The EVC Magazine Autumn/Winter 2024 - Magazine - Page 13
TIP FOR MUSIC TOURS
2
REASSURE PARENTS AND CARERS
Set up a meeting with parents/carers, students and your
travel company as early as possible to outline the entire
tour and answer any questions. This will help build trust
between you, your team and the parents, which will help
when it comes to making the decision to book.
3
PICK YOUR DESTINATION
CAREFULLY
St Benedicts School play on the Costa Brava
You’ll have an idea of what’s most important to you – maybe the venues, travel time or even the weather.
Whatever is on your wish list, finding the right destination is key to a successful visit.
If it’s your first tour, select somewhere nearer with easy transport links. A shorter tour, closer to home,
will be lower cost and can help boost confidence for future tours.
4
BE CONCERT-READY
BEFORE YOU GO
If you can, allow up to 18 months to prepare for a
concert tour.
Plan, rehearse and perform your repertoire extensively
at home and your students will be able to enjoy the
tour experience from day 1. They’ll also have time to
take excursions and soak up the culture rather than
rehearsing every hour of the trip.
A home concert tour is a good way to build the band’s
confidence in their set list and bring parents along with
the idea of touring. Its’s also a great way of fundraising
to help cover the cost of the visit.
5
YOU DON’T NEED A FULL
ORCHESTRA TO TOUR
Sometimes, getting enough band members from your
school isn’t possible, but there are a few ways you can
still make it happen.
Consider combining with other schools to make up
the numbers and fully realise the musical potential
of your tour. Trusted music teachers and members of
community groups you’re confident with may also be
able to support.
6
WORK WITH A RESPONSIBLE
TRAVEL COMPANY
You might be tempted to organise a music tour
yourself but have you considered how you’ll
manage last minute changes or incidents?
And do you really have the experience and
resources to find appropriate venues, hosts, and
accommodation that you can be sure meet the
highest safeguarding standards?
Engaging a travel company or tour operator
offers lots of benefits. They should be checking
and vetting third party providers, staff, travel
companies and venues before a visit and will
usually have staff on hand to support you
throughout the visit, including in an emergency.
Check that they are LOtC Quality Badge holders
and members of the School Travel Forum – both
show a commitment to best practice in school
travel and educational visits.
You’ll still be responsible for completing and
submitting your risk assessments and visit
details for approval – ask your Educational Visits
Adviser if you need support with this.
AND REMEMBER...IT’LL BE WORTH IT WHEN YOU’RE THERE
7
After all the planning and preparation, comes the tour itself and this is where the magic happens. Firstly, they
(and you) get to play beautiful music in incredible places, to appreciative audiences.
Music tours are brilliant for building confidence and helping nurture a lifelong passion for music and travel.
Friendships often develop as students bond over shared interests and experiences too. It’s privilege to see young
people grow personally and musically as a result of your visit.
Adapted with kind permission from a blog post published at: www.rayburntours.com/blog/2022/09/30/9-top-tips-on-how-to-plan-theperfect-school-concert-tour/
THE EVC MAGAZINE – AUTUMN/WINTER 2024-25
13
