A Caerphilly musician who launched a grassroots community project more than a decade ago has expanded his social enterprise to deliver weekly music and confidence-building sessions across the borough.
Daniel Fitzgerald founded RecRock to give people a relaxed environment to learn instruments and form friendships.
RecRock is now running sessions across Caerphilly County Borough, including New Tredegar, Rhymney, Bargoed, Risca, Newbridge, and its core Wednesday morning hub at Y Banc (formerly Barclays Bank) in Caerphilly.
Supported by funding from The National Lottery Community Fund, RecRock’s adult sessions are designed to be entirely peer-led.
“We learn the songs that participants want to play, whether that’s Stereophonics, David Bowie, Prince, REM, or Clearwater Revival,” Dan said. “Everyone works together and develops their skills at their own pace.
“You don’t need any musical experience to join us. The only thing you really need is an interest in music and the enthusiasm to get involved.”
Beyond teaching chords and rhythms, Dan focuses on helping participants transition from behind closed doors to performing live at community events and open mic nights.
“Everyone is nervous the first time they come along, but they soon realise everyone else is in the same boat,” he said. “It’s not about being an expert musician. It’s about enjoying music, making friends and growing in confidence.”
The impact of Dan’s approach is evident in participants like Lisa Welch, who joined the Wednesday sessions with her husband, Martin.
Lisa had spent most of her life believing she could not sing after being discouraged as a child, but recently performed in front of 60 strangers at a RecRock open mic night.
“From a young age I was always told I couldn’t sing, so I just accepted it,” Lisa said. “Coming here has completely changed that. It has been empowering.”
Looking ahead, Mr Fitzgerald is focused on making the project entirely self-sustaining for the musicians he trains.
“Our goal is to help people become confident enough to put on their own gigs and create more opportunities for new performers,” Mr Fitzgerald said. “We’ve spent years developing this programme because we know it works.”
The adult music sessions run every Wednesday morning from 10am to 12pm at Y Banc, Caerphilly. The sessions pause for the summer holidays before returning in September.
Contact info@recrock.co.uk for more information.
Digital skills workshops continue this summer
In addition to the morning music sessions, RecRock runs an afternoon digital skills workshop from 1pm to 3pm every Wednesday at Y Banc.
The afternoon sessions focus on the technical and creative work behind the scenes of the live music industry. Participants can learn how to design gig posters, edit photos and videos, handle live sound recording, and manage event promotion on social media.
Unlike the music sessions, the digital skills workshops will continue running throughout the summer holidays. Contact info@recrock.co.uk to register.
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