The Aardvark
Sessions
The first thing you do at Aardvark is take part in The Aardvark Sessions program. You meet each week with around 7-10 participants, a Music Therapist, Resident Songwriter and Youth Support Lead, plus a couple of youth mentors. These people become your crew and together you journey through every step of writing, recording and performing original music.
After 14 weeks you are ready to step into the recording studio and record four tracks that you and your crew have created together, which is super exciting. Then those songs get made into an album in time for you to perform at an album launch, cheered on by your extended Aardvark family!
Not only do you get to polish up on your music skills and learn new ones all together, but you end up making some pretty deep friendships with your crew, after sharing and growing together.
Dig
Days
After the Aardvark Sessions is finished and you have done your album launch it’s time to become an Aardvark Alumni (also known as an Aardvarkian). Each month you come together for Dig Days with your crew and past crews to write new music and learn from visiting artists. You might spend the session rehearsing for a gig or watching a visiting musician perform and then share some of their story with you. You might also choose to get involved in leadership opportunities that arise in Aardvark’s pathways program.
Performances
& Pathways
Alumni get the chance to take part in paid gigs such as performances for community events, concerts, parties and conferences. These gigs are a great way to get some experience with new skills like recording, lighting and sound tech. Here are some other things you might get to do as an Alumni:
- Public speaking and advocating
- Monthly gig and performance practice
- Live gigs including developing set-lists, setting up and packing down gear, stage craft and professionalism.
- Train as a youth mentor
- Train as a co-facilitator for Aardvark’s team building programs
- Organisational input, learn about a not for profit
Corporate, Community
& Schools Program
Songwriting for Team Building Workshops
“Aardvark Corporate Songwriting Workshops draw participants outside their comfort zone and encourage them to look at situations in new and creative ways. “
Meagan Hunt, Aardvark’s Executive Director
Aardvark offers half day intensive group song writing workshops for teams within corporate organisations. Each workshop is facilitated by a professional songwriter, music therapist and Aardvark youth mentors. The participants develop a team song based on the organisations’ mission, values, or chosen core theme. The experience gives corporate teams an opportunity to create music with talented, inspiring young people from Aardvark Music – and support their growth.
Funds received from Songwriting for Team building Workshops go directly back into providing a sustainable revenue stream for Aardvark’s core programs – to help engage vulnerable young people in developing skills, confidence and community.
Songwriting for Team Building
Workshops aims to:
- Build healthy, creative corporate teams
- Foster innovative, dynamic thinking in team members
- Give people the confidence to take risks outside their comfort zone
- Use songwriting to creatively explore the corporation’s mission, values or identified priorities
- Connect team members with young songwriters from diverse backgrounds
Why group songwriting?
- The song writing process demands flexibility, creativity, healthy risk-taking and new ways of thinking about ideas/issues – skills that are critical for innovative thinking
- Group songwriting fosters connectedness, social engagement, and opportunities to know one another in new ways – healthy team dynamics require such opportunities to evolve.
Songbook Sessions
Aardvark Music offers tailored song writing workshops to suit the needs of the young people of your organisation or school. Each program is facilitated by a professional songwriter and a music therapist, depending on the needs and the size of the group.
Two youth mentors from the Aardvark program co-facilitate with the lead facilitator to foster the connection between the young people of the Aardvark program and your organisation.
The program can be offered in several ways including:
- 2-4 day intensive workshop
- 8-10 week term based group
For more information on Aardvark’s Song Book Sessions and how we can tailor a program for your organisation please get in touch.
These programs can be tailored to:
- Young people who are disengaged from school
- Vulnerable and marginalised young people
- Young people who are into music but don’t have access to music opportunities
- Young people who need help to work in a group setting
And provide:
- Skills in all aspects of songwriting and recording
- Creating connections and making new friends.
- Opportunities for more connection between young people
- Creative medium for expression in a supported group environment
- A music therapist to facilitate the group process and offer therapeutic guidance and support.
“The facilitators were fantastic, with quality skills and it was great teamwork for our young people” – Hume City Council.
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