A St Albans charity founder was invited to take the keynote speech at a conference in Scotland.

Marshalswick local Jane Cutler spoke to about 200 people about the work of The DaCapo Music Foundation on each day of the Scottish Association for Music Education (SAME) Conference 22 at Stirling University.

DaCapo is a charity which provides training for teachers as well as running weekly music lessons for children and adults.

Jane used rhythmic challenges, games and singing to demonstrate the DaCapo teaching method. It aims to inspire an instinctual love of music in its pupils.

She said: “I was in trepidation because I haven’t done many of these before and I have a particular style that you either like or you don’t.

“But I always like a challenge, so it was exciting. You have to respect everyone’s time, they have come on a course and they want someone interesting and thought provoking who will give them a few questions to go away with.”

DaCapo’s Saturday music school is run from Wren Academy in North Finchley.

At the SAME conference, Jane also ran workshops for both primary and secondary school teachers.

She said: “They were looking for someone who would be more dynamic and unusual, and it all went really well.

“They asked me to do something active and so I did. My point was that music should be taught to a high level at all times - you have to imagine that all the students want to be professional musicians, so respect the subject and make it interesting.”

The SAME Conference 22 was held on September 6 and 7. Other speakers included Mandy Miller on Conduct Your Choir with Confidence, Stephen Cowan on Creative Composing, and Jeff Thomson on Have you got the mood and character?.

DaCapo ethos says: “We do not single out musically talented individuals but use our expertise to equip everyone with the tools to enjoy and explore music to the depth they would like, and to stretch them to the extent of their individual ability.

“We have a philosophy of being open, accessible, flexible and creative.”

To find out more about The DaCapo Music Foundation, visitwww.dacapo.co.uk