Hi everyone,
This morning I had an interview with Talk Radio Europe and spoke about my guitar playing and fundraising for Spain so I thought now would be a good time to share an update on how it's all going!
Last month, I played at the Williamson Art Gallery and Museum with the Woodside String Quartet which was the first of (hopefully) many fundraising gigs. I made £620 profit which has gone straight into my Spain saving fund. It was a real pleasure to play with the quartet again and we have two more gigs lined up for 2020 playing our Musica Argentina programme - exciting stuff!
I'm hoping to have another fundraising concert before the summer break but everything is still very much up in the air (though I have two potential ideas that are coming together). I have also been doing a few small gigs here and there which tops up the cash pot and also gives me some good performance practise. Funnily enough, now that I know I need to play as a necessity to get money for Spain, I find that I am less nervous and thinking of the act of performing (in certain cases) as a job - in a good way! Of course, the pressure is still there, but in a different way...
I just want to say thanks to everyone who came and supported me at the gig in May - it means a lot. I also still have my Crowdfunding page open so if you'd like to support in any way, I'd be very grateful!
That's all for now, but please keep an eye on my Events/ page on the website or follow me on Twitter or Instagram to keep up with what I'm doing and where you'll catch me next...
Eleanor
P.S. I know money can be a bit of a taboo subject, but I wanted to document this journey for me to look back on and also to highlight that it can be difficult and stressful if you don't come from a rich background and are not acquainted with the inner circles of the classical world (and the resources, contacts etc. that come with that). As well as having the Crowdfunding page, I am working and saving my money into a separate account to total together when the tuition fees are due. I'm slowly but surely getting closer to the target every day. I've been incredibly lucky so far and without the support of very kind friends and even strangers donating to the Crowdfunding page I think I'd be lost, so thanks again to everyone who has donated that way!