Is Early Music for you?

North East Early Music Forum (NEEMF for short) is all about giving people in the North East who sing or play a suitable* instrument the chance to sing and play a wide range of early music from medieval and Renaissance to Baroque with expert tutors. 

Key Benefits

  • We can tackle pieces that are not within the capacity of most choirs or orchestras. 
  • Some of our tutors have edited the music themselves which gives us a unique opportunity to experience music unavailable elsewhere.

Instruments "suitable" for early music include:

Recorders in A=440 or 415, modern strings, viola da gamba family, woodwind such as curtals and cornamuses, lute, theorbo, sackbut and cornet, Renaissance flute, harpsichord, crumhorns etc.

What NEEMF offers

  • We run one-day workshops most months of the year.
  • We produce a quarterly newsletter for members.
  • Our website www.neemf.org.uk provides links to our own and other areas' early music events.​

Singers

Singers are expected to be able to read music to a reasonable level.  Some workshops are a cappella and some have instrumental accompaniment

OFFER for Students

We are keen to encourage younger people to find out if they enjoy playing and singing early music as much as we do - so students benefit from FREE ENTRY to all workshops

For future workshops see www.neemf.org.uk

​Examples of workshops January - June 2023 
​Sat, 21 Jan 2023  NEEMF workshop led by Bill Hunt of Fretwork at St Mary's C of E Church, Mapledene Road, Fawdon, Newcastle upon Tyne NE3 2RY. Byrd and the birth of the "consort anthem", for voices and 'soft' instruments such as viols and recorders

Sat, 11 Feb 2023  NEEMF workshop for singers and instrumentalists led by Christopher Roberts, exploring settings by Purcell and Handel of 'My Heart is Inditing'

Sat, 4 Mar 2023  NEEMF workshop for voices and instruments, Peter Wendland, A Bouquet of Composers.

Sat, 15 Apr 2023  NEEMF workshop, Byrd four-part mass led by Deborah Catterall, Clements Hall, York
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Sat, 17 Jun 2023  NEEMF workshop, Transalpine Vespers - German and Italian early baroque music - for singers and instrumentalists, led by Andrew Fowler, Pitch: A=415.