Jack Campin's account of the early origins of the ALP are of great interest.
He's right when he cites the philosophical influence of Freire and the
others as a key element in what make ALP different from other evening
classes. The other key element is the democratic and participatory nature
of the project. The Scots Music Group (SMOG) is a self-organised group
affiliated to the parent body, ALP, and is run by the students, and the
tutors. The Group deploys two part-time workers (not shared with ALP) and
a shifting pool of volunteers who help out with specific events, both large
and small in scale.
SMOG has produced further autonomous groups in the shape of the Fiddle
Festival, the Youth Gaitherin, and, as Jack mentions, Auld Spice. He might
also have mentioned the choir, Sangstream, which operates by and large on
the kind of samba school model he cites.
There were, however, one or two inaccuracies in Jack's description of the
current set up at SMOG.
The Scots Music Group has no intention of splitting off from ALP. The
voluntary aspects of ALP are undergoing re-organisation at the moment, with
some of the component parts setting themselves up as separate charities,
companies limited by guarantee. The Fiddle Festival has already done so, to
be followed soon by the ALP Association and after that by SMOG.
SMOG gets no direct funding from the City of Edinburgh. Its income comes
from class fees, fundraising events and a grant from the Scottish Arts
Council. It has some indirect subsidy by having a couple of desks in the
ALP office, and a shared phone line, but that's it for now. Stan Reeves,
the senior worker with ALP, whom Nigel rightly cites as a major influence on
the project, still has an important supporting role. There is the prospect,
however, of some future funding from the City, which will enable the project
to expand beyond its current activity.
David Francis
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Vice Convenor, ALP Scots Music Group
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