Jazz drummer inspiring next generation of Luton musicians with school workshops

The Bear Club, in Guildford Street, has opened its doors to young people in the town with a passion for music.

The jazz venue was saved from closure last year after Luton Town FC's property arm bought its building. Since then, co-owners Neil Simmonds and Giles Willits have been coming up with ways to showcase The Bear Club and give a platform to the talent around the town.

They reached out to Olly Sarkar-Samuels, a drummer, composer and educator from Luton, to lead on an initiative called Play The Bear.

The musician is working alongside other tutors, Zola Jospeh; David Sear; Joe Bristow and Alistair Beverage, to teach the youngsters.

Olly, who teaches drums at Trinity Laban Conservatoire, has worked with students from Challney High School for Girls, Luton Sixth Form College, Putteridge High School, Luton Music Service and Queen Elizabeth School to help to build their confidence and give them a taste of a life in music.

Olly explained: “I tried to create something very similar to what would happen on a specialist music course or at a professional gig. You don't have to sit and learn things, you play as a group, you learn things by ear, and you talk about it. It's much more social. It's much more engaging for people that are less academic.”

The 33-year-old praised the students for their love of the craft. He said: “You can really tell, even with students at a high level, when they don't have it in them. The thing that sets them apart is if they really love it and all of the students I've had in this project, they really want to show people what they can do.” The Bear Club is hoping to expand the project to more schools and get more young people involved.

A spokesperson for the Bear Club said: “Luton has a proud history of encouraging young people to express themselves through music and we wanted to play our part in that by giving them this fantastic opportunity to learn from professional jazz musicians and to perform outside the school setting at a real-life music venue.”

Bands from each school have been practicing with Olly at the venue, with the final performance planned for Thursday, June 26.

For those who missed out this time around, Olly said: “The main thing as a young musician, if you have an interest in jazz or performing music as a career, this is kind of the perfect spot for you. Keep an eye on the website.”