Early 2012 – Humble Beginnings
After teaching her daughter the French Horn, Andy Sandham approached Sarah Marshall with a brand-new initiative. He had deep concerns about a rise in talented musicians having to give up their instrument because of a lack of opportunities to regularly play and connect with others as well as gain valuable experience of performing to a live audience. In addition, some musicians were having to sell off their instruments due to financial troubles and being made to feel playing a musical instrument was an “unaffordable luxury”. Knowing her daughter was facing a similar situation, Sarah saw huge potential in the idea and knew that action was very much needed.
Breaking down barriers to make music more accessible to people from low-income backgrounds and opening them up to people who had never considered seeing an orchestra before.
Together, Sarah Marshall and Andy Sandham launched The People’s Orchestra (TPO) – a pro-amateur charity orchestra of string, woodwind, brass and percussion instrumentalists. Their mission was simple: Make music, change lives! The objective was to provide a fun, friendly and accessible orchestral community that gave musicians a space and a reason to practice their instruments together and perform fun and challenging music. The like of which would be from iconic films, TV, video games and musical theatre and chosen for specially-themed concerts.
This objective also had intended consequences: breaking down barriers to make music more accessible to people from low-income backgrounds and opening them up to people who had never considered seeing an orchestra before.
The People’s Orchestra holds their first-ever performance; a busking session in Birmingham City Centre. Small and with only five members, it was very humble beginnings! However, dressed in their brand-spanking new colourful TPO emblazoned t-shirts – green for strings, yellow for brass, orange for woodwinds and blue for percussion – this bright, unorthodox display would give the general public the firm first impression that TPO would be a very different orchestral experience!
