music, played in band and orchestra and at one point considered becoming a music teacher. I was lucky. Incredibly lucky. But I didn’t really know it then, I was young and just encouraged to enjoy a multitude of interests which I am now very grateful to have experienced. Whether music was in your childhood, or you are just starting your musical journey singing songs to your little one, if you can find a way to give your child the gift of music then I would thoroughly recommend doing so, not so they can take it up professionally, but so they can access something that surrounds us in every day life on a new level and develop an appreciation for it with a deep rooted meaning and understanding.

It’s a great way to spend an afternoon together as a family, it’s unique, fun and educational for everyone. How many children do you know who can go to school on the Monday after not only seeing a harpist perform up close, but having the opportunity to play the harp themselves?

Book your tickets now for their next concert, I promise you it is such a treat for you all, and maybe the adult in you can get a little something back from your previous life; a music concert experience where if you close your eyes just for a second, you can be transported away from nappies and teething, screaming and potty training, and remember something you love, and that it’s still important to do things for you. 

Concerts take place in Winchester, Southampton and Portsmouth and full details of their upcoming performance schedule can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/ABCConcerts/ 

Photographs courtesy of Hannibal-White Photography