East London Music Group (ELMG) is a registered charity based in East London which exists to deliver music projects in the concert hall and the community. Ambitious in programming and innovative in project design, ELMG works with some of London’s leading freelance musicians and creators. Set up in 2015, the group has given a series of successful performances in East London and in festivals across the South East of England. It has also delivered many music education projects in Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest, at Key Stage 2 and university level.

ELMG has a track record over the last decade of commissioning large-scale new works with a focus on illustrating important episodes of local history. These ambitious pieces have sought to connect people with the history of their area, sometimes ask important political questions, and often involved the participation of community collaborators in performance or development. They have sought to draw historic parallels with the present day and have attempted to widen the appreciation of new music in the local community.

Past commissions have included: 1936: An East London Uprising (2016) by Robin Haigh, which told the story of the Battle of Cable Street, and A Fair Field (2022) by Jonathan Pease, which described the 1888 Bow Matchgirls’ Strike and the effect that had, both on the birth of the nascent movement of New Unionism and the advancement of women’s suffrage. A Fair Field involved four community choirs, a children’s choir, and a community wind orchestra, comprising over a hundred and fifty performers representing every decade of life from under 10 to over 80.

We are proud to have commissioned and premiered new works from composers including Edward Nesbit, Robin Haigh, Lucy Armstrong, Jonathan Pease, Charlotte Harding, Leo Geyer, Lloyd Coleman, Paul Edlin, and Ella Jarman-Pinto.

We have a team of four administrators: Matthew Hardy & Sarah Campbell, founders, Ella Harriss, assistant producer, and Isabel White, fundraiser. We employ a variety of artists who are brought in to suit the needs of each individual project.

We are overseen by a board of six trustees who have a range of expertise in performing arts, education, academia, and finance. We are actively seeking new trustees, if you think you could help us with our work, please get in touch.