A musician from Paisley has realised his dream of opening a music school in town where he can inspire the next generation of music makers.
Jay Fitzpatrick is a well-known figure in the Paisley music scene and is no stranger to the pages of the Paisley Daily Express having featured in the paper numerous times throughout the past decade or more.
The 24-year-old’s musical exploits have been well documented by this newspaper, beginning when Jay was just a boy performing with the Loud N Proud School of Rock.
He came to national prominence in 2013 when, alongside The Elite band-mate, Jenna Milroy, he was voted off the Britain’s Got Talent TV show, sparking a near-riot among onlookers in Glasgow.
Jay would go on to have a successful music career despite the BGT snub and has performed all over the globe with various musicians.
But he says it was always his dream to open up a music school in his native Paisley.
“Music is all I’ve ever done. And I’ve always wanted to open a music school,” said Jay, who stays in the Hunterhill area of town.
He says that his school provides pupils with professional level equipment to practise on, so they can sound like the pros.
“I wanted to provide proper lessons, a comfortable environment," he continued, "and where the students can come in and instead of playing a beginner drum kit or whatever that doesn’t sound that good, they get a drum kit that a professional would use, drum kits that have actually been on tour, that sound great, so when you hit it you’re like, ‘wow, that sounds fantastic’.
“It’s like that with all our equipment, I’ve got top of the range keyboards, guitars, amps, microphones and soundproofing.”
The Fitzpatrick Academy of Music, located on Clark Street, offers one-to-one tuition in person and online and Jay hopes to inspire and support his students as he was when he started learning.
He added: “I want someone else to experience that, to get the passion that I developed for it at such a young age. I don’t want that to be only my experience, I want it to be someone else’s too.
“I’ve always wanted that, watching someone come in who doesn’t have a clue about how to even hold a guitar or a set of drumsticks and then watch them master something and their face lights up, it’s amazing.”
Jay is currently running a promotion giving people a chance to go and see their favourite musician live and afterwards learn their songs.
Those interested need to go to the Fitzpatrick Academy of Music Facebook page and like and follow the instructions to be in with a chance of winning a £50 Ticketmaster voucher and four free lessons with Jay.
For more information about the school go to fitzpatrickacademyofmusic.co.uk
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