SAMRO offering 500 members free online courses 

The eAr Academy is a new homegrown music school intended to enrich learners’ lives through music education. The institute offers unique courses, which focus on seven instruments and different areas of music such as theory, sight-reading and ear training.

The courses include Shedding Sessions, which are customised practice sessions with access to expert teachers enabling students to learn at their own pace.

The courses have been designed to inspire musicians with informative and rigorous material suitable for students at any stage of learning – from beginners to more advanced levels. They aim to introduce students to new or additional instruments, refresh, broaden and deepen their musicianship, and expand their musical career with new knowledge and skills.

Following the partnership, SAMRO members were provided the necessary details of how to apply to participate in the eAr Academy courses, according to a statement on SAMRO's Facebook page.

The eAr Academy was founded by award-winning double bassist, producer, composer and educator Hein Van de Geyn and saxophonist, composer and producer Rus Nerwich who boasts seven solo albums and is behind premier booking agency Tones of Note and the Woodstock Academy of Music.

“With nearly a century of combined music making between us, we’ve realised that true musicianship comes from many sources,” the founders said. “Formal music education can be excellent but it often limits itself to one genre and tends to take a very cerebral approach.

“Online learning, on the other hand, can be one-dimensional, over-gamified or under-structured. We wanted to offer something really rounded and grounded. We knew that broadening the scope of learning would make for a much fuller experience, and a far deeper appreciation, of music: that it would help you become both musically educated and aurally elevated.”