A reminder that it’s the last week of Summer Term and the last day of the Coda term is Saturday 23rd July. Thank you for learning with us this year!
Invoices for our music lessons next term are being sent out by email on 9th August and our Autumn term starts on Monday 5th September. If you are not planning to return in the Autumn, please let us know as soon as possible so that we can offer your space to those on our waiting lists.
We have been planning a number of new courses and groups to run in the Autumn Term and we hope you might find something you’d like to try. If you could help spread the word to your friends and family about all the opportunities at Coda, we would be really grateful!
NEW GROUP SESSION FOR AUTUMN TERM
CODA CAMPFIRE SESSIONS
Mondays 1 – 3pm, starting Monday 5th September
Coda Music Centre
£8 PAYG
The best way to learn how to play music with other people is to just do it!
The Coda Campfire Sessions, led by Chris Hopgood, are designed to ease you into playing with a group and prepare you for joining a jam session or singalong around a campfire.
In these sessions, you will learn and play a host of classic songs that are perfect for playing on such occasions. Songs will be from artists as diverse as Bob Dylan, Pink Floyd, Green Day, Johnny Cash and more – and include such classics as Irish Rover, Whisky in the Jar, American Pie, Take Me Home, Country Roads, Redemption Song, No Woman No Cry, Blowing In The Wind, Ain’t No Sunshine, Folsom Prison Blues and Good Riddance (Time of your Life).
You can bring along and play any acoustic stringed instrument you like: guitar, ukulele, mandolin, violin, etc. Alongside learning the songs, there will also be discussions about improvisation, rhythms, picking patterns and more.
If you would like to join the Coda Campfire Sessions, please get in touch to book, as places are limited. 
In addition to this new group session, our new Monday night BLUES SESSIONS will continue in the Autumn Term, starting Monday 5th September. These have proven very popular, so please let us know if you plan to continue.
NEW COURSES FOR THE AUTUMN TERM
ADULT BEGINNERS PIANO
Tuesdays 1.45 – 2.45pm, starting Tuesday 6th September
£100 for a 10 week course
Beginners Piano is a 10-week course specifically designed for beginners with no prior knowledge of music.
The course introduces the basics of playing the piano and the foundations for learning to read music and understanding the theory of music – and is a practical programme of learning to play, interspersed with discussion and exercises developing knowledge of how to understand and read music.
It is intended that this course will develop the skills and techniques needed to play beginners piano music and gain a solid foundation in basic theory of music. It should also increase your confidence and provide you with the necessary skills and knowledge to then graduate to an ‘Improvers’ piano course or one-to-one tuition, should you wish to progress further.
The cost of the course is £100 and places are limited as we have just 5 spaces available.
For full information about the course, click here
GETTING TO GRIPS WITH THE BLUES (FOR ELECTRIC GUITAR) 1
Wednesdays 1.30 – 3pm , starting Wednesday 7th September
at Coda Music Centre
£120 for a 10 week course
Improvising a blues solo over a rocking 12-bar chord sequence is just about as much fun as you can have with an electric guitar – and in this 10-week course you are going to learn how to do just that!
In this Electric Guitar Blues Improvisation Course, led by the brilliant Chris Hopgood, you will be ‘Getting To Grips With The Blues.’
The course will start at the beginning: by learning the first two blues scales – which can then be used to learn all the basic techniques used in blues improvisation. By the end of the course you will be able to improvise over a 12/bar blues sequence in any key and take with you the knowledge that will allow you to do this over the whole fretboard.
Each week you will be given a practice schedule that will cover four 35-minute practices, technical exercises, practice pieces and, of course, some improvisation!
The course is aimed at beginners, those already able to strum through some chords – or those who might already know how to play an E Blues Scale, but haven’t progressed past playing it up and down as an exercise.
Over the ten weeks, you’ll start by learning the first position of the E Blues scale, then move on to learn the second position and look at a variety of techniques used in blues improvisation.
You will also take a more detailed look at the technique of some well known players and, throughout, will be improvising over standard blues progressions.
By the end of the course, you should have all five positions of the blues scale under your belt, covering the whole fretboard of your guitar and be able to improvise in a key.
The course is limited to a maximum of 10 participants and places will only be confirmed once you have paid. A continuation of this course (Blues Guitar 2) will be available in the Spring Term for those who would like to continue to develop their Blues Guitar playing further.
ADULT BEGINNERS GUITAR
Thursdays 1.30 – 3pm, starting Thursday 8th September
£120 for a 10 week course
at Coda Music Centre
On Thursday 8th September, we are launching a new Adult Beginners Acoustic Guitar Course (age 16+). This will be a ten week course suitable for complete beginners (or people who know a few basic chords).
Sessions will run from 1.30 – 3pm on a Thursday at Coda Music Centre and will be taught by Chris Hopgood.
This Beginners Acoustic Guitar course will cover all of the basic skills and techniques required to play a number of songs and instrumental pieces. It will focus on techniques for strumming rhythms, finger style picking patterns, flat picking melodies and improvisation.
There will be guitars available to borrow for anyone who doesn’t yet have one, although we recommend buying or borrowing one so that you are able to practise at home.
If you would like to join this new Adult Beginners Guitar Course, please get in touch to book your place.
Places are limited (to a maximum of ten participants) and only confirmed once payment for the course has been made.
ADULT BEGINNERS UKULELE COURSE
Thursdays 6 – 7pm , starting Thursday 22nd September
£110 for an 11-week course
The Acoustic Room, Coda Music Centre
This 11 week course for adult beginners, led by James Arthur, will start with the basics, working up to everything you need to know to progress to an intermediate course.
The beginners course will teach you the best way to hold the ukulele, chords (starting with the majors and minors), strumming, how to get a clean sound, jamming with others, but most of all, how to have FUN with the ukulele!
If you are interested in any of these new sessions or courses in the Autumn Term, please contact the Coda office on 01425 276161 or email contact@coda.org.uk
CODA KIDS UKULELE BAND – FREE TRIAL SESSION
We would love to encourage more young people to join our Kids Ukulele Band. if you have a child aged 6 – 11 who would like to give it a try, we are offering a free trial session for new students on Thursday 22nd September.
We have some spare ukuleles for anyone who needs to borrow one for the session.
If you would like a free taster, please get in touch (we do need to book your free session so that we know numbers).
The Kids Ukulele sessions run on a Thursday from 4.45 – 5.45 at Coda Music Centre. For more information click here
PERFORMANCE EVENINGS
Thank you to everyone who has hosted, performed or supported at one of our free performance events this term. Our performance evenings will return in the Autumn and we will advise dates as soon as they have been confirmed.
We hope you all enjoy a relaxing Summer holiday and we look forward to welcoming you back for the Autumn Term.
