This might be yet another walk from John O’Groats to Land’s End – but with a big difference! It is also a musical fact-finding mission and the aim is not only to raise money for, but also to promote and raise the profile of music and music education throughout the country. It started on 1 October and the next stage  (Helmsdale to Inverness) begins at the end of this week (14 October 2011)!

There is an open invitation to all those interested in music and music education to join Xen for a bit of the walk or meet him in the evenings.

See Xen’s invitation below:

John O’Groats to Land’s End – “at a walking pace”!

So what? Lot’s of people walk from John O’Groats to Land’s End – and most of them

do it to raise funds for some worthy cause. What’s so different about this project?

Well, I’m certainly doing it to raise funds for my own two particular musical charities:-

Vacation Chamber Orchestras (www.vaco.net)

Ripon St Cecilia Orchestra (www.st-cecilia.org.uk )

One purpose is to raise money to pay for the “customised” minibus that we are using during the walk – a very useful vehicle which will also be available in the future for us and many other organisations to transport people, instruments and musical equipment.

However, the emphasis is very much on music and music education! Call it a “factfinding mission” if you like. All along the way, I would very much like to …

• Invite musicians and members of other musical organisations to join me for as little (or as much) as they would like to walk – and, by doing so, to help to raise a bit of money for their own organisations.

• Meet and talk to as many musicians as possible – professionals, amateurs, teachers, students, young musicians, concert promoters, organisers etc. – mainly with a view to sharing ideas and identifying and discussing any problems with funding, rehearsal and performance venues, recruitment, equipment, publicity etc. Ultimately, the idea is to produce some kind of report or document which can be sent to the Ministers for Culture and Education, the Arts Council and various other agencies to highlight the state of “where we’re at” with music and music education throughout the country.

• And, whilst I want to learn about you, after 40 odd years of working pretty successfully as a professional musician (conductor, performer, teacher, lecturer etc.) and generally “making things happen”, if there is anything I might be able offer in terms of help or advice, I would be absolutely delighted!

So, if you or anyone connected with your musical organisation would like to walk a stage or more with me, I would love to hear from you.

And, if you are free in the evenings when I am in your area, I would welcome the chance to meet and have a chat (preferably over a pint!) – and/or, if you have a rehearsal or a performance while I’m around, so that I can come and listen and meet even more of you, that would be brilliant.

The walk started on 1 October, 2011. Stages will be relatively short and gentle. (No more than 10 miles on the flat and less if hills are involved!) It won’t be continuous either – I’ll be doing a few days at a time, with no fixed dates or itinerary. (I too have work to do!)

I would hope to be south of Inverness before the weather gets bad and, if I can make it anywhere near the Forth Bridge before Christmas, I’ll be very happy.

Then I’ll be using any “windows” in the weather to try to get as far as the Lake District by Easter – then I hope the rest will be completed over spring and summer, before the weather deteriorates again in the Autumn of 2012.

See the website for the provisional route.

All the details of where I am, when and where I will be next, the probable dates and times of each stage, the routes I’m taking, start and finish points etc. will be posted on my own website – www.xenmus.net  – and this will also have a link from the other two websites mentioned above. I’m also hoping to get Classic FM and Classical Music Magazine to give periodical reports on progress.

I will communicate with everybody, regularly, by Email and Facebook. During the walk, you will also be able to contact me on my mobile: 07974 698265 (but remember, reception may not always be adequate). Details will be updated every evening on the website and on Facebook – and we’ll also post details of where we’ll be meeting each evening.

I’ll try to make sure that each stage starts and finishes at an easily identifiable point which has adequate parking nearby. On most days, walking will start at about 9.30am but we’ll be flexible if we need to make allowances for weather conditions.

For practical purposes, the general plan will be for walkers to meet at the finish point each day, then we’ll take everyone (using the minimum number of cars and our minibus) to the start point. At the end, we’ll use other cars to take the drivers back to pick up vehicles as required. We’re not talking about a massive operation! I would be delighted if we can muster as many as 15 or 20 people for any stage and I expect that some more remote sections might only involve 2 or 3 people. I will be using the minibus as a basic “campervan” so, if other people want to do two or more stages, I suggest either bringing tents or using B&Bs near the route.

If you haven’t got transport, don’t worry – because I’ve got a minibus! I can provide transport during the walk and I can pick up & drop off people en route between Ripon and wherever it is we’re walking. Make sure you email me to confirm details.

And if anyone is prepared to offer overnight accommodation for just 1 or 2 people somewhere near the route, or just a place to park the campervan, we really would be very grateful – the occasional proper bed and a shower would be a big bonus!

As far as your own fundraising is concerned, you can devise your own sponsorship arrangements or, if you prefer, you can download a basic sponsorship form from my website: www.xenmus.net Most of all, I really want to enjoy it – and to meet lots of new (and old) friends – andto make the whole thing as much fun and as worthwhile as possible. I do hope you will be able to join me, either for bits of the walk, or for a chat and a drink in the evenings, or preferably both!

If you are interested, please ring me, or email me at xen@xenmus.net  or befriend me on Facebook – and I’ll keep you informed of progress.

Best wishes,

Xen

Source: Xenophon Kelsey, MBE